As big a fan of Sonny Rollins as Michael Pedicin is, it would be perfectly fine with him if he were able to stop sharing one of the tenor giant’s signature traits: a chronic discomfort with the sound of his own playing. “I’m never satisfied,” said the Philadelphia-area native, some of whose displeasure is directed at producers and engineers who “just don’t understand the music or how the instrument should sound.”

But with his gorgeous 2011 album, Ballads...searching for peace, Pedicin experienced a joyful breakthrough in the studio on two fronts: steady nerves and perfect sound. And with his full-throttle performance on his beautifully recorded new album, Live at the Loft, he raises the bar even higher. Does Pedicin, who in a wide-ranging career including stints with Dave Brubeck and Pat Martino has recorded 11 albums under his own name, finally have his perfectionism under control?