Greg Reitan: Bounding Line

Los Angeles-based pianist/composer Greg Reitan jumped into the scene with an elegant splash in 2009 with his debut recording, Some Other Time (Sunnyside Records). He followed this up in 2010 with Antibes (Sunnyside Records). Both recordings were critically lauded, drawing comparisons to the work of legendary pianist Bill Evans. Reitan possesses a supple Evans-esque touch, with lots of sparkling single note runs sprinkled into his sound. He also employs a pair of terrific trio mates, bassist Jack Daro and drummer Dean Koba, who have helped Reitan shape a trio sound almost as dynamic and distinctive as that of Bill Evans' second great trio with bassist Eddie Gomez and drummer Marty Morell.

The Bounding Line represents a step forward for the trio. Reitan draws inspiration from English poet William Blake's (1757-1827) concept of a "bounding line," the idea that the sharper and more distinct the assigned boundaries are drawn for a work of art, the more potentially perfect the art. On one level, the piano trio—concerning the mainstream jazz piano trio format here; Cecil Taylor is another story—has well-established boundaries. On another level (a subject for some other time) the underlying complexities, subtleties and dynamics of the art form, as well as the convolutions and quirks of the of artists involved, are endlessly complex. To take things further and argue against this line of thinking (who would not want to argue with William Blake?), late-career John Coltrane and Albert Ayler may have disagreed with the bounding line theory—again, a conversation for another time.

With the idea of a bounding line in mind, Reitan—who had been gifted a residency in composer Aaron Copland's home, Rock Hill, in Cortlandt Manor, New York, in the summer of 2019—went to work. Rock Hill became, in Reitan's words," My hideaway, my solitude," where he was allowed to focus on his composing. His tunes that appear on Bounding Line were germinated in Rock Hill.

"The Path" was inspired by Reitan's' evening walks with his wife during their Rock Hill residency, along the pathways that connect the Hudson River parks. "My Love Is An April Song" is a little-known Earl Zindars composition. Reitan and the trio treat it with a soft touch and respect. "Rising Sun" comes from the pen of Dave Brubeck. It appeared on his Jazz Impressions Of Japan (Columbia, 1964). The trio gives the tune a gentle, introspective calmness. The Reitan original, the relaxed and joyful "Summer Days," came from the pianist's reveries behind the large windows of Copland's music room, while his "Starting Point" sets up an endless loop that brings, compositionally, Brad Mehldau to mind.

Saving the loveliest for last, Reitan presents, fittingly, the Aaron Copland gem, "Down A Country Lane," a tune for with, perhaps, the common man in mind—serene, sacred and at the same time of this earth, a beautiful thank you to the Copland House Foundation's generosity.