"(Moran) makes a convincing case for himself as one of the potentially important new voices in jazz. Although he has the facility to play with breath taking fleetness, his uniqueness traces to his refusal to be locked into predictable, bebop-based patterns."
Don Heckman, The Los Angeles Times
Jason Moran has achieved an incredible feat...unanimous praise amongst jazz critics. The 27 year-old pianist/composer is blazing a trail and creating the most innovative and important new voice in jazz along the way.
In his recent essay "Post-War Jazz: An Arbitrary Road Map," Village Voice jazz scribe Gary Giddins, provided an historical glimpse of the music's bounty by selecting one track from each year beginning in 1945. Included in the 57 tracks that represented to him a road map of jazz in the last six decades was a composition by Jason Moran. The tune, "The Sun at Midnight," came from the pianist's 2001 Blue Note recording Black Stars, which featured his trio (bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer Nasheet Waits) and special guest collaborator Sam Rivers. Giddings concluded his reflection on Moran by writing: "You might think that an individual keyboard attack is no longer possible, but you would be wrong." One of jazz's brightest young stars, the 27-year-old Moran has already built a reputation as a jazz original-so well versed in the music's history that he uses the tradition to adventurously chart his own singular path.
He has recorded three stellar CD's as a leader: Soundtrack to Human Motion, Facing Left and the abovementioned Black Stars, all on Blue Note.
For his fourth release, Moran decided to enter the studio sans a support team. The result is a milestone in his career: Modernistic, a solo piano disc that not only offers a variety of concepts and grooves but also a tribute to piano masters who have influenced him.
December 2002
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