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Eliot Zigmund

Veteran jazz drummer Eliot Zigmund has enjoyed a wide and varied career in jazz spanning forty years of playing.

Past and present associations with artists include Bill Evans, Michel Petrucciani, Vince Guaraldi, Jim Hall, Stan Getz, Benny Golson, Richie Beirach, David Berkman, Gene Bertrocini, Eddie Gomez, Bobby Watson, Eddie Henderson, Enrico Pieranunzi, Dado Maroni, Jed Levy, Bobby Porcelli, Michael Kanan, Mauro Negri, Paolo Birro, Lee Konitz, Don Friedman, Fred Hersch, Art Lande, Helen Merrill, Ted Rosenthal, Pete Malinverni, Lorenzo Conte, Cameron Brown, Warren Vache and many others.

Born 1945 in the Bronx, Eliot grew up in the fertile New York jazz scene of the 50’s and 60’s and began playing professionally at the age of 15 with an older brother who was an aspiring jazz guitarist. He studied music at both the Mannes College of Music and at the City College of New York and upon receiving his degree from CCNY in 1968, he devoted himself to pursuing his dream of becoming a jazz musician. He currently resides in Teaneck, New Jersey with his wife Anna.

Eliot has been a sideman on many recordings and has also released three albums under his own name including his just released Steeplechase recording titled Breeze, featuring Gary Versace, Mike Lee and Phil Polumbi.

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12
Album Review

Bill Evans: You Must Believe In Spring (Hybrid SACD)

Read "You Must Believe In Spring (Hybrid SACD)" reviewed by Doug Collette


The quietude with which “B Minor Waltz (For Ellaine)" opens You Must Believe In Spring belies the hearty homage this release constitutes in recognition of the title's forty-fifth anniversary. As a means of righteous and deserving tribute to his seventieth studio album, the late Bill Evans' debut for the Warner Bros. label is enhanced in a number of ways. First and foremost is the sonic upgrade for hybrid-SACD (as well as the vinyl LP configuration). Using the Plangent ...

262
Rhythm In Every Guise

Eliot Zigmund

Read "Eliot Zigmund" reviewed by David A. Orthmann


Recently I've been listening to Breeze, drummer Eliot Zigmund's 2008 release on the SteepleChase label. In part my interest in the recording stems from catching a couple of Zigmund's sideman gigs at The Turning Point Café in Piermont, NY. On those occasions I couldn't get a handle on all of the things that felt right about his playing. And describing some of the highlights in a live performance review didn't come close to capturing the essence of his style.

470
Album Review

Bill Evans: You Must Believe In Spring

Read "You Must Believe In Spring" reviewed by Chris M. Slawecki


After more than a decade as one of the pianist's most sympathetic bassists, this was Eddie Gomez's last recording with Evans, a trio set with drummer Eliot Zigmund recorded in 1977 and released after Evans' death in 1980.Evans never stopped searching for new ideas. He might be faulted for repeatedly looking for them in the same tunes, but this program is quite varied, including Johnny Mandel's “Suicide is Painless" (the theme from M.A.S.H. ); Michel Legrand's title track; ...

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Album Review

Bill Evans: You Must Believe In Spring

Read "You Must Believe In Spring" reviewed by Mark Corroto


Somewhere between the huge box sets of Bill Evans’ work on Verve, Riverside, Fantasy and his final works (and almost final live dates) lie some true gems. Romantics fall easily for the gritty sounds of Evans accompanying singer Tony Bennett from 1975 and his two Paris concerts from 1979, both released on Blue Note, which are indeed triumphs of his spirit. I’d put my vote in for this session released originally in 1981, a year after Evans’ passing. ...

128
Album Review

The Marvin Stamm Quartet: Elegance

Read "Elegance" reviewed by Jack Bowers


The “invisible man” returns. Trumpeter Marvin Stamm, who played with big bands led by Woody Herman, Stan Kenton and Thad Jones / Mel Lewis, among others, before vanishing in the early ’70s into the wilderness of studio work in New York City, is playing Jazz again — has been for some time now — and that is good news indeed for those of us who appreciate the sort of “elegance” he invariably espouses. Indeed, there’s no more appropriate word than ...

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Performance / Tour

Eliot Zigmund Quartet at Small's NYC

Eliot Zigmund Quartet at Small's NYC

Source: All About Jazz


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Performance / Tour

Jim Desalvo Quartet Featuring Eliot Zigmund, June 10, 2007

Jim Desalvo Quartet Featuring Eliot Zigmund, June 10, 2007

Source: All About Jazz


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Performance / Tour

Jim DeSalvo Trio featuring Eliot Zigmund, 4/22/05

Jim DeSalvo Trio featuring Eliot Zigmund, 4/22/05

Source: All About Jazz


"Without getting in anyone's way, Zigmund was a constant presence. Virtually every stroke had a telling effect. He displayed a knack for briefly foregrounding a single component of the drum kit. On “You And The Night And The Music” several hard hits to the snare leapt out during a brief lull in Richmond's solo. During Ash's “In Your Own Sweet Way” turn, successive strokes to a top cymbal sounded like a chisel splitting a piece of granite. Zigmund made the hi-hat cymbals sing by using just the foot pedal behind Ash on “Beatrice.” He was all ride cymbal when Richmond began to build up a head of steam in the course of “Simone.” The drummer sounded akin to a clamorous machine throughout most of his “I'll Remember April” solo. Utilizing every part of the drum kit, themes were wrapped in long bursts of energy." -David A. Orthmann, ALL ABOUT JAZZ

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Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

You Must Believe In...

Craft Recordings
2022

buy

Everybody Still Digs...

Craft Recordings
2021

buy

Long Distance

Abeat Records
2013

buy

Corner Brilliance

Alma Records
2012

buy

Breeze

SteepleChase Records
2008

buy

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