Jazz Articles about Joan Stiles

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Joan Stiles: Three Musicians

by Dan Bilawsky
December 6, 2011

On the surface, Three Musicians is a smart collection of performances from a witty threesome, but closer observation reveals deep Cubist intent. In referencing one of Pablo Picasso's masterpieces, pianist Joan Stiles touches on a style of art that rarely finds an overt entrance into jazz, creating a layered, collage ideology within the very fabric of her work. The term “mash-up" has become the phrase of choice in pop music circles to describe arrangements that weave two ...

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Joan Stiles: Hurly-Burly

by Elliott Simon
January 7, 2008

Back with her own unique take on the piano's place in jazz, the aptly named Joan “mistress of many Stiles presents a session with myriad influences in a variety of formats with her sophomore effort, Hurly-Burly. Her first release, Love Call (ZoHo, 2004), was a breath of fresh air that more than hinted at clever arranging skills combined with an ability to interpret and present the “classics" on her own terms. Hurly-Burly makes good on that promise and is evidence ...

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Joan Stiles: Hurly-Burly

by Michael P. Gladstone
December 4, 2007

Pianist, composer, bandleader and occasional vocalist Joan Stiles's terrific Hurly-Burly shows her skill at arranging, as well as being an ambitious tribute to her pianistic heroes. Here's hoping that it works this time, as her debut recording Love Calls (Zoho, 2004), which included a most impressive cast of Clark Terry, Frank Wess, Warren Vache, Benny Powell and Joe Temperley was held in the can for six years until Zoho finally released it.

Hurly-Burly's thematic concept is ...

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Joan Stiles and Lisa Hilton: Two New York States Of Mind

by C. Michael Bailey
August 3, 2007

New York City pianist/vocalist Joan Stiles and Malibu pianist Lisa Hilton have something in common: their taste in men...musical sidemen, that is. Alto saxophonist Steve Wilson, trumpeter Jeremy Pelt and drummer Lewis Nash show up amongst the sextet and quintet featured, respectively, on Stile's Hurly-Burly and Hilton's New York Sessions.

Despite their part-shared personnels, these recordings illustrate vastly different approaches to jazz composition, cover selection and performance. They also honor the musicianship of all involved, making the listening experience both ...

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Joan Stiles: Love Call

by Jochem van Dijk
November 22, 2004

A genre not too often reiterated: songbook rephrasings with a tightly arranged ensemble in various appearances. Although pianist and arranger Joan Stiles is by all means a fine and thoughtful player, it is in the underrated art of writing and conducting horn charts for small ensembles, that Love Call really shines. She makes expert use of either wide or narrow voicings both consonant and dissonant. With only a few players Stiles creates an old-style bigbandish thickness, or ...

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Joan Stiles: Love Call

by Dan McClenaghan
November 20, 2004

On Joan Stiles debut, Love Call, the pianist sometimes had me thinking of Erroll Garner, with a bright elan in her right hand flourishes; and sometimes she had me thinking of Thelonious Monk, with quirky chords and odd angles; but mostly she reminds me--as an arranger, not a player--of Ellington, penning her charts, masterfully, with the individual instrumentalists in mind, on this set of solo piano, piano trio, quartet, septet, octet and nonet renditions of familar songs.The disc ...

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Joan Stiles: Love Call

by Elliott Simon
July 25, 2004

Joan Stiles' solo piano artfully interprets a clever arrangement of “Take the A Train" and perfectly portrays the full range of emotions inherent in Billy Strayhorn's final composition “Blood Count." This is after leading an octet in which tenor giant Frank Wess and baritone man Joe Temperley cut loose on Clifford Brown's “Daahoud." In addition, the pianist makes all stops in between on Love Call.

Stiles' song selection serves as a wonderful introduction to both her expressive touch, which evinces ...