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Jazz Concerts and Shows

Art Hirahara CD release party
Mon, Feb 16

Art Hirahara is a jazz keyboardist and composer based in Brooklyn, NY. Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, Art moved to New York in 2003 to be challenged by its pool of world-class musicians. There he has honed his craft, performing in a wide range of musical situations ranging from straight ahead standards to time cycle-based progressive jazz to free improvisation. From the traditional to the avant-garde, Art has found a sound of his own that cuts across genres and boundaries.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

allaboutjazz.com

Pianist Art Hirahara’s latest release on the Posi-Tone label is, as the title implies, music to drink in and think in. It’s a collection of aural offerings tied to Hirahara’s experiences coping with the loss of his father, but it’s not a somber program. In fact, quite the opposite. The first three numbers—a brief, up-tempo display of pianistic agility (“With Two Ice Cubes”), a piece born with pulsation that travels to a joyous space (“Father’s Song”), and a number that highlights the grooving interplay between Hirahara, bassist Linda Oh, and drummer John Davis (“Be Bim Bop”)—make it clear that Hirahara is celebrating life, not dwelling on loss.

As the program continues, Hirahara and his trio mates continue to work with good cheer. “D.A.Y.” opens with a swampy groove from Davis and a hint of mystery in Hirahara’s fingers, but it’s off to the races when Davis and Oh open up their stride and let the swing feel take hold. Davis proves to be the star on this piece, stealing the show when he solos and steering the band back into line. Bill Evans‘ “Only Child” proves to be another winner. It’s a fine example of tripartite synergy, highlighting the connections between Oh’s springy bass, Davis’ brush work, independence, and stick-on-ride play, and Hirahara’s firm pianistic direction(s).

Those waiting for overly reflective moments will find few on this album. In fact, “Dead Man Posed,” a number that delivers peace and tranquility in swelling and receding fashion, is it. The album-ending “Nereids And Naiads” is a ruminative and soul-searching number in five that builds into something bolder; “Big Country” develops with thoughtfulness and optimism, though it’s hardly calm; and “The Looking Glass” leaves Hirahara to work out his thoughts, which are not sentimental, by himself. The message in the music seems to be that we all need to eventually look beyond the grief and pain. Loved ones are never really gone, as those that remain continue to carry them forward through stories, deeds, memories, and, in this case, music.

 

 

 

 

 

somethingelsereviews.com

2014 has been a great year for jazz releases, and 2015 will already get off to a strong start with the January 6 release of Art Hirahara’s new LP, Libations & Meditations. We noted when sizing up his 2010 debut for Posi-Tone Records, Noble Path, that the ace pianist only occasionally leads dates.

True to form, he’s taken nearly five years to follow up on Noble Path, primarily because of so many sideman gigs for the likes of Sarah Manning, Tom Tillitsch and Nick Hempton. On those records, his deep feel for melody makes him a sax player’s best friend and he brings that same sense to his own music.

Such as, Libations & Meditations. It’s another trio setting, this time with John Davis (Cassandra Wilson) on drums and the exciting young bassist Linda Oh, currently a part of Dave Douglas’ small combo. They get the ball rolling with Hirahara’s “With Two Ice Cubes,” a rollicking, snappy and clever rewrite of “What Is This Thing Called Love.” When he kicks it into overdrive, Oh’s taut walking bass and Davis’ supple snare work put a firm but not overbearing swing into the proceedings. In the meantime, Hirahara goes on a bop-ish chase for notes that never gets out of control.

And in two minutes, it’s done; nothing more needed to be said.

 

 

 

 

 

 

bop n’ jazz

 

Art Hirahara – Libations & Meditations

BY PETER BACON

 

 

 

 

 

(Post-Tone PR8131)

thejazzbreakfast.com

If all the new tricksy piano trios – you know the ones, they shift time signature every other bar, they imitate loops and stuck CDs, they wear skinny jeans – are proving a little exhausting and you long for a more “in the classic tradition” approach, then do try this San Franciscan relocated to Brooklyn.

Hirahara has sometime Dave Douglas sidewoman Linda Oh on bass and John Davis on drums for this 11-track exploration of where he’s currently at. At times it is “in the classic tradition” – the opener With Two Ice Cubes or the solo The Looking Glass, for example; at others the band gets more abstract and free – the opening of Bop Bim Be – while when Hirahara chooses a tune he hasn’t composed it’s either the unmistakeable cool groove of Bill Evans’ Only Child or the gentle, folky anthem of Kosaku Yamada’s Karatachi No Hana.

It’s a wide-ranging yet cohesive programme from this solid student of the jazz tradition and practitioner of the jazz present.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

steptempest.com

Pianist and composer Art Hirahara has worked and continues to work with a varied group of artists, from the late baritone saxophonist/activist Fred Ho to vocalist Bianca Wu to Travis Sullivan’s Björkestra, bringing a fine sense of melody and rhythmic sophistication to each project. “Libations and Meditations” is his 2nd release as a leader for Posi-Tone Records and features his current working trio of bassist Linda Oh and drummer John Davis. In the 4 years since his previous release, the pianist has been extremely busy as a sideman yet his own music feels as if it has been matured like a good wine.  One should enjoy listening to the interactions of the trio, especially how Davis locks into the groove and drives the uptempo tracks (most effectively on tracks such as “D.A.Y.“, “Be Bim Bop” and its partner “Bop Bim Be.”) Besides leading her own group, Ms. Oh has become quite an in-demand “side person”, working with Dave Douglas, Pascal LeBoueuf, and Kenny Barron.  Her playing here frames most of the pieces on the disc, from the insistent pulse that lies underneath “Father’s Song” to the “get-up-and-go” walking lines on “D.A.Y.” to the impressionistic bowed bass beneath the rippling piano lines and cymbal washes of “Dead Man Posed.”

Upon repeated listenings, one can hear just how distinctive a pianist and composer Art Hirahara has become.  Many of his pieces have strong melodies, rich chords patterns (there are moments when “Big Country” sounds like a Lennon-McCartney compositions) and his playing favors a 2-handed approach. There are 2 handsome solo piano tracks; “The Looking Glass“, which has the elegance of a George Gershwin song, and “Karatachi No Hana“, a work from Japanese composer Kosaku Yamada (1886-1965) that is lovely, with a flowing melody line and sounds quite Western.  He can also swing quite delightfully – just listen to how the Trio navigates the variable rhythms of “Be Bim Bop” and you hear musicians who certainly have great “chops” but who are also having great fun.

“Libations and Meditations” is music that deserves to be heard, not only on “record” but in person. The program has everything a piano trio – actually any sized ensemble – should have, in the intelligent melodies, great interactions and strong solos.   This is music that is full of life and deserves to be part of yours.