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Christian Jacob

Multi-Grammy nominated pianist and arranger Christian Jacob first gained widespread exposure as music director for Maynard Ferguson and later as leader of the Christian Jacob Trio and co-leader of the Tierney Sutton Band. Christian is also the musical director for both Broadway legend Betty Buckley and American icon Jack Jones. He has performed around the globe, with many of the musical giants that inspired him since childhood. Flora Purim and Airto Moreira, Randy Brecker, Miroslav Vitous, Benny Golson, Bobby Watson and Bill Holman to name just a few.

 

Born in Lorraine, France, Christian Jacob fell in love with classical music at age 4 and discovered jazz at age 9. After graduating with “First Prize” from the Paris Conservatory, Jacob came to America to study improvisation at the Berklee College of Music in Boston.  While attending Berklee Christian won a number of awards, including the Oscar Peterson Jazz Masters Award, the Great American Jazz Piano Competition and "Downbeat" magazine's distinction as Top Collegiate Jazz Soloist. He went on to teach at Berklee, tour with Maynard Ferguson, perform and record with a number of jazz legends and was listed by The Japan Times as one of the best-selling foreign jazz pianists in Japan. His extensive discography includes five critically acclaimed trio recordings and six Grammy nominations from his alliance with vocalist Tierney Sutton, drummer Ray Brinker and bassists Trey Henry and Kevin Axt. Christian also received a Grammy Nomination for his arranging work with The Phil Norman Tentet.

 

With his trio (featuring bassist Trey Henry and drummer Ray Brinker), Christian released several outstanding recordings. Styne & Mine, a collection of Christian’s originals and music by Jule Styne; Contradictions, a look at the original compositions of renowned pianist Michel Petrucciani; Live in Japan. The trio’s latest recording, The Originals, is a captivating story-like collection of original compositions. While this recording is truly all about jazz trio, a beautifully orchestrated string section adds depth to 8 of the compositions. 

 

Christian’s solo piano recording, Beautiful Jazz: a private concert, is aptly titled as this intimate solo recording is a dedication to the music that drew him away from the classical world and introduced him to the beautiful world of jazz. Years in the making it is one of the works he is most proud of and was recorded in pure analog and available as a limited-edition vinyl LP.

 

While Christian performs year round, his arranging and orchestration skills are highly sought after. He has been arranging for the Swiss Youth Jazz Orchestra since 1990 and The Scottish National Jazz Orchestra since 2005, featuring such talented artists as John Scofield, Billy Cobham, Charlie Haden, Phil Woods, Joe Lovano, Ron Carter and Gary Burton. 

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Album Review

Ann Hampton Callaway: Finding Beauty. Originals. Volume 1

Read "Finding Beauty. Originals. Volume 1" reviewed by Richard J Salvucci


"This is my most personal record," Callaway says. “Throughout my career, I've loved singing the great jazz classics and selections from the Great American Songbook, but I've always snuck my original songs on various projects. The pandemic made me think, 'I don't know if I'll live through this, but if I do, what's at the top of my bucket list?' And I realized that I wanted to tell my story and share the deepest part of me. What better way ...

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Album Review

Brian Eisenberg Jazz Orchestra: Pain & Beauty

Read "Pain & Beauty" reviewed by Edward Blanco


A religious man at heart, composer/band leader and producer Brian Eisenberg leads an 18-piece big band (The Brian Eisenberg Jazz Orchestra) on a personal musical exploration on the meaning of love through the perspective of what may be beautiful, and what may seem hurtful on the very introspective and challenging Pain & Beauty. The album, as he writes, “is dedicated to that ideal of genuine love...painful yet, beautiful love." Eisenberg sets the musical bar quite high on such lofty and ...

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Big Band Report

A Big Band Spectacular? You Bet Your Brass!

Read "A Big Band Spectacular? You Bet Your Brass!" reviewed by Jack Bowers


On May 23, Betty and I flew to jny: Los Angeles to attend the L.A. Jazz Institute's semi-annual ode to swinging, this one labeled Big Band Spectacular and slated for Thursday through Sunday, May 25-28. We rearranged our schedule to arrive a day early, even before Wednesday's “bonus" event, to attend the funeral of a longtime friend and colleague. As the service was held mid-afternoon Wednesday in Inglewood, we returned to the Westin LAX Hotel, scene of the week's events, ...

9
Album Review

Christian Jacob: Beautiful Jazz: A Private Concert

Read "Beautiful Jazz: A Private Concert" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky


There was a time when pianist Christian Jacob thought he'd be making his mark as a classical pianist. That's perfectly understandable considering the fact that he was playing piano at age four and studying at the Metz conservatory at age six. By the time he was in college, studying at the Paris Conservatory, he was winning awards and prepping for piano competitions. Jacob was following the prescribed course that classical piano hopefuls typically follow, but his destiny ...

227
Live Review

Christian Jacob: On Respect and Knowledge of Jazz in Japan

Read "Christian Jacob: On Respect and Knowledge of Jazz in Japan" reviewed by Wayne Zade


Christian Jacob was born in Lorraine, France, and began classical piano studies at the age of four. His early musical influences included Debussy and Ravel, as well as Oscar Peterson, whose approaches to improvisation impressed him the most. Having won First Prize in a piano competition at the Paris Conservatory, Jacob studied and then later taught at Berklee College of Music in Boston. Maynard Ferguson played an important role early in Jacob's career, giving the pianist a job in ...

408
Album Review

The Christian Jacob Trio: Live in Japan

Read "Live in Japan" reviewed by Jack Bowers


Christian Jacob, surely one of the jazz world's most overlooked and underrated pianists, is enormously popular in Japan, where he was invited to perform a series of concerts in October 2007 with his working trio and to record selected numbers from each to comprise the album Live in Japan. Jacob, who can caress the keyboard as gently as a soft summer rain and swing emphatically at the drop of a hi-hat, brings all his impressive assets to bear in a ...

177
Album Review

The Christian Jacob Trio: Contradictions

Read "Contradictions" reviewed by Jack Bowers


As readers should know by now, I have deep admiration for pianist Christian Jacob, whose praises I have sung whenever the opportunity arose. He is, simply put, one of the finest jazz pianists on the scene, and those who've not heard him play have missed a thoroughly pleasurable experience. On Contradictions, Jacob salutes another marvelous pianist, Michel Petrucciani, whose life was ended far too soon by the effects of osteogenesis imperfecta, a rare bone disease that stunted his physical growth ...

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Recording

Ron Carter & The Jazzaar Festival Big Band Directed By Christian Jacob

Ron Carter & The Jazzaar Festival Big Band Directed By Christian Jacob

Source: Helen Savari-Renold

The live recording, Remembering Bob Freedman at the 2019 Jazzaar Festival, Switzerland was released on October 6, 2021 on Shanti Records. The 17-piece Jazzaar Festival Big Band was assembled specifically for the 2019 festival showcasing the phenomenon of the “Bandstand Learning with Role Models” platform. This was founded in 1992 by Fritz K Renold and Helen Savari-Renold, also the producers of this recording. The album features the bass legend Ron Carter with some acclaimed jazz instrumentalists such as trumpeter Ryan ...

2

Recording

Pianist Christian Jacob Steps Out Solo On "Beautiful Jazz (A Private Concert)", April 1 Release From Wilderjazz

Pianist Christian Jacob Steps Out Solo On "Beautiful Jazz (A Private Concert)", April 1 Release From Wilderjazz

Source: Michael Bloom Media Relations

Grammy nominated pianist and arranger Christian Jacob presents his first solo piano recording, Beautiful Jazz: A private concert, aptly titled as this intimate solo recording is a dedication to the music that drew him away from the classical world and introduced him to the beautiful world of jazz. The release will be available on CD as well as a limited edition vinyl LP in true analog. Recorded in Los Angeles at the Zipper Concert Hall on a Hamburg Steinway Model ...

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Recording

Jazz Times Review Christian Jacob 'Live in Japan'

Jazz Times Review Christian Jacob 'Live in Japan'

Source: All About Jazz

Christian Jacob Live in Japan

The Christian Jacob Trio with bassist Trey Henry and drummer Ray Brinker, is probably best known as Tierney Sutton’s back-up band. But they have also been a stand-alone ensemble for 12 years and sound like it. They interweave their three voices with a confidence and clarity that only come with time.

This album was recorded at the TUC jazz club in Tokyo. Christian Jacob makes the inspired choice to include four melodies that “every Japanese ...

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Recording

Jazz Times Review of "Maynard Ferguson Presents Christian Jacob"

Jazz Times Review of "Maynard Ferguson Presents Christian Jacob"

Source: All About Jazz

Christian Jacob (Concord Jazz)

Pianist Christian Jacob is a wonderful player whose crystalline melodies and expansive harmonies mark him as someone to keep an ear on. Although raised in France, it wasn't until arriving in the States that things started happening. There were tenures with Maynard Ferguson and Gary Burton. And now under the aegis “Maynard Ferguson Presents," Jacob makes an impressive leader debut with Ferguson alums John Patittuci and Peter Erskine. A post-bop modernist touched by the souls of ...

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Performance / Tour

Christian Jacob Tours Japan

Christian Jacob Tours Japan

Source: All About Jazz

Jacob tinkles the next-generation ivories By TAI KAWABATA Christian Jacob is one of the best-selling foreign jazz pianists in Japan. The New York Times labeled him “phenomenal." Some people call this classically trained Frenchman a genius and regard him as a next-generation leader in the jazz world. Christian Jacob (right) and his band. Jacob, who is now active in America's West Coast, will make a major debut in Yokohama and Tokyo this month leading his trio, with Trey Henry on ...

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Performance / Tour

Jazz Vocalist Mellonie Irvine & Friends Featuring Christian Jacob

Jazz Vocalist Mellonie Irvine & Friends Featuring Christian Jacob

Source: Michael Bloom Media Relations

CATALINA BAR & GRILL 6725 Sunset Boulevard Tickets: $15 For more information or tickets call 323-466-2210 Los Angeles will get it's first chance to hear what's taken the Santa Barbara-based jazz singer Mellonie Irvine a lifetime to craft: Straight-ahead jazz laced with soothing, romantic vocals featuring a “dream team" of musicians including pianist Christian Jacob(The Tierney Sutton Band), bassist John Belzaguy (Natalie Cole), drummer/producer Kevin Winard (Steve Tyrell, Sergio Mendes) and trumpeter Jeff Elliott ...

“The phenomenal pianist Christian Jacob — created dense, polyrhythmic thickets that overlaid two or more Latin grooves, through which Mr. Jacob's piano solos sprang out and hurtled.” - Stephen Holden (The New York Times) “Descriptive words such as virtuoso and genius are not words I easily throw around. When I first heard Christian Jacob I knew he was something special... I believe that Christian Jacob is about to become a major force in jazz today!” -Maynard Ferguson “A post-bop modernist touched by the souls of Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett… Pianist Christian Jacob is a wonderful player whose crystalline melodies and expansive harmonies mark him as someone to keep an ear on.” -Jazz Times “A talented jazz piano newcomer, Christian Jacob shines and has the post-Bill Evans sound well in hand.” Reviews CHRISTIAN JACOB TRIO
Contradictions (WilderJazz)

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Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Sylvia Brooks Live...

Rhombus Records
2024

buy

Pain & Beauty

Self Pulished
2023

buy

Finding Beauty....

Shanachie Records
2023

buy

The Duo Collection

Resonant Music
2022

buy

Signature

Rhombus Records
2022

buy

Revelation

Self Produced
2021

buy

Your Heart Is As Black As Night

From: Signature
By Christian Jacob

The Moon is a Kite

From: The Moon is a Kite
By Christian Jacob

Revelation

From: Revelation
By Christian Jacob

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