Jazz Articles

Daniel Gassin Trio: Crossover

by Edward Blanco
August 17, 2010

Described as a “brilliant, lyrical young Melbourne pianist/composer," Australian jazz pianist Daniel Gassin reveals but a glimpse of his talents on Crossover, as evidenced by the quality of his compositions and the elite caliber of his performance. A follow up to his debut, Roundtrip (Vorticity Music, 2004)--which was rereleased in 2010--Crossover is an enchanting recording of modern jazz, featuring one of the most unheralded young pianist in jazz today. As with his first album, this also adopts the piano trio ...

Mark Isaacs: Visions

by Ken Kase
May 28, 2006

Mark Isaacs, whose impressive resume includes associations with jazz greats such as Kenny Wheeler and Roy Haynes, as well as extensive forays into classical performance and composition, presents quite a puzzler with Visions. While it's certainly refreshing to see a capable musician take on popular tunes written after 1960, the album ultimately yields mixed results.Purists might argue that popular tunes written during the rock era are too harmonically static to warrant serious exploration. But such stasis certainly gives ...

Mark Isaacs: Visions

by John Kelman
April 24, 2006

Some people insist that contemporary music offers little grist for the imagination, but increasing numbers of jazz artists are proving that's simply not so. From Brad Mehldau to Dave Douglas and Herbie Hancock, new takes on material by artists as diverse as Radiohead, Nick Drake and BjÃrk are becoming an everyday occurrence.

Add Australian-based Mark Isaacs to the list of artists who are reinventing contemporary song. Isaacs, a pianist/composer who is equally comfortable in classical and jazz worlds--that, in itself, ...

Mark Isaacs: Keeping the Standards

by John Kelman
June 7, 2004

Following up his 2000 release, Closer , Australian pianist Mark Isaacs turns away from original composition and instead examines the Great American Songbook in a programme of standards featuring bassist Jay Anderson and drummer Adam Nussbaum. The result is a marked reinvention of pieces including Hoagy Carmichael's “Skylark" and the Bernstein/Sondheim classic, “Somewhere."

A true multidisciplinary artist who is equally at home with classical composition/performance, soundtrack work and jazz, Isaacs's cerebral approach echoes that of Brad Mehldau. He is blessed ...