An entrancing collection of original compositions, discerningly curated standards and one left-field cover from outside the jazz realm, Ballads features stunningly beautiful playing by Preminger and his quartet with pianist Julian Shore, bassist Kim Cass and drummer Allan Mednard. The title of Ballads of course echoes Coltrane’s 60-year-old classic, and in both cases stands as a straightforward description of the albums’ contents. But Preminger’s use of the deceptively simple name also represents a succinct mission statement, one that marks a new direction in the saxophonist’s diverse discography.