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Kevin Fort
Chicago pianist, composer, and educator Kevin Fort brings a lyrical touch, rhythmic vitality, and a deep commitment to musical conversation to his work. Rooted in the straight-ahead jazz tradition, his playing balances the energy of bebop with sensitivity to melody and a distinctive voice as a composer. Scene Newspaper has described him as “one of those rare piano players who can temper his technical brilliance in the service of the composition.”
His latest album, Chiaroscuro (JeruJazz Records, 2026), pairs Fort with guitarist Andy Brown in an intimate dialogue inspired in part by the classic recordings of Bill Evans and Jim Hall. Featuring four Fort originals alongside four standards, the album explores contrasts of light and shadow through the interplay of piano and guitar. Paris Move called it “one of the most quietly masterful piano-guitar duo recordings in recent memory,” while Chicago Jazz Magazine praised its “refreshingly intimate but stirring experience.”
Fort also leads a longstanding trio with bassist Joe Policastro and drummer Jon Deitemyer, described by All About Jazz as “one of the finest working piano trios in the business.” Across four albums—Red Gold (2014), Perspectives (2022), Twilight (2023), and Everything I Love (2025)—the group brings a shared sense of swing, spontaneity, and melodic invention to original compositions and the jazz repertoire.
A versatile collaborator, Fort has performed with artists including Bob Brookmeyer, John Clayton, James Moody, Ira Sullivan, Slide Hampton, Phil Woods, Steve Turre, Bill Watrous, John Pizzarelli, Harry Allen, and Melissa Aldana.
Fort’s connection to jazz began at home, listening to his father play alto saxophone, sitting in on the sounds of household jam sessions, and exploring the family’s collection of classic jazz recordings. He went on to earn undergraduate and master’s degrees in jazz studies at DePaul University, graduating with highest honors. His studies with Chicago pianist Larry Novak helped shape the musical values that continue to guide his playing and teaching.
Fort serves on the faculty of Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music and is a Yamaha Artist.
Gear
Yamaha C7
Tags
Kevin Fort: Chiaroscuro
by Jeff Cebulski
The combination of piano and guitar seems to be a potential no-brainer for artistic jazz expression, yet not many successful attempts exist, on record anyway. The obvious victories and inspirations are the two albums by hall-of-famers Bill Evans and Jim Hall , Undercurrent (Blue Note, 1962) and Intermodulation (Verve, 1966). The Chicago-area pianist Kevin Fort is transparent about the influence of Undercurrent in notes that accompany Fort's album with under-heralded guitarist Andy Brown, Chiaroscuro. Yet the stronger comparison ...
Continue Reading...Kevin Fort: Everything I Love
by Hrayr Attarian
Pianist Kevin Fort is a virtuoso improviser and an imaginative composer with a refreshingly novel style rooted firmly in the mainstream tradition. In addition to playing with several Chicago-area artists, Fort leads a cohesive trio that has created a unique, delightfully textured sound. It is mostly with this ensemble that he has recorded his four superb albums, the last of which is the disc at hand, the captivating Everything I Love. A mix of standards and Fort's originals, ...
Continue Reading...Kevin Fort: Everything I Love
by Dan McClenaghan
The ghosts of pianists past inhabit the music of Kevin Fort. The Chicago-based piano man's third album release, Everything I Love, keeps a grip on the tradition with an eye to right now on this ten-tune workout that includes five engaging Fort originals and and five well-chosen standards, incuding the Cole Porter title tune, the Rodgers and Hart's “Spring Is Here," and Tadd Dameron's “If You Could See Me Now." Those ghosts? Erroll Garner, Tommy Flanagan, maybe even ...
Continue Reading...Kevin Fort: Perspectives
by Edward Blanco
Pianist and composer Kevin Fort follows his extraordinary debut, Red Gold (CD Baby, 2014), with another tip of the hat to jazz standards and the modern tradition; Perspectives is a musical package nicely filled with new arrangements of six classics and four new originals, performed by a standard piano trio. For more than twenty years an in-demand player in Chicago's talent-rich jazz scene, Fort is also an educator, currently lecturing at the Northwestern University Bienen School of Music.
Continue Reading...Kevin Fort: Red Gold
by Edward Blanco
Chicago-based educator and jazz pianist, Kevin Fort unveils his debut and first solo album on Red Gold, where he presents an exciting session of light contemporary jazz employing a standard piano trio to document fresh new arrangements of several standards and three original compositions. An active musician in Chicago's vibrant jazz scene for the past fifteen-years, Fort has performed with some of the best jazz players in the world including Wayne Bergeron, John Clayton, Ramsey Lewis and Bill Watrous among ...
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Kenny Barron
piano
Sonny Rollins
saxophone
Bill Charlap
piano
Sonny Clark
piano
Bill Evans
piano
Benny Green
piano
David Hazeltine
piano
Thelonious Monk
piano
Charlie Parker
saxophone, alto
