Pianist Darrell Grant cut his teeth in New York during the jazz renaissance of the early ’90s, debuting with the enduring classic Black Art and following up with The New Bop. He resettled in Portland in 1997 and began to conceive larger-scale works, such as The Territory, which turns its attention to the rich history and lore of Oregon itself. The immaculate recording captures a work warmly received by a rapt live audience. Cellist Hamilton Cheifetz, bass clarinetist Kirt Peterson, and vibraphonist/marimbist Joe Locke add a wealth of tone colors to the more standard jazz ensemble palette, enabling Grant to orchestrate counterpoint, cross-rhythms, unison writing, and ostinato parts across the ensemble in fresh and unpredictable ways. Bassist Clark Sommers and drummer Brian Blade bring consummate versatility to their dual role as jazz rhythm section and chamber music element. This is vital during the soaring improvised solo flights from Locke, alto saxophonist Steve Wilson (doubling flute), and trumpeter Thomas Barber. Again, the live concert setting seems to light a spark in every player. Grant himself is in fine form as a soloist, on “Rivers” and the climactic finale “New Land” in particular, yet The Territory is not a virtuoso showcase for the leader. The subject matter is profound: Lyrics sung by Marilyn Keller address the dispossession of the Nez Perce tribe (“Chief Joseph’s Lament”) and Japanese internment camps (“Stones Into Blossoms”), while “Aftermath” touches on the 1887 Snake River massacre of over two dozen Chinese miners. But The Territory also celebrates Oregon’s grandeur and natural beauty, evoked by Grant on “Missoula Floods,” “Daybreak at Fort Rock,” and “Hymn to the Four Winds.” Long-form composition is the main thrust, and yet Grant’s gift for melody and songcraft is also strongly in evidence, most of all in the heartrending solemnity of “Stones Into Blossoms.”