Jazz Articles about Joey Calderazzo

About Joey Calderazzo

Album Review

On Amanecer, pianist Joey Calderazzo continues to prove that playing solo is one of his strengths. His fearless and stalwart performances with the Branford Marsalis Quartet have been documented over the last few years but outside of the group his playing soars even more. Like its predecessor Haiku (Marsalis Music,2004), this recording is intimate, insightful, flowing with a quiet strength as the pianist delivers an effective set of tunes (both solo and with special guests). The music ...

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Album Review

Joey Calderazzo: Amanecer

Read "Amanecer" reviewed by Jim Santella

by Jim Santella
June 21, 2007

With five solo piano selections and several with guests in tow, Joey Calderazzo gently squeezes tender melodies from the piano in a program of muted eloquence. He caresses the keys in a fluid manner, adding in blue notes and consonant harmonic gestures to maintain balance. Calderazzo loves to “sing through his piano pieces, providing a fragrant adventure for each tune that's designed to instill lyrical simplicity.

The pianist, 42, has made an impression during the past two decades ...

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Album Review

Joey Calderazzo: Haiku

by Joshua Weiner
August 10, 2004

Until the recording of his new album Haiku , Joey Calderazzo was, he has admitted, frightened by the total exposure of solo piano performance. Indeed, such solo work is daunting to most pianists, particularly in jazz, where the rhythm provided by bass and drums is so integral to the music's movement and swing. Calderazzo, however, exhibits no sign of nerves, and acquits himself nicely on Haiku 's well-balanced and well-recorded program of originals, standards, and one tune each by his ...

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Album Review

Joey Calderazzo: Haiku

by Mark F. Turner
August 1, 2004

The solo jazz piano is a study in diverse angularities of expression. From frenetic tension to simplistic beauty, the instrument can yield various contours of sound. Some of these shapes are realized on Joey Calderazzo's new release, Haiku. A vital member of the Branford Marsalis quartet over the past few years, his last recording as a leader was a self titled trio outing with notables bassist John Pattitucci and drummer Jeff “Tain" Watts. The new recording features a mix of ...

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Album Review

Joey Calderazzo: Haiku

by Jim Santella
July 1, 2004

Joey Calderazzo's solo piano album gives him plenty of room for exploration. He moves gracefully through a program of originals and familiar tunes. Some are up-tempo, outgoing and bright, while others turn loose an introspective nature. The pianist explores jazz from several angles.

It was the parlor pianist of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century who paved the way for jazz’s roots. The audience was attracted to the spontaneity and freedom that ragtime and early jazz espoused. ...

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Album Review

Joey Calderazzo: Joey Calderazzo

by Glenn Astarita
June 1, 2000

Pianist Joey Calderazzo’s debut solo release for “Columbia Records” simply titled, Joey Calderazzo was recorded at the quaint and historic “Tarrytown Music Hall” in Tarrytown, New York and produced by the pianist’s ex-employer, Branford Marsalis. On this outing, Calderazzo aligns himself with an elite crew, as bassist John Patitucci and drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts infuse their exceptional talents throughout this synergistic affair......

Having performed with Calderazzo in saxophonist Michael Brecker’s band, Watts is an intuitive catalyst, which is altogether evident ...

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Album Review