I had been hesitant to review these two albums—Live in Europe from the Fred Hersch Trio and Eric & Will from Eric Vloeimans and Will Holshouser—because both Hersch and Vloeimans have been featured on this site numerous times in recent months. However, after giving both a close listen, I think it would be a disservice to you, gentle reader, not to alert you to these remarkable recordings. Continue reading
Tag Archives: fred hersch
A Masterful Pairing: Hersch and Cohen ‘Live in Healdsburg’
Anat Cohen. Photo by Shervin Lainez.
Fred Hersch with toy piano.
Anat Cohen/Fred Hersch
Live in Healdsburg (Anzic Records)
A review
Anat Hersch and Fred Cohen— Oh, wait. That’s not quite right. But then, given how musically symbiotic their relationship is on Live in Healdsburg, this renaming of clarinetist Anat Cohen and pianist Fred Hersch is apt. Continue reading
Pianist Fred Hersch’s Memoir, ‘Good Things Happen Slowly,’ Presents an Open Book on the Musician and Man
Fred Hersch. Photo by Steve J. Sherman.
In his memoir, Good Things Happen Slowly: A Life In and Out of Jazz, award-winning pianist and composer Fred Hersch chronicles his ongoing journey of self-discovery both as a musician and a man. In particular, it’s the account of a gay man coming to embrace his sexual identity amid cultural upheaval and the devastation of the AIDS epidemic, and struggling to align his artistry with his self in the testosterone-heavy atmosphere of the New York jazz scene. It’s not always a pretty story—Hersch addresses his shortcomings and weaknesses with the same honesty he applies to his strengths—but it is often fascinating. Continue reading
New Releases from Pianists Fred Hersch, Bill Evans, and Vijay Iyer
Vijay Iyer Sextet: Mark Shim, Steve Lehman, Stephan Crump, Tyshawn Sorey, Graham Haynes, Vijay Iyer. Photo by Lynne Harty.
Fred Hersch. Photo by Mark Niskanen.
Bill Evans Trio: Eddie Gomex, Jack DeJohnette, Bill Evans. Photo by Giuseppe Pino.
Two pianists famed for their touch and lyricism, Fred Hersch and the late Bill Evans, have new releases coming. Hersch’s brand-new solo album, Open Book,* available September 8, provides a musical complement to his memoir, Good Things Happen Slowly, which will see bookstores on September 12. The tapes of the Bill Evans release, Another Time: The Hilversum Concert,* surfaced only last fall. Recorded in the Netherlands on June 22, 1968, and available September 1, the album is only the third known recording of the short-lived and very distinctive trio featuring Eddie Gomez on bass and Jack DeJohnette on drums. Vijay Iyer’s reputation rests on an intellectual rigor married to a passionate and progressive heart, along with serious chops, and his new sextet release, Far from Over* (available August 25), manages to be invigorating, complex, and accessible all at once. Continue reading