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Helen Sung: San Diego, CA, September 15, 2011
by Dan McClenaghan
Helen SungDizzy'sSan Diego Wine and Culinary Arts CenterSan Diego, CA September 15, 2011 From post World War II through the 1970s, what is now called San Diego's “Gaslamp Quarter," centered on 5th Avenue in the in the city's downtown, was a neon-lit area of beer bar dives, pornographic theaters, massage parlors, strip clubs and a variety of greasy spoons catering to the town's young sailors. San Diego was, and is, a Navy town. ...
Continue ReadingHelen Sung: Going Express
by Raul d'Gama Rose
Whether an artist is performing in a play or playing music, doing so live onstage is one of the most challenging acts. Every nuance is captured by an eager audience and, in the case of Going Express, a sensitive sound engineer. There is no room for error; every slip can be fatal. Pianist Helen Sung makes short work of these concerns, however, navigating the music in spritely fashion and with the delicate touch of slender fingers like feathers on the ...
Continue ReadingHelen Sung at Dizzy's San Diego
by Dan McClenaghan
Helen SungDizzy's San DiegoSeptember 23, 2010 Helen Sung came to jazz relatively late, during her classical music studies at University of Texas at Austin. After listening to Houston-bred and now New York-based pianist Helen Sung perform at Dizzy's in San Diego, it's hard to imagine her as a classical player, where precision and perfection of technique and adherence to the traditions sit up much more front and center than they do in jazz.
Continue ReadingHelen Sung: Sungbird (After Albeniz)
by Dan McClenaghan
Pianist/composer Helen Sung could have played it safe. After offering up two fine straight ahead jazz outings-- Push (Blue Moon, 2004) and Helenistique, (Fresh Sound New Talent, 2006), the expectation was “more of the same." And that would not have been a disappointment. Though the New York based artist came to jazz late--during her college years, after early studies in classical music--she came out swinging sweet and lovely on those first two discs.With Sungbird (After Albeniz), the artist ...
Continue ReadingHelen Sung: Helenistique
by Donald Elfman
The title Helenistique, a pun on the leader's name, calls to mind (also punningly) things Greek. The reference puzzled me at first, but it seems to now refer to this sterling young pianist's ability to sculpt intelligent and vital improvisations. She is a confident, technically brilliant keyboard artist who uses a fertile imagination to create new lines and shapes from her raw materials. Thus these “standards," played by countless pianists and other jazz players, take on different colors and textures ...
Continue ReadingHelen Sung: Helenistique
by Dan McClenaghan
New York-based pianist Helen Sung's debut as a leader, Push (Fresh Sound New Talent, 2003), featured mostly original tunes. For her sophomore effort, Sung has chosen some jazz standards, a Prince tune, and one from her own pen, “H*Town," an homage to her hometown of Houston, Texas.In covering jazz standards, one measure of success is how well the artist makes them his or her own. In this very engaging and successful piano trio effort, Sung does just that, ...
Continue ReadingHelen Sung Trio: Helenistique
by John Fidler
The clean, uncluttered sound of the piano trio gets a refreshing workout on Helenistique, Helen Sung's tribute to the jazz standard. For her second recording, Sung works with drummer Lewis Nash and bassist Derrick Hodge.A classically trained pianist, Sung leads her trio well: she solos with authority, intelligence and grit, especially on Rodgers and Hart's “Lover" and above the stuttering rhythms of Thelonious Monk's “Bye Ya," but she knows when to retreat and let Nash and Hodge sparkle. ...
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