Jazz Articles about Fred Hersch

Fred Hersch: Silent, Listening

by Mike Jurkovic
April 16, 2024

Like many of Fred Hersch's haunted, focused recordings--2017's Grammy nominated Open Book(Palmetto Records), Solo (Palmetto Records, 2015) or In Amsterdam: Live at the Bimhuis (Palmetto Records, 2006)--the short story of Silent, Listening, Hirsch's first solo foray for ECM, is this: Stay for the rich, orchestral novel and the full reward is yours. On his thirteenth solo foray, Hersch tells the whole story which comprises the lyrical abstracts and open questions the pianist poses on the melodically quixotic “Aeon." ...

Claudia Acuna: Duo

by Angelo Leonardi
March 12, 2024

Alcuni classici della canzone popolare latina costituiscono il nucleo del sesto disco da leader di Claudia Acuña. In questa celebrazione la cantante cilena ha coinvolto sette protagonisti del jazz contemporaneo in altrettante esecuzioni in duo caratterizzate da palpitante relazione con la loro identità tradizionale. I due brani conclusivi sono cantati in inglese e la vedono piena protagonista: “Cristal Silence" di Chick Corea è cantato a cappella; “YO" è una sua composizione originale eseguita con un sottofondo percussivo. ...

Fred Hersch: After You've Gone

by Geno Thackara
November 20, 2023

Fred Hersch: Alive... And Kicking

by Jiaowei Hu
September 6, 2023

Few musicians have shaped jazz with such elegant, instinctive, and intimate variations as Fred Hersch. Constantly. Over four decades, life's ups and downs have not stopped him from coming back, time and again, to performing live. No word other than “alive" can be more suitable for the pianist, and it is no coincidence that he chose it to title his album Alive at the Village Vanguard (Palmetto Records, 2023), where he creates special chemistry with vocalist Esperanza Spalding. This live ...

Enrico Rava: The Song Is You

by Richard J Salvucci
April 5, 2023

There are times when the reason for listening is that something is beautiful. What exactly qualifies as beautiful is one of the long-running controversies in Western philosophy, not a matter for amateur debate when the contributors include people such as Hume, Kant, or Hegel. Surely, above the pay grade of the average critic. Not everyone thinks that Chet Baker always played beautifully. For sure, there were many times Baker was not worth hearing. But his admirers will tell ...

Fred Hersch and Esperanza Spalding at Yoshi's

by Roy Strassman
February 15, 2023

Fred Hersch and Esperanza Spalding Yoshis jny: Oakland, CA January 27, 22023 Esperanza Spalding and Fred Hersch graced Yoshi's patrons with their presence last Thursday and Friday. Dressed in a black outfit and white “Life Force" t-shirt, Spalding presented a counterpoised contrast to Hersch, who was conservative in appearance and avuncular in affect. They seemed like an unusual match made in heaven, in some jazz galaxy far away. While it was known that ...

Enrico Rava: The Song Is You

by Mario Calvitti
January 30, 2023

Non sempre gli incontri tra grandi musicisti producono risultati artistici all'altezza delle aspettative, necessariamente alte, e spesso procurano invece delusioni più o meno cocenti. Fortunatamente non è questo il caso della coppia formata dal trombettista Enrico Rava e dal pianista Fred Hersch, entrambi musicisti ampiamente affermati e senza bisogno di presentazioni, ma che finora non avevano mai incrociato le proprie strade. L'inedita collaborazione è iniziata con una breve serie di concerti in Italia nell'estate 2021, in cui i ...