NEW RELEASES : In Brief

* * * The New York Jazz Ensemble, “The Bunk Project,” MusicMasters . Would this otherwise solid album of New Orleans traditional jazz have been released if the band didn’t include amateur clarinetist Woody Allen? Probably not. Still, Allen is really just one of the boys here, and his soloing is less assertive--sometimes to the point of sounding timid--than his associates in this ad-hoc group of mostly New York pros. Ultimately, though, this music is more about heart than chops, and in that respect, Allen and his cohorts need make no apologies.

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