BP Trio featuring Kenny Brooks: 9/11 @ Open Source Galley, BK, 7-9pm
Wednesday 9/11, I’ll be back in action with my esteemed colleagues Kenny Brooks, Gary Wang & Joe Strasser playing the Open Sound music series at Open Source Gallery (306 17th St, BK), 7-9pm. We’ll play original music and jazz favorites as we meditate on the meaning of this intensely charged date, in an indoor/outdoor, urban gallery setting. Thanks to Lily White for booking this community music series.
Mezzrow: Wednesday August 15
Next Wednesday, August 14, my trio returns to Mezzrow, NYC’s premier listening room and jazz club. Gary Wang and Tony Mason will join me for an evening of piano trio music at the crossroads of beauty and groove. Sets at 7:30 and 9pm. Reservations recommended. Join us, do!
Monday, July 15th: Trio with special guest Peter Bernstein
I’ve long loved gifted guitarist Peter Bernstein because he seems to have a direct connection between his melodic imagination and his instrument. His lines sing to me in a way that makes perfect sense- there’s no finger wiggling, no practicing on the bandstand, just pure, heartfelt melody delivered with deep swing. I’m honored to welcome him as a special guest with my trio for a performance on Monday, July 15, 8-11pm at Adelaide’s Salon (176 Eighth Ave, at 19th St NYC). Join us do! (Look for the hidden door masquerading as a vintage Coke Machine). No cover! Free reservations at theintermissionroom.com
JAZZIZ Not What You Think Podcast
JAZZIZ Online Editor Matt Micucci and I recently had an interesting conversation in which we discussed what inspired me to start playing jazz, artists who have most influenced my style, the concept behind the compositions on Radiance, recording at home, the power of groove and much more. Listen here, or check out JAZZIZ Not What You Think wherever you stream fine podcasts (Spotify, Apple Music, etc).
Neon Jazz Podcast Interview
RADIANCE Reviews
(Live at Paradiso in Santa Fe, NM, November 18th, 2023, photo by Carl Coan)
Reviews for my new album Radiance are starting to come in. Here’s a few samples of what the press has to say about our latest recording:
“Paster’s joy of playing catchy but cleverly constructed jazz is palpable… [He] is an intelligent and soulful pianist that turned in a thoroughly enjoyable affair.”
-François van de Linde, Jazz Journal
“There’s a wonderful ‘down home’ feel about [I Remember Nat] that takes me back to my earliest adventures in jazz… absolute groove, folks… Flawless recording and high-energy trio talent make this one of the most fascinating albums I’ve listened to (yet) in 2023… HIGHLY RECOMMENDED”
-Dick Metcalf, Contemporary Fusion Reviews
“Rich with creativity and basted in ‘the blues.’ … “Radiance” is a continuation of Bennett Paster’s passion for playing and composing. He consistently gathers a variety of excellent players. Together, they continue to perpetuate the legacy and value of jazz music and peace on earth.”
-Dee Dee McNeil, Musical Memoirs
JAZZIZ Magazine featured my song “Pyramid Breakfast” in their Winter 2024 Jazz Discovery issue and accompanying CD/playlist. They described the track as having “giddy excitement” and being “deeply blusey.” They continued, “the pianist opens with a late-night Chicago blues-like solo, which picks up momentum as it slides into boogaloo territory, with funky, New Orleans second-line rhythms.”
-JAZZIZ, Winter Discovery 2024 Issue
Pyramid Breakfast: Stanford Jazz Workshop Memories
I first attended the Stanford Jazz Workshop (SJW) in 1984, a 14 year-old High School rising sophomore pianist from Albuquerque, NM. This was my first trip to a jazz camp, and I immediately fell in love with the environment, the people, the music. My teachers that first year included George Cables, Mark Levine, Smith Dobson Sr and Larry Grenadier. I can still remember playing the songs Bouncing with Bud and Think on Me at the final concert, in Dinkelspeil Recital Hall. I’ve returned to SJW many times, first as student, then junior faculty member, and over 35 years since my first summer there, I still return to teach, play concerts and hang at the place I consider my summer second home.
The SJW experience has always been about more than just jazz music- it’s also about community. Many of the friends I’ve made there have influenced me and have remained my closest colleagues and bandmates. Michael Zisman, Gregory Ryan, Yosvanny Terry & Dafnis Prieto come immediately to mind among so many others. In the early years, many of us would meet at the Tressider Memorial Student Union for breakfast before heading to our morning classes. The cafeteria line there had a concept they called Pyramid breakfast- you could pick a few items from each category to make your own custom breakfast. My friends and I would grab our food, then head outside (Stanford’s weather is paradise in the summer) to talk about what we’d learned, what we’d heard, what we were excited about.
Even now, in the jazz clubs of NYC, I often meet musicians whom I first met at SJW- they come up to me and remember the songs we played when I led their ensemble, or recount some lesson I shared in masterclass or theory class, and I feel proud to be part of this continuum of jazz music and culture.
Thinking back to these days, and loving the title “Pyramid Breakfast,” I composed a song for my album, Radiance. It’s a 16-bar gospel and blues influenced tune, starting with descending dominant 7#9 chords coming down from the minor 3rd to the root, simple at its conception, but like many of my tunes, infused with crafty cleverness. The melody is reinforced by 4 note chords below, which works well in a piano trio context, but also lent itself to an expanded performance with horns at the SJW at 50 concert, in the summer of 2022 back in Dinkelspeil Recital Hall- bringing me around full circle to where it all started back in 1984. Enjoy Pyramid Breakfast, from Radiance.
Stream RADIANCE
Just search “Bennett Paster Radiance” on your favorite streaming services, or click the links below to listen:
BANDCAMP (best way to support the artist; no subscription needed; CDs and LPs available for purchase.)
Radiance Released!
I’m delighted to announce the official release of my new recording: Radiance! It’s an exuberant expression of the jazz piano trio tradition, featuring 11 original songs: Radiant music at the crossroads of Beauty and Groove.
I recently heard Paul Simon say that he thinks his songs aren’t complete until they are listened to – I love that idea! Due to the aural, abstract nature of instrumental music, every individual listener will have their own perception of and connection to a work, and these responses may vary widely… So please, I invite you to check out our music, then let me know what you hear, what you feel, what it makes you want to create.
Radiance is now available to stream, or to purchase a download or on CD or vinyl LP.
This album was self-produced and self-funded. Please consider supporting me and my music by purchasing a physical or digital copy. And please consider sharing this album with friends and family. Thanks so much!
Bennett Paster: piano • Gary Wang: bass • Tony Mason: drums
Recorded by Bennett Paster at Benny’s Wash & Dry, December 2022 & April 2023
Mixed by Larry Phillabaum at Cloudland Recording
Mastered by Katsuhiko Naito (vinyl and CD)
All songs composed by Bennett Paster
Wild Kitties Music (BMI)
Photos by Jenni Walkowiak
Design by Atjeljestudio
© (p) 2023 Bennett Paster
Interlude (the third single from Radiance)
(Flowers in Brooklyn’s Greenwood Cemetery- one of my favorite places to wander and explore.)
Life’s busy rhythm seems to really intensify in the Fall. It feels good to be in the creative groove of activity, but sometimes we need an interlude, a break from the constant beat, beat, beat…
This week, I’d like to share my song Interlude- it’s the one track on my new album Radiance that isn’t in a steady pulse; instead we present melody and texture and simply follow the thread of each phrase in “free time.” Imagine the difference between walking purposefully to the subway on your way to work versus wandering around a meadow, following your senses, simply exploring your surroundings. Inspired by my love of free jazz, with shades of Paul Bley, Keith Jarrett and Lyle Mays, Interlude tells a beautiful story in a free, intuitive way, leaving the groove to rest for a brief moment.
Consider taking an interlude yourself, whenever you can afford the time. Wander somewhere unintentionally, and experience your surroundings anew. Please enjoy Interlude, from my new album, Radiance, featuring Gary Wang (bass) and Tony Mason (drums). Available on CD, LP and streaming everywhere on 11/1/23.