Jazz Articles about Jacques Loussier

Jacques Loussier Trio: The Brandenburgs

by AAJ Italy Staff
July 31, 2007

Jacques Loussier si dedica da tempo alla musica classica interpretata in chiave jazz. Fra il 1962 ed il 1972 incise ben cinque LP per la serie Plays Bach, nei quali rivisitava due dei Concerti Brandenburghesi, adesso presentati in versione integrale. Allora, rispecchiando un pò le interpretazioni che davano i pianisti dell'epoca, aggiungeva - e molto - alle tipiche linee bachiane, mentre oggi i suoi arrangiamenti sono scarni ed essenziali, con la tipica forma tema-improvvisazione-tema, più mirati a cogliere l'essenza delle ...

Jacques Loussier Trio: Bach: The Brandenburgs

by Jim Santella
October 16, 2006

With his trio, pianist Jacques Loussier has interpreted classical works in a straight-ahead jazz setting for over four decades. He made quite an impression in 1960 with the Play Bach Trio and has never looked back. Newer trios have developed under his direction, letting the practice of reinterpreting classical music in a jazz vein grow prolifically.

The music of J.S. Bach has much in common with modern jazz. There's considerable freedom, changes in mood and tempo, and a ...

Jacques Loussier: Allegretto From Symphony No. 7: Themes And Variations

by Mark Sabbatini
November 6, 2004

Oh, the joys of depressing music.

Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 is one of the finest “downer" compositions ever and a collection of jazz variations on it seems like a can't-miss prospect. The base material is so strong it's like a prime steak--hard to go wrong no matter how it's treated (unless, egad, someone boils it).

Pianist Jacques Loussier has spent more than forty years playing classical variations, so there's little chance of Allegretto From Symphony No. ...

The Jacques Loussier Trio: Handel

by C. Michael Bailey
November 3, 2002

The finest in Jazz interpretation of the Classical Canon...

Classical music adapted to the jazz medium is nothing new. Pianist Uri Caine spent much of the past four years doing so with the music of Wagner, Schumann, Bach, and Mahler . Currently, the Classical Jazz Quartet (comprised of Kenny Barron, Ron Carter, Stefon Harris, and Lewis Nash) has released two recordings interpreting classical pieces, The Classical Jazz Quartet Plays Bach and The Nutcracker . But long before all of these, ...

Jacques Loussier: Bach's Goldberg Variations

by AAJ Staff
May 1, 2000

Jacques Loussier and his trio are back once again, interpreting the music of Johann Sebastian Bach in this new release on the Telarc label entitled Bach's Goldberg Variations. I had high praise for Loussier in my reviews of his two previous Telarc releases; Bolero and The Bach Book. In the history books, Loussier will certainly be looked upon as a major figure in the development of the genre crossover; his 1959 album Play Bach Trio may have been the first ...

Jacques Loussier: The Four Seasons

by Douglas Payne
April 1, 1997

For nearly four decades now, French pianist and composer Jacques Loussier has been issuing peerless jazz versions of Bach's multifaceted music. Although that may sound like a novelty (remember Bachbusters?), Loussier understands both idioms well and is partial to no one particular genre, as he also includes touches of rock and the avant-garde in his style too. Loussier makes a successful case for defining music as simply music without pigeonholing it into genre. He often conjures images of John Lewis ...