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Simon Nabatov
His musical education began at the age of 3, his father, himself a musician, being the first teacher. The Central School of Music and Moscow Conservatory were the next steps. After the whole family emigrated and settled in New York in 1979, Nabatov continued his studies at the Juilliard School Of Music. By that time his interest and involvement in jazz and improvised music grew strong enough to make them his main activity.
Since then he performed and recorded with many fine musicians such as Paul Motian,Tony Scott, Sonny Fortune, Kenny Wheeler, Alan Skidmore, Herb Robertson, Louis Sclavis, Charles McPhearson, Billy Hart, David Murray, Paul Horn, Ricki Ford, Marty Ehrlich, Mark Dresser, Jim Snidero, Herb Geller, Dave Pike, Attila Zoller, Matthias Schubert, Barry Altschul, Vladimir Tarasov, John Betsch, Ed Schuller, Arto Tuncboyaci, Adam Nussbaum, Jay Clayton, Ron McClure, Mark Feldman, Drew Gress, Phil Minton, Michael Moore, Han Bennink, Misha Mengelberg, Wolter Wierbos and many others.
He enjoyed continuous work with Ray Anderson Quartet, Arthur Blythe Quartet, NDR Big Band (Hamburg,Germany), Steve Lacy - Simon Nabatov Duo, Perry Robinson Quartet, Nils Wogram Quartet, Nils Wogram - Simon Nabatov Duo, Matthias Schubert Quartet, Matthias Schubert - Simon Nabatov Duo, Klaus König Orchestra.
His own projects and activities include solo recitals, trio with the bassist Mark Helias and the drummer Tom Rainey (both based in New York), quartet "Nature Morte" with the British vocalist Phil Minton, multi reed-player Frank Gratkowski and trombonist Nils Wogram (both from Germany), quintet including his trio plus the violinist Mark Feldman and the trumpet player Herb Robertson ( both residing in New York).
The most recent addition to the list is the formed in 2003 trio Nabatov - Reijseger - Vatcher. The current edition of it includes the Dutch cellist Ernst Reijseger and the American drummer Michael Sarin.
As the co-leader Nabatov plays duos with Nils Wogram, Tom Rainey, Dutch cellist Ernst Reijseger, German tenor sax player Matthias Schubert , Dutch drummer Han Bennink and with the Dutch pianist Misha Mengelberg.
Simon Nabatov performed and recorded numerous pieces of chamber music, some of them written specially for him: "Piano Concerto "Baba" by the American pianist/composer Kenny Werner, "Sonata for violin and piano" by the Irish bassist/composer Ronan Guilfoyle,"Trumpet Sonata", "Cello Sonata", "Trio for flute,cello and piano" by the Swiss reed-player/composer Daniel Schnyder. He also performed and recorded some of the more known "crossover" works, such as "Rhapsody in Blue" by George Gershwin (NDR Symphony Orchestra Hannover,1998) or "Concerto for Jazz Ensemble and Orchestra" by Rolf Liebermann (NDR Symphony Orchestra and Big Band, Hamburg,1996).
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Simon Nabatov 3 + 2: Verbs
by John Sharpe
What constitutes a composition? German-based Russian-born pianist Simon Nabatov makes a convincing case that a simple verbal instruction can suffice on Verbs. It is not a claim he makes himself, but the six supposed improvisations each mines such a distinctive seam that, although spontaneously conceived without melody or other formal arrangement, the initial proposition proves enough. Perhaps germane to the achievement is the presence of the pianist's regular trio mates, bassist Stefan Schönegg and drummer Dominik Mahnig, although that is ...
read moreFrank Gratkowski, Simon Nabatov: Tender Mercies
by John Sharpe
This collection of seven duets from pianist Simon Nabatov and reedman Frank Gratkowski stands as one of those times when the late Misha Mengelberg's term instant composition" for a series of seat-of-the-pants encounters makes absolute sense. Perhaps that should not be a surprise, considering the protagonists histories and shared base in the German city of Cologne. Indeed, their association dates back to at least 1999, when the reedman appeared as part of a quartet on Nabatov's Nature ...
read moreMichaël Attias, Simon Nabatov: Brooklyn Mischiefs
by Neri Pollastri
Registrato all'iBeam di Brooklyn il 6 luglio del 2014 e riemerso dagli archivi nel corso della pandemia, questo album documenta una fortunata serata di improvvisazione tra il pianista di origini moscovite Simon Nabatov e il sassofonista contralto israeliano Michaël Attias, un primo incontro" tra due artisti usi a muoversi su territori accidentati e inesplorati. I cinquantatrè minuti di musica sono suddivisi in cinque tracce, tutte improvvisate a eccezione della terza, che include un'escursione in The Spinning Song" di ...
read moreGratkowski, Nabatov, Mahnig: Dance Hall Stories
by Angelo Leonardi
Il titolo e la foto di copertina sono allusivi e non vanno presi alla lettera. Il pianista Simon Nabatov e il sassofonista Frank Gratkowski non hanno deciso di abbandonare la libera improvvisazione per un omaggio al repertorio da ballo ma includono nella collaborazione il giovane batterista Dominik Mahnig, che si aggiunge in metà dei brani del disco. Anche se pubblicata nel 2020 la registrazione risale a una session in studio (a Colonia) di tre anni prima. A ...
read moreSimon Nabatov: Time Labyrinth
by Angelo Leonardi
Registrato il 17 aprile 2019 a Colonia, Time Labyrinth" è la prima parte di un progetto di Simon Nabatov denominato Changing Perspectives, che sarà completato nel prossimo futuro. Il pianista e compositore di origine russa vive nella città tedesca da quasi tre decenni ed è una figura di primo piano nell'universo della musica improvvisata europea ai confini tra jazz d'avanguardia e musica classica contemporanea. Le sei composizioni che costituiscono l'opera si collocano decisamente nell'ambito della musica ...
read moreSimon Nabatov: Plain
by Angelo Leonardi
Dopo aver riallacciato proficui rapporti con l'ambiente musicale di New York (e il precedente album per la Clean Feed, Last Minute Theory lo dimostra), il pianista Simon Nabatov coinvolge altri notevoli esponenti del jazz più innovativo, in equilibrio tra mainstream avanzato e post-free. Nomi d'alto rilievo come il sassofonista Chris Speed, il trombettista Herb Robertson, il bassista John Hébert e il batterista Tom Rainey. Il pianista d'origine russa -cittadino americano dal 1986 e da anni residente in Germania-chiarisce ...
read moreSimon Nabatov: Time Labyrinth
by Glenn Astarita
Pianist Simon Nabatov is well-known for his explosive semi-structured presentations and freely navigated improvisational advances within this seemingly limitless musical space. But Nabatov is a composer who often stretches the perceived limits of avant-garde jazz. With this effort, he pursues a largely new approach by employing chamberesque forums via an acoustic-electric platform, intensified by consummate woodwind aces Frank Gratkowski, Matthias Schubert and other stalwarts to round out a drummer-less Germany-based septet. In the liners, the leader states that ...
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