Updated: January 26, 2021
Born: January 5
Laced with a pulsating West Coast cool energy, the award-winning composer and acclaimed pianist Lisa K. Hiltons’, recordings are imbued with subtle historical references from a wide variety of genres and eras, sounding distinctly twenty-first century and uniquely of her own style. Her compositional inspirations do spring from jazz legends Thelonious Monk, Count Basie, Horace Silver and Duke Ellington, but they also include her favorite bluesmen, Muddy Waters and Robert Johnson, touches of minimalism from the likes Steve Reich, rhythmic swatches from modernists such as Prokofiev and Bartok or chords from rockers like The Black Keys or Green Day – they all hold sway in Hilton’s imagination when she composes.
Originally from a small town on California’s central coast, Hilton studied classical and twentieth-century piano formally from the age of eight, where she was inspired by her great uncle, Willem Bloemendall, (1910-1937), a Dutch piano virtuoso. Hilton accompanied on the piano for her grammar school glee club starting in third grade, later joining orchestra and band on flute, and performed piano scores for high school musicals.
In college though, due to the lack of creativity in the music program, she dropped out, switching majors and receiving a degree in art instead. Since becoming a professional musician though, this background in the arts has informed Hilton’s composition process noting that she “paints” her compositions with harmonic washes and then “sculpts” them with textural and rhythmic ideas
Tags
All About Jazz Articles
Album Review
- More Than Another Day by Peter J. Hoetjes
- More Than Another Day by Mike Jurkovic
Radio
Album Review
- Chalkboard Destiny by Doug Hall
- Chalkboard Destiny by Mike Jurkovic
- Oasis by Mike Jurkovic
Bailey's Bundles
Take Five With...
Album Review
- Getaway by Dan Bilawsky
Take Five With...
Read more articlesJanuary 15, 2021
Pianist Lisa Hilton Releases More Than Another Day with Rudy Royston...
November 12, 2019
Lisa Hilton Redefines Her Path With Latest Album 'Chalkboard Destiny'...
October 19, 2017
Lisa Hilton Sets Forth On A Journey Promoting Peace, Tranquility and...
December 22, 2016
Pianst Lisa Hilton Release "Day & Night" on Ruby Slippers Productions
April 25, 2014
Composer/Pianist Lisa Hilton Shifts Perspectives Of Life, Music, And...
April 05, 2013
Enter the "Lisa Hilton - Getaway" Giveaway at All About Jazz!
March 27, 2013
Lisa Hilton "Getaway" Release With Larry Grenadier and Nasheet Waits
May 04, 2012
Enter The "Lisa Hilton - American Impressions" Giveaway!
March 11, 2012
Pianist/Composer/Producer Lisa Hilton Releases New Recording "American...
April 26, 2011
Pianist/Composer Lisa Hilton releases "Underground" on April 25, 2011
“Smoking, cooking stuff … one winning wild ride.” —Chris Spector/The Midwest Record 2013
“A wonderful melding of musical worlds.” —George Harris/JazzWeekly 2013
“One of the major voices in the modern jazz community, ” —The Jazz Messenger, 2012
“A true original at the top of her game.” —All About Jazz, 2012
A Lioness of Jazz —JazzReview.com

piano

piano

piano

piano

piano

voice / vocals

guitar

piano

piano

piano

piano

piano

piano
Artists who share similar musical characteristics to Lisa Hilton.