Roberta Piket, one of the most virtuosic and versatile
pianists on the current international jazz scene, revisits the iconic jazz
piano trio format with the April 6 release of "West Coast Trio" on
her label Thirteenth Note Records. Joining Piket is the consummate rhythm
section of drummer Joe La Barbera and bassist Darek Oleszkiewicz—part of the
vibrant West Coast jazz scene centered in metro-Los Angeles and whose presence
inspired the album’s title. Guitarist Larry Koonse guests on two tracks.
In addition to debuting two new Piket originals (“Mentor,”
“A Bridge to Nowhere”), West Coast Trio includes inspired interpretations of an
eclectic set of songs ranging from standards like “Falling in Love with Love,”
“Windmills of Your Mind,” and “My Buddy” to the samba “Flor de Lis” by
Brazilian singer-songwriter Djavan, as well as works by fellow modern jazz
pianist-composers Chick Corea (“Humpty Dumpty”), John Hicks (“Yemenja”), and
George Shearing (“Conception”).
Serendipitously, "West Coast Trio"’s release comes
almost 22 years to the day that Piket entered the studio to record her debut
album as a leader—1996’s "Unbroken Line" (Criss Cross), primarily a
quintet session, with Donny McCaslin, Javon Jackson, and Michael Formanek,
among others—and embarked on a career path now in its third decade. Along the
way the pianist, composer, arranger, and bandleader has explored with equal
ease and equanimity a spectrum of stylistic settings ranging from the
mainstream to the avant-garde, from acoustic to electric, from the solo
recordings "Solo" (2012) and 2015’s "Emanation (Solo: Volume
2)" to 2016’s critically acclaimed "One for Marian: A Tribute to
Marian McPartland," a loving homage to one of her champions and mentors
and, until now, the crown jewel of a multifaceted discography. A sextet project
featuring Steve Wilson, Virginia Mayhew, Harvie S, Bill Mobley, and Billy
Mintz, "One for Marian" celebrated McPartland’s underappreciated body
of work as a composer while offering Piket meaty material as an arranger.
Piket’s first love and the format that inspired her early
love for jazz was the piano trio, and she is at her most relaxed and commanding
when she’s stretching out with a bassist and drummer—something she demonstrates
with authority throughout "West Coast Trio." “I definitely feel the
most at ease in a trio,” Piket confides. “What the trio means to me is
intimacy. There’s such a directness of communication between the three
musicians. It’s all about interaction and not knowing what’s going to come
next. It’s the essence of jazz.”
“The
last few records I’ve done had more of an agenda with regard to the
repertoire,” Piket reflects. “On the two solo records I was thinking of ways of
challenging myself. I wanted to choose pieces that force me to stretch, not
just a bunch of standards. 'West Coast Trio' is the first record in a while
where I chose several tunes that are simply fun to blow over. Our only agenda
was to make some beautiful music.”
Born in Queens, New York in 1965, Roberta Piket inherited a
passion for music from both of her parents. Her father was the Austrian
composer Frederick Piket, who made significant contributions to both the
musical liturgy of Reform Judaism and the concert hall. Her mother, Cynthia,
introduced her to the treasures of the Great American Songbook, and she learned
by ear the tunes of Porter, Gershwin, Kern, Rodgers, and Berlin.
Piket enrolled in the joint five-year double-degree program
at Tufts University and New England Conservatory, graduating with a degree in
computer science from the former and in jazz piano from the latter. After a
year as a software engineer, she realized that her calling was music and
returned to New York, where an NEA grant set her up to study with pianist
Richie Beirach. Piket made her recording debut on an album by jazz legend
Lionel Hampton and gained invaluable experience during the formative years of
her career performing as a side-woman with David Liebman, Rufus Reid, Mickey
Roker, Benny Golson, and Ted Curson.
She performs regularly with the Scott Reeves/Jay Brandford
Tentet and the Virginia Mayhew Quartet, in duo with Mayhew, and with Mintz’s
quintet/quartet with saxophonists Tony Malaby and John Gross, and bassist
Hilliard Greene (with whom she also plays in his In & Out Ensemble) as well
as focusing on solo piano performance.
Roberta Piket will perform with her trio—bassist Harvie S
and drummer Billy Mintz—at Mezzrow, NYC, on Thursday 4/19. She’ll also be
appearing at Maureen’s Jazz Cellar, Nyack, NY, on Saturday 4/21.
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