Jul 9, 2024 11:35 AM
Trumpeter, Educator Jim Rotondi Dies at 61
Jim Rotondi, a renowned hard-bop trumpeter, composer and educator, died suddenly on July 7 at a hospital in France. He…
Isaiah J. Thompson performs during the finals of the 2023 American Pianists Association’s Awards in Jazz.
(Photo: Mark Sheldon)Isaiah J. Thompson won the jazz pianist competition led by the American Pianists Association on April 22. The year-long competition, held every four years, offers the largest award in the world to rising American jazz pianists, including a $50,000 prize, the opportunity to record with Mack Avenue Records, two years of career assistance and a two-year stint as artist-in-residence at the University of Indianapolis, for an overall value of $200,000.
Five finalists in the competition were announced last May: Caelan Cardello, Esteban Castro, Paul Cornish, Thomas Linger and Thompson. All five finalists brought their style and creativity to the events of the competition, which saw pianists Cyrus Chestnut, Bill Cunliffe, Sullivan Fortner, Rio Sakairi and Will Wakefield serve as judges during the final week.
“As pianists, we don’t get to hang around a lot, and I have gotten to know these pianists even more than I already knew them,” Thompson said. “I met some when I was really young at Jazz House Kids, among other things, and it was really wild getting to see them and to see how everyone has grown and how we can learn from each other. I have always been overwhelmed by the piano, but it is wonderful to be part of a piano competition. Winning a piano competition is really humbling, actually, and very affirming; I am just really humble and grateful.”
The competition format included each artist spending a week in Indianapolis during the fall and winter months to be judged playing two sets at The Jazz Kitchen in solo and trio format as well as spending a three-day residency teaching and mentoring in a local high school.
In the final week of the competition, all five finalists performed a noon community concert at Christ Church Cathedral in downtown Indianapolis in advance of the juried events Friday and Saturday night. On Friday, the five finalists performed two sets at The Cabaret with Nick Tucker on bass and Kenny Phelps on drums. Thompson performed his own composition “Citizen Of The Blues” along with his take on Billy Strayhorn’s “Take The ‘A’ Train” and Hoagy Carmichael’s “The Nearness Of You.”
On Saturday, the finalists accompanied vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant at the Hilbert Circle Theatre and performed with the Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra one of their selected tunes arranged for big band by Brent Wallarab and commissioned for this engagement. Thompson kicked off the performances with Salvant playing the Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II tune “Nobody Else But Me” and delivered a playful romp of Randy Weston’s “Hi-Fly” with the Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra. Pianist Bill Charlap was the charming host of the event, which was broadcast live on webcast around the world.
Joel Harrison, the American Pianists Association’s senior artistic adviser, reflected, “If the five finalists for the 2023 American Pianists Awards in Jazz are any indication (and they are), the future of jazz in America looks bright. Our winner, Isaiah J. Thompson, is a strong, solid, well-grounded performer who consistently delivered superb performances, without exception, throughout the awards process. That said, all finalists had moments of brilliance and show-stopping charisma, and all were — and will continue to be — an inspiration. “
Thompson joins an illustrious lineup of past winners including Emmet Cohen (2019), Sullivan Fortner (2015), Aaron Diehl (2011), Dan Tepfer (2007) and Adam Birnbaum (2004), with jazz pianist awards dating back to 1992. DB
Jim Rotondi was acclaimed for his wide, round trumpet tone, remarkable virtuosity and assured swing.
Jul 9, 2024 11:35 AM
Jim Rotondi, a renowned hard-bop trumpeter, composer and educator, died suddenly on July 7 at a hospital in France. He…
Charles Lloyd, seen here at the 2024 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, makes DownBeat Poll history!
Jul 11, 2024 12:23 PM
The incomparable Charles Lloyd swept the 72nd Annual DownBeat Critics Poll, becoming the first artist ever to earn…
“Being president of Blue Note has been one of the coolest things that ever happened to me,” Was said. “It’s a gas to serve as one of the caretakers of that legacy.”
Jun 4, 2024 12:21 PM
Sitting with Don Was is a comfortable and unhurried exercise. He may seem slightly reserved at first, but ideas and…
“She reminds me of my childhood and makes we want to cry,” Cécile McLorin Salvant, pictured here with writer Ashley Kahn, said of Dianne Reeves.
Jun 11, 2024 12:31 PM
Italy’s Umbria Jazz Winter is one of those rare annual festivals that not only coincides with a major holiday —…
Maria Schneider said of Decades, her new compilation release: “I just wanted to create something, put it in a beautiful box and say, ‘Look at what we did.‘”
Jun 18, 2024 12:00 PM
Maria Schneider opened the sleek black box and placed it on a coffee table in her Manhattan apartment. Inside lay the…
