The Art of the Jazz Piano Trio Today

In a recent extended interview on Soweto Kinch’s BBC Radio 3 show, Round Midnight, pianist Robert Glasper made an instructive point. Glasper whose output over the last 20 years has explored manifold connections with hip hop, the use of DJ’s and collaborations with such non-jazz artists as Bilal, Lalah Hathaway Kendrick Lamar and Joni Mitchell in addition to numerous production credits covering a wide range of contemporary musical genres-recalled that when he secured his first recording contract with a major label he was determined to use that opportunity to establish his credentials as the leader of a jazz piano trio. Before embarking on other, related musical paths it was important to Glasper to achieve recognition within the jazz world as a significant practitioner in the storied history of the jazz trio. He saw this album as placing an important marker to his peers before embarking on his wider musical explorations.

Why does the piano trio continue to occupy such a pivotal position within the jazz tradition? In this article I identify some pointers.

Many great jazz pianists such as Bill Evans, Oscar Peterson -from the past and Bill Charlap and Kenny Barron from the present day have devoted their careers almost exclusively to the art of the jazz trio. This affiliation has two linked benefits, namely the years devoted to developing the skills required to provide high quality rhythm section accompaniment (piano, bass, drums) to larger combos while also enhancing each pianist’s skill set as the leader of a working jazz trio. And with a few exceptions such as the late Paul Motian and the very current Christian McBride, it is the pianist who is most often deemed the leader of a jazz trio.

Red Garland’s trio “chops” added distinctive lustre to Miles Davis’s classic quintet in the 1950’s Similarly contemporary pianist Jason Moran’s deep understanding of the art of the piano trio has benefitted him in his larger, orchestral compositions and performances. During its glory days in the 50’s and 60’s the iconic Blue Note label secured the services of a core group of proven trio players who provided the bedrock “rhythm section” both supporting and enhancing the performances of the nominal leaders of scores of recordings. Pianist Sonny Clark, bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Pete La Roca all formed part of this Blue Note trio school.

In earlier articles I have focused on such great trio exemplars as Oscar Peterson and Bill Evans. In this piece I want to explore the extraordinary depth, range and continuing importance of the piano trio within contemporary jazz on a global scale. I have identified four distinct reasons for the exalted status of the piano trio within modern jazz.

1. The jazz trio is a unique vehicle for exploring the cultural inheritance of jazz standards. Thus, the incomparable pianist Bill Evans devoted much of his forty year career to the re-invention and reharmonization of a core listing of his favourite standards, Very few Evans performances did not include a rendition of My Foolish Heart-each subtly different in timbre, tone and feel. Contemporary pianists such as Bill Charlap, Gabriel Lachman and George Cables continue to enhance that tradition.

2. The trio remains an ideal mode of expressing original material. The two most recent albums by the sensationally gifted Scottish pianist Fergus McCready are entirely made up of his own compositions with each piece illuminating its predecessor. The even younger London pianist, Sultan Stevenson’s launch album Faithful One is similarly a showcase for his own compositions. Almost all jazz piano recordings present a mix of standards and original compositions, and I would argue that developing an expertise in playing standards provides a natural springboard to original compositions. If you think about it the form of a tin pan alley tune or a bebop standard- 12 bar, theme-bridge-theme, 32 bar, 64 bar etc recur equally regularly in brand new material

3. Fluency in the jazz trio serves to unite all four generations of contemporary jazz pianists. From such jazz elders as Abdullah Ibrahim (90), Joanne Brackeen (86), Kenny Barron (82) and George Cables & Monty Alexander (both 80) through to such fifty somethings as Renee Rosnes, Jacky Terrason and Brad Mehldau on to young lions such as Joey Alexander, Sullivan Fortner and Emmett Cohen. I am in no doubt that across the world, as you read this there are numberless teenage pianists learning the art and craft of the jazz trio.

4. Because jazz is increasingly a global music its practitioners are able to draw widely and creatively from their own traditions. Abdullah Ibrahim has been cross pollinating South African township music with jazz throughout his 70 year career. The aforementioned Fergus McCready is loud and proud about his deep affiliations with Scottish folk music. Franco-American star pianist Jacky Terrason- a source of continuing fascination for me -draws deeply on musical influences from both sides of the Atlantic in his trio playing. While it is certainly too trite to specifically associate piano virtuoso Hiromi ‘s Japanese roots as the pre-eminent dimension to her playing, however those influences are there if you want to hear them.  Listen to her remarkable rendition of Sakura Sakura on Stanley Clarke’s album In The Garden on my playlist. The same could be said both of the great Jamaican pianist Monty Alexander and the much younger Armenian pianist Tigran Hamasyan. As the boundaries of jazz performances continue to expand the jazz trio retains its pre-eminent role.

The Playlist

Selecting a distinctive track from the work of over 25 contemporary pianists was quite a challenging task. I broke my one track per artist rule on 3 occasions. I couldn’t resist representing the French and American sides of Jacky Terrason’s trio art nor choosing just one cut from Fergus McCreadie’s recent album. Finally, I had to find a place for an intriguing piano duo piece by husband and wife Bill Charlap and Renee Rosnes, both exemplary exponents of the art of the jazz trio. Anyhow, in jazz terms what are rules for?!