Rick DellaRatta, a 36-year-old New York-based international jazz pianist and vocalist, has performed at home in legendary jazz clubs such as The Blue Note, The Five Spot and Birdland, as well as all around the world. Thought Provoking, his latest CD released in June 1997 on Stella Records, features Eddie Gomez on bass, Dave Liebman on saxophone, and Lenny White on drums. Jazz Times noted that "DellaRatta displays his burgeoning talents ...featuring his youthful sounding vocals, energized keyboard skills and prowess as a composer."

Thought Provoking follows Take It or Leave It, DellaRatta's debut CD. With "his swinging piano style" and "sultry vocals," he "brings new life" to jazz standards and captivates with his own unique, avant-garde compositions. According to Cadence Magazine, Rick's debut CD makes "music that orbits between cool and boppish . . . with vocals that really capture a listener's attention."

DellaRatta planned three new recordings in 1998. A long-awaited, intimate solo album, Alone Together,, followed by The Rick DellaRatta Trio-Live in Brazil later in 1998. In July, DellaRatta booked a trip to London, where his symphonic composition Permutata was to recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra on the MMC label. Also set for release in 1998 was a music video of the haunting single "Living Inside a Daydream," from the Thought Provoking CD.

1997 proved an exciting year for DellaRatta. He won New York's Backstage Bistro Award for outstanding excellence in the category of singer/instrumentalist, and was a Mac award nominee for outstanding jazz artist. Also in 1997, DellaRatta brought his unique sound to enthusiastic live audiences on four continents. He kicked off the year with a quintet gig featuring former Herbie Hancock Headhunters' bassist Paul Jackson at Tokyo's New York Bar. DellaRatta returned for another series of engagements in May and again in October; the last tour included a critically-acclaimed performance at the Takeda Jazz Festival in Kyushu, Japan.

After a month-long engagement in July 1997 at the Widder Bar in Zurich, DellaRatta performed at the Panasonic Jazz Festival in New York for the second year in a row, this time at the Metronome. Other U.S. appearances included a tour of South Florida and sold-out performances in upstate New York with former Bill Evans Trio members Eddie Gomez and Elliott Zigmund. And in December, DellaRatta completed a banner year with three concerts in Fortaleza, Brazil, with his trio.

In 1996, DellaRatta had a five month stint in Hong Kong, where he performed nightly at the Quo Quo Club and with a trio at the Mandarin Hotel. He also gave a jazz clinic at the Hong Kong International School. In July, Rick returned to Hong Kong with his quartet for a week of concerts and appearances sponsored by Cathay Pacific, Bacardi, Robert Mondavi and Dom Perignon. In August, the quartet headlined at the world famous Blue Note in New York for the Panasonic Jazz Festival. Other past festival appearances include the DuMarier Jazz Festival in Toronto, SummerFest in Milwaukee and the Loft Jazz Festival in New York.

After getting a Masters in music at the New England Conservatory, Rick toured with Herb Reed and The Platters throughout the Caribbean, Bahamas, Bermuda, Mexico and Jamaica. He also toured as pianist with the Artie Shaw Orchestra throughout the U.S. and Canada, and as opening act and MC for jazz legend Dizzy Gillespie. In addition, Rick has performed in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Iceland; he was a guest clinician at the Birka Music Conservatory in Ostersund, Sweden, and a guest artist at New York University. A native of upstate New York, Rick now resides in New York City, where he performs, composes and records.