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Edward Simon

Edward Simon, a native of Venezuela, has made a name for himself over decades in America as a jazz improviser, composer-arranger and band leader, with his profile heightening in recent years as he has explored the commonalities jazz can have with the folkloric sounds of Latin America. JazzTimes summed up his impact this way: “Simon is less talked about than many other important jazz pianists from the Caribbean and South America, but he may be the most complete creative artist among them.” Based in the San Francisco Bay Area as a member of the all-star SFJAZZ Collective, he has been a Guggenheim Fellow along with being awarded multiple composition grants as part of the Chamber Music America’s New Jazz Works initiative. Simon, a Yamaha artist, has recorded 15 albums as a leader or co-leader; his latest is Sorrows and Triumphs, released via Sunnyside Records in April 2018. This follows Simon’s 2016 album Latin American Songbook, with the four-and-a-half-star DownBeat review praising its “grand and sophisticated” sound. Latin American Songbook also won Simon an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Jazz Album. The New York Times has praised Simon’s “light, warm touch” as a pianist, while Jazz Journal International singled out “his deep emotional statements” as a composer and improviser.

Sorrows and Triumphs showcases the long-running virtuoso quartet Afinidad, featuring Simon alongside alto saxophonist David Binney, bassist Scott Colley and drummer Brian Blade. The album’s color-rich arrangements also include several special guests: vocalist Gretchen Parlato, guitarist Adam Rogers and the chamber quintet Imani Winds, plus percussionists Rogerio Boccato and Luis Quintero. The album’s material blends two bodies of work commissioned from Simon by Chamber Music of America’s New Jazz Works: the suites “Sorrows and Triumphs” and “House of Numbers,” their individual movements re-sequenced to form a holistic listening experience that brims with a lyricism both intimate and majestic. About this music, influenced by Simon’s Buddhist practice, he says: “I wanted these compositions to bring joy to the listener, to be direct and accessible, with singable melodies.”

Simon first performed the “Sorrows and Triumphs” suite with Afinidad in 2009 at Walton Performing Arts Center in Arkansas and later at New York’s Jazz Standard, with performances broadcast on National Public Radio’s Jazz Set. Afinidad and Imani Winds unveiled the “House of Numbers” suite in 2016 at California’s University of the Pacific. Simon Rowe, executive director of Roots, Jazz & American Music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, attended the premiere of “House of Numbers,” saying afterward that the blend of the five Imani Winds with Simon’s jazz quartet was “mesmerizing,” as the “writing juxtaposed the lyrical and often dense textures of the quintet with the ever-changing, percolating rhythmic drive of Afinidad.”

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In Pictures

Edward Simon At SFJAZZ 2023

Read "Edward Simon  At SFJAZZ 2023" reviewed by Walter Atkins


Popular Venezuelan pianist Edward Simon performed at SFJAZZ's cozy Joe Henderson Lab in an intimate environment conducive to an evening of expressive music and stage presence. Simon and his talented group consisted of drummer Adam Cruz; bassist Reuben Rogers; and special guests percussionist Luis Quintero, and vocalist Magos Herrera from Mexico. On his new album femeninas: Songs Of Latin American Women (ArtistShare Records,2023) Simon featured varied compositions popularized by women artists including: Rosa Passos, Elizabeth Morris, Marta Valdés ...

1
Radio & Podcasts

Edward Simon and Beegie Adair

Read "Edward Simon and Beegie Adair" reviewed by Joe Dimino


We start the 738th Episode of Neon Jazz with music by San Francisco-based jazz pianist and SFJAZZ Collective member Edward Simon and a song from his Solo Live (Ridgeway Records, 2021) release. We follow “Monk's Dream" with music by one of Simon's influences, Stan Getz. We also hear music from long-time Neon Jazz friend and a timeless saxophonist, Vinnie Riccitelli, along with new material from Simone Prattico, Nick Maclean and Nishla Smith. We sadly say goodbye to pianist Beegie Adair. ...

2
Album Review

Edward Simon: 25 Years

Read "25 Years" reviewed by Angelo Leonardi


Al pubblico del jazz non piacciono molto le compilations ma questa del pianista Edward Simon è speciale. I diciassette brani del doppio CD sono stati scelti da lui--come bilancio e riflessione personale nel 25° anno della sua attività da leader--e forniscono una variopinta retrospettiva delle sue tappe musicali. «L'idea mi è venuta l'anno scorso (2019) quando ho compito 50 anni--ha detto al Columbia Daily Tribune--La raccolta è nata da uno spirito di celebrazione e dalla consapevolezza di quante cose siano ...

11
Album Review

Edward Simon: 25 Years

Read "25 Years" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan


Pianist Edward Simon immigrated to the United States from his native Venezuela while still in his teens. He stayed, and carved out a successful career in music. His fiftieth birthday rolled around, and the artist decided it was time to take a look and listen back. In a musical journey that spans the titular 25 Years, Simon has crafted a lot of music, employing a Latin/jazz/classical approach with a seemingly effortless refinement, making sounds that are unfailingly engaging and beautiful. ...

Album Review

Edward Simon: Sorrows & Triumphs

Read "Sorrows & Triumphs" reviewed by Angelo Leonardi


La figura di Edward Simon ha punti di contatto con quella di Guillermo Klein. Entrambi sudamericani sono pianisti, compositori e bandleader residenti da decenni negli Stati Uniti (Simon s'è trasferito dal Venezuela a 12 anni per studiare alla Performing Arts School di Filadelfia) e realizzano personali sintesi tra jazz contemporaneo, folklore dell'America Latina e raffinate soluzioni colte. Dopo giovanili collaborazioni con Greg Osby, David Binney Kevin Eubanks, Bobby Watson e Terence Blanchard, il pianista ha guidato piccoli ...

4
Album Review

Edward Simon: Sorrows & Triumphs

Read "Sorrows & Triumphs" reviewed by Friedrich Kunzmann


Following in the footsteps of the critically acclaimed eponymous debut record (Red Records) and subsequent sophomore outing Océanos (Criss Cross Records), in 2007, Edward Simon has now once more gathered together the power quartet Afinada, featuring Brian Blade on drums, David Binney on sax and bassist Scott Colley. With the addition of the Imani Winds chamber quintet and the striking presence of guests Gretchen Parlato on vocals and guitarist Adam Rogers Sorrows & Triumphs proves one of the most intricate ...

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Album Review

Edward Simon: Sorrows & Triumphs

Read "Sorrows & Triumphs" reviewed by Jerome Wilson


This project by pianist Edward Simon blends together many diverse elements. The music combines classical formalism with jazz energy and is performed by a combination of Simon's jazz quartet, Afinidad, and the woodwind quintet, Imani Winds, with some guest musicians added in. The compositions themselves are movements of two separate suites written by Simon, “Sorrows And Triumphs," inspired by Buddhist philosophy, and “House Of Numbers," inspired by numerology, rearranged into a cohesive set of music. The end result of all ...

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Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Edward Simon's birthday today!

Edward Simon, a native of Venezuela, has made a name for himself over decades in America as a jazz improviser, composer-arranger and band leader, with his profile heightening in recent years as he has explored the commonalities jazz can have with the folkloric sounds of Latin America. JazzTimes summed up his impact this way: “Simon is less talked about than many other important jazz pianists from the Caribbean and South America, ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Edward Simon's birthday today!

Edward Simon, a native of Venezuela, has made a name for himself over decades in America as a jazz improviser, composer-arranger and band leader, with his profile heightening in recent years as he has explored the commonalities jazz can have with the folkloric sounds of Latin America. JazzTimes summed up his impact this way: “Simon is less talked about than many other important jazz pianists from the Caribbean and South America, ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Edward Simon's birthday today!

Edward Simon, a native of Venezuela, has made a name for himself over decades in America as a jazz improviser, composer-arranger and band leader, with his profile heightening in recent years as he has explored the commonalities jazz can have with the folkloric sounds of Latin America. JazzTimes summed up his impact this way: “Simon is less talked about than many other important jazz pianists from the Caribbean and South America, ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Edward Simon's birthday today!

The process by which Simon became an internationally regarded jazz musician began in the small coastal town of Cardón, Venezuela, where he grew up surrounded by the sounds of Latin and Caribbean music. Born in 1969, Simon credits his father, Hadsy, for developing his passion for music and supporting him and his two brothers, Marlon and Michael, to become professional musicians.He attended the Philadelphia Performing Arts School, graduating at 15, then ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Edward Simon's birthday today!

The process by which Simon became an internationally regarded jazz musician began in the small coastal town of Cardón, Venezuela, where he grew up surrounded by the sounds of Latin and Caribbean music. Born in 1969, Simon credits his father, Hadsy, for developing his passion for music and supporting him and his two brothers, Marlon and Michael, to become professional musicians. He attended the Philadelphia Performing Arts School... Read more.

Place ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Edward Simon's birthday today!

The process by which Simon became an internationally regarded jazz musician began in the small coastal town of Cardón, Venezuela, where he grew up surrounded by the sounds of Latin and Caribbean music. Born in 1969, Simon credits his father, Hadsy, for developing his passion for music and supporting him and his two brothers, Marlon and Michael, to become professional musicians. He attended the Philadelphia Performing Arts School... Read more.

Place ...

1

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Edward Simon's birthday today!

The process by which Simon became an internationally regarded jazz musician began in the small coastal town of Cardón, Venezuela, where he grew up surrounded by the sounds of Latin and Caribbean music. Born in 1969, Simon credits his father, Hadsy, for developing his passion for music and supporting him and his two brothers, Marlon and Michael, to become professional musicians. He attended the Philadelphia Performing Arts School... Read more.

Place ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Edward Simon's birthday today!

The process by which Simon became an internationally regarded jazz musician began in the small coastal town of Cardón, Venezuela, where he grew up surrounded by the sounds of Latin and Caribbean music. Born in 1969, Simon credits his father, Hadsy, for developing his passion for music and supporting him and his two brothers, Marlon and Michael, to become professional musicians. He attended the Philadelphia Performing Arts School... Read more.

Place ...

1

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Jazz Musician of the Day: Edward Simon

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Edward Simon's birthday today! The process by which Simon became an internationally regarded jazz musician began in the small coastal town of Cardón, Venezuela, where he grew up surrounded by the sounds of Latin and Caribbean music. Born in 1969, Simon credits his father, Hadsy, for developing his passion for music and supporting him and his two brothers, Marlon and Michael, to become professional musicians. He attended the Philadelphia Performing Arts School... Read more. Place ...

1

Recording

Monday Recommendation: Edward Simon

Monday Recommendation: Edward Simon

Source: Rifftides by Doug Ramsey

Edward Simon, Venezuelan Suite (Sunnyside) Few jazz albums have been devoted to the music of Venezuela. Victor Feldman’s superb The Venezuelan Joropo (1967) was an exception. Latin musicians were impressed with the authenticity that Feldman achieved using Los Angeles colleagues to interpret traditional Venezuelan music. When it comes to authenticity, however, Edward Simon has an advantage. He is a native of Venezuela who has established himself in the US as a versatile pianist, composer and arranger. Venezuelan Suite has four ...

Mr. Simon's touch, light and warm, allows for his music to drift calmly, taking its time to get to where it has to go. —The New York Times

He doesn't go in for dazzle and fleet-fingered runs but contents himself with digging in and mining the music for drama and invention. He often turns these rural sounds into deep emotional statements. —Jazz Journal International

Simon is an important presence on the jazz and world music scene. —Los Angeles Times

Primary Instrument

Piano

Location

Oakland

Willing to teach

Advanced only

Credentials/Background

Pianist Edward Simon is an experienced educator who has conducted numerous clinics, master classes and workshops around the world, including the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada (2008); the Sibelius Academy, Helsinki (2006); NOCA, New Orleans, LA (2006); Temple University, Philadelphia, PA; East Stroudsburg University, PA; the Music Conservatory at the University of Missouri, Kansas City, MI; City College of New York; EAFIT Universidad Abierta, Medellín, Colombia, WMF Jazz Summer School and Arts Festival, Certaldo, Italy (2008|2009) and the Cork Music Academy, Cork, Ireland (2010). In 2009 Simon was a guest lecturer at New York University, discussing the compositional process of his “Venezuelan Suite”. In 2008 Simon was visiting professor at IUDEM, Caracas, Venezuela, as part of the Fulbright Senior Specialist Program. He has worked as adjunct faculty at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, PA (1996-2001) and currently teaches students from the New School for Jazz & Contemporary Music in New York. Simon has twice received a Certificate of Appreciation for Outstanding Service to Jazz Education (International Association of Jazz Educators, 1999 & 2004). In 2007, he was guest resident artist at Ursinus College and guest lecturer at Rutgers University. This year he was resident artist with the Simón Bolivar Big Band in Caracas, Venezuela and at Langnau Jazz Nights Festival, Langnau, Switzerland. Since 2010, Simon is Visiting Jazz Artist at Western Michigan University. He is currently Resident Artist at the Brubeck Institute. In an ensemble setting, Edward shows students how to develop a group sound and the necessary listening skills to play in a more interactive way. He teaches students how to correctly interpret and incorporate Latin American rhythms and styles into a jazz setting. Utilizing improvisation as a basis, Simon shows students how the compositional process can be instrumental in finding your voice as an artist. Simon has received numerous awards including a Guggenheim Fellowship (2010) and a MacDowell Fellowship (2011). He is currently a member of the SFJAZZ Collective, a prominent musician/composer jazz ensemble dedicated to creating new work and highlighting the music of historically significant jazz composers of the modern era. The Collective is comprised of “eight of the most in-demand” (New York Times) artists performing today. Edward Simon teaches privately. Hourly rate: $150

Clinic/Workshop Information

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Photos

Concerts

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

On Different Paths

Truth Revolution Records
2024

buy

Femininas

ArtistShare
2023

buy

Solo Live

Ridgeway Records
2021

buy

25 Years

Ridgeway Records
2020

buy

Sorrows & Triumphs

Sunnyside Records
2018

buy

Walking

From: On Different Paths
By Edward Simon

La Flor de la Canela

From: Femininas
By Edward Simon

Equanimity

From: Sorrows & Triumphs
By Edward Simon

The Cha Cha

From: La Bikina
By Edward Simon

How Deep Is The Ocean

From: Danny Boy
By Edward Simon

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