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Fred Hersch

Proclaimed by Vanity Fair magazine, “the most arrestingly innovative pianist in jazz over the last decade or so,” Fred Hersch balances his internationally recognized instrumental skills with significant achievements as a composer, bandleader, and theatrical conceptualist, as well as remaining an in-demand collaborator with other noted bandleaders and vocalists. As a solo pianist (he was the first artist in the 75-year history of New York's legendary Village Vanguard to play week-long engagements as a solo pianist - his second featured run is documented on the 2011 release, Alone at the Vanguard); as leader of a widely praised trio whose Whirl found its way onto numerous 2010 best-recordings-of-the-year lists; and as the impetus behind the ambitious 2011 production, “My Coma Dreams,” a full-evening work for 11 instruments, actor/singer and animation/multimedia - Hersch has fully lived up to the approbation of the New York Times who, in a featured Sunday Magazine article, praised him as “singular among the trailblazers of their art, a largely unsung innovator of this borderless, individualistic jazz – a jazz for the 21st century.” He was nominated for two 2011 Grammy Awards for Alone at the Vanguard - for Best Jazz Album and Best Improvised Jazz Solo; these are his fourth and fifth nominations. His newest trio album is a 2-CD set Alive at the Vanguard and it has been garnering wide critical acclaim as one of his best releases in his many-year recording career. It has been awarded the 2012 Grand Prix du Disque by l'Académie Charles Cros in France.

In addition to his more than three-dozen recordings as a leader/co-leader, his numerous awards include a 2003 Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship for composition, and a Grammy® nomination for Best Instrumental Composition, as well as two Grammy® nominations for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance. Hersch has featured himself as either a solo performer or at the helm of varied small ensembles, which in addition to his trio, include a quintet, as well as his "Pocket Orchestra" featuring an unconventional line-up of piano, trumpet, voice and percussion. Hersch is considered to be the most prolific and celebrated solo jazz pianist of his generation. In 2006, Palmetto released the solo CD Fred Hersch in Amsterdam: Live at the Bimhuis and 2009 welcomed his eighth solo disc, Fred Hersch Plays Jobim, cited as one of the year's Top Ten jazz releases by NPR and the Wall Street Journal. Alone won the "Coup de Coeur" de l'Académie Charles Cros in France and 2011 also saw Hersch place 4th in the Downbeat Critic's Poll and win as Jazz Pianist of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association.

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Album Review

Claudia Acuna: Duo

Read "Duo" reviewed by Angelo Leonardi


Alcuni classici della canzone popolare latina costituiscono il nucleo del sesto disco da leader di Claudia Acuña. In questa celebrazione la cantante cilena ha coinvolto sette protagonisti del jazz contemporaneo in altrettante esecuzioni in duo caratterizzate da palpitante relazione con la loro identità tradizionale. I due brani conclusivi sono cantati in inglese e la vedono piena protagonista: “Cristal Silence" di Chick Corea è cantato a cappella; “YO" è una sua composizione originale eseguita con un sottofondo percussivo. ...

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Play This!

Fred Hersch: After You've Gone

Read "Fred Hersch: After You've Gone" reviewed by Geno Thackara


Amongst the trademark ballads and Thelonious Monk tunes, it's sometimes easy to miss what a mood-lifter it can be when Fred Hersch dashes off a little jaunty stride playing. Also in classic style, this selection sounds way more cheerful than the words would suggest--but in these hands (and especially without the words), it works just fine. ...

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Catching Up With

Fred Hersch: Alive... And Kicking

Read "Fred Hersch: Alive... And Kicking" reviewed by Jiaowei Hu


Few musicians have shaped jazz with such elegant, instinctive, and intimate variations as Fred Hersch. Constantly. Over four decades, life's ups and downs have not stopped him from coming back, time and again, to performing live. No word other than “alive" can be more suitable for the pianist, and it is no coincidence that he chose it to title his album Alive at the Village Vanguard (Palmetto Records, 2023), where he creates special chemistry with vocalist Esperanza Spalding. This live ...

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Album Review

Enrico Rava: The Song Is You

Read "The Song Is You" reviewed by Richard J Salvucci


There are times when the reason for listening is that something is beautiful. What exactly qualifies as beautiful is one of the long-running controversies in Western philosophy, not a matter for amateur debate when the contributors include people such as Hume, Kant, or Hegel. Surely, above the pay grade of the average critic. Not everyone thinks that Chet Baker always played beautifully. For sure, there were many times Baker was not worth hearing. But his admirers will tell ...

5
Live Review

Fred Hersch and Esperanza Spalding at Yoshi's

Read "Fred Hersch and Esperanza Spalding at Yoshi's" reviewed by Roy Strassman


Fred Hersch and Esperanza Spalding Yoshis jny: Oakland, CA January 27, 22023 Esperanza Spalding and Fred Hersch graced Yoshi's patrons with their presence last Thursday and Friday. Dressed in a black outfit and white “Life Force" t-shirt, Spalding presented a counterpoised contrast to Hersch, who was conservative in appearance and avuncular in affect. They seemed like an unusual match made in heaven, in some jazz galaxy far away. While it was known that ...

Album Review

Enrico Rava: The Song Is You

Read "The Song Is You" reviewed by Mario Calvitti


Non sempre gli incontri tra grandi musicisti producono risultati artistici all'altezza delle aspettative, necessariamente alte, e spesso procurano invece delusioni più o meno cocenti. Fortunatamente non è questo il caso della coppia formata dal trombettista Enrico Rava e dal pianista Fred Hersch, entrambi musicisti ampiamente affermati e senza bisogno di presentazioni, ma che finora non avevano mai incrociato le proprie strade. L'inedita collaborazione è iniziata con una breve serie di concerti in Italia nell'estate 2021, in cui i ...

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Album Review

Fred Hersch & Esperanza Spalding: Alive at the Village Vanguard

Read "Alive at the Village Vanguard" reviewed by John Chacona


Is it possible that we underestimate Esperanza Spalding? That would be quite a trick for an artist who has hardly been out of the spotlight since leapfrogging a couple of nobodies named Drake and Justin Bieber to take the Grammy award for Best New Artist in 2011. With a recent resume that includes a high-profile teaching position at Harvard (now ended), a collaboration with preeminent jazz composer Wayne Shorter on the opera “Iphigenia" and a fifth Grammy for 2022's Songwrights ...

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Performance / Tour

Iconic Pianist/Composer Fred Hersch And Visionary Jazz Vocalist Esperanza Spalding Celebrate New Album At New Jersey Performing Arts Center

Iconic Pianist/Composer Fred Hersch And Visionary Jazz Vocalist Esperanza Spalding Celebrate New Album At New Jersey Performing Arts Center

Source: AMT Public Relations

Pianist/composer Fred Hersch and vocalist/bassist/songwriter Esperanza Spalding can both be counted among the most acclaimed and inventive artists in modern jazz. The Village Vanguard is the music’s most reveredvenue, having played host to countless legendary musicians and beloved live recordings. The duo and the club converge for a magical performance on Alive at the Village Vanguard, a rare opportunity for listeners to enjoy the singular and thrilling collaboration between two marquee jazz artists at the top of their game. Due ...

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Education

Open Studio Presents 15-Time Grammy Nominee Fred Hersch In His First Ever Online Course

Open Studio Presents 15-Time Grammy Nominee Fred Hersch In His First Ever Online Course

Source: Braithwaite & Katz Communications

With inspiring artists, deep content, passionate students and a soulful approach, Open Studio is more than a jazz education platform—it’s a global family of music lovers, joining together to celebrate jazz as a vibrant and collaborative art form. Beginning on June 11, 2021, iconic pianist Fred Hersch, a fifteen-time Grammy nominee, will present “Thoughts and Experiments with Solo Piano"—his first ever online course. Featuring 18 lessons over 6 hours, the course also includes an exclusive 45-minute interview with Hersch as ...

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Performance / Tour

New England Conservatory’s Jazz Studies And Contemporary Improvisation Departments Present Performances And Events For 150th Season

New England Conservatory’s Jazz Studies And Contemporary Improvisation Departments Present Performances And Events For 150th Season

Source: Braithwaite & Katz Communications

New England Conservatory’s (NEC) internationally renowned Jazz Studies and Contemporary Improvisation (CI) Departments announce nearly 100 concerts for the celebratory 150th anniversary season. The 2017-2018 season continues to build on NEC’s rich legacy featuring 150 years of innovation showcasing the work of the first fully accredited jazz studies program at a music conservatory as well as the pioneering CI department. The new season showcases diverse musical offerings from today’s most talented artists performed in NEC’s renowned concert halls, including three ...

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Event

New England Conservatory Presents Acclaimed Pianist Fred Hersch In Solo Performance

New England Conservatory Presents  Acclaimed Pianist Fred Hersch In Solo Performance

Source: Ann Braithwaite

Hersch is celebrating his new Palmetto recording Fred Hersch: Solo as well as his 60th birthday and 40th anniversary of his arrival as an NEC student “5-stars. When it comes to the art of solo piano in jazz there are currently two classes of performers: Fred Hersch and everybody else." –Dan Bilawsky, All About Jazz “His sublime lyricism, exquisite touch, sensitive dynamic control, and lush harmonizations are unequaled in a solo setting.” –Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader New England Conservatory presents ...

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Event

Gary Burton, Fred Hersch, Vadim Neselovskyi Trio, Pletenitsa To Perform Concert For The Ukrainian People June 10 At Berklee

Gary Burton, Fred Hersch, Vadim Neselovskyi Trio, Pletenitsa To Perform Concert For The Ukrainian People June 10 At Berklee

Source: Berklee Media Relations

Boston, MA. - 2015—Grammy-winning vibraphonist Gary Burton, jazz pianist and composer Fred Hersch, and others will perform a concert of Ukrainian folk music as an expression of solidarity with Ukrainian refugees Wednesday, June 10, at the Berklee Performance Center. Organized by Burton’s former pianist, Odessa, Ukraine native, and Berklee faculty member Vadim Neselovskyi, Concert for the Ukrainian People will feature a program of traditional Ukrainian folk songs alongside Neselovskyi’s original compositions. Drummer Ronen Itzik, bassist Daniel Loomis, and the Berklee ...

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Recording

Woodwind Expert Steven Lugerner Announces Digital Single With Fred Hersch; West Coast Dates; Upcoming CD By Jacknife

Woodwind Expert Steven Lugerner Announces Digital Single With Fred Hersch; West Coast Dates; Upcoming CD By Jacknife

Source: Terri Hinte Publicity

The greatest improvisers keep an eye open for stimulating new musical settings. San Francisco Bay Area woodwind expert Steven Lugerner, a rising star with a bevy of exceptional albums, has proven adept at creating situations that take jazz’s foremost masters into unexpected realms. His latest album, the digital-only release Gravitations Vol. II, is a gorgeous duo project that places piano great Fred Hersch in an entirely new context. The recording with Hersch, a key mentor for Lugerner, is just one ...

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Education

New England Conservatory Faculty Profile: Fred Hersch

New England Conservatory Faculty Profile: Fred Hersch

Source: Braithwaite & Katz Communications

Fred Hersch has much to look forward to in his immediate future, including the premiere of a new extended composition and a variety of performances in the diverse solo and small-ensemble settings that have made him one of the major contemporary voices in jazz piano. Yet 2015 looms large in his mind for another reason. “It will be my 40th anniversary of association with NEC,” he notes with pride. “I arrived in 1975, graduated in 1977, and took over teaching ...

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Event

Renowned Composer/Pianist And NEC Faculty Member Fred Hersch Presents Master Class On Tuesday, October 7 At New England Conservatory

Renowned Composer/Pianist And NEC Faculty Member Fred Hersch Presents Master Class On Tuesday, October 7 At New England Conservatory

Source: Braithwaite & Katz Communications

“The most arrestingly innovative pianist in jazz over the last decade or so.” —-Vanity Fair Magazine Jazz pianist, composer and NEC faculty member Fred Hersch presents a masterclass for NEC students on Tuesday, October 7 at 3 p.m. The event, which is free and open to the public, takes place in New England Conservatory’s Pierce Hall, 241 St. Botolph Street, Boston, MA. For more information, log on to: necmusic.edu/jazz or call 617-585-1122. Proclaimed by Vanity Fair Magazine as “the most ...

Event

New England Conservatory's Jazz Studies Department Presents October Events With Three Of Its Most Noted Piano Faculty: Jason Moran, Frank Carlberg, and Fred Hersch

New England Conservatory's Jazz Studies Department Presents  October Events With Three Of Its Most Noted Piano Faculty: Jason Moran, Frank Carlberg, and Fred Hersch

Source: Braithwaite & Katz Communications

Some of New England Conservatory’s top jazz piano faculty — Jason Moran, Fred Hersch and Frank Carlberg — will give workshops or concerts at NEC in October. All events are free and open to the public. For more information, log on to necmusic.edu or call 617-585-1260. Tuesday, Oct. 1, 10 a.m., Pianist Jason Moran, Pierce Hall Pianist Moran, a MacArthur Fellow called “the most provocative thinker in current jazz" by Rolling Stone magazine, visits NEC each year for teaching residencies ...

Recording

Caswell Sisters' "Alive In The Singing Air," Featuring Fred Hersch, Due 3/5

Caswell Sisters' "Alive In The Singing Air," Featuring Fred Hersch, Due 3/5

Source: Terri Hinte Publicity

After establishing thriving careers under their own names over the last ten years, sisters Rachel and Sara Caswell have increasingly turned their attention to the musical bond they’d shared since childhood. Vocalist Rachel and violinist Sara first approached Fred Hersch back in 2008 about working with them on a joint project as pianist and co-producer. The results of their collaboration may be heard on Alive in the Singing Air, a breathtaking collection of songs featuring Hersch, one of jazz’s most ...

Photos

Concerts

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Silent, Listening

ECM Records
2024

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Alive at the Village...

Palmetto Records
2023

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Breath By Breath

Palmetto Records
2022

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Sounds Of Love

Sunnyside Records
2022

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The Song Is You

ECM Records
2022

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Full Circle

Newvelle Records
2022

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But Not for Me

From: Alive at the Village Vanguard
By Fred Hersch

The Miss

From: For Now
By Fred Hersch

Whirl

From: Fred Hersch Solo
By Fred Hersch

West Virginia Rose / Home Fries

From: Floating
By Fred Hersch

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