Ran Blake Announces Standards Piano Trio World Premiere

By I Jun. 10, 2002

Enigmatic pianist, composer and New England Conservatory educator Ran Blake will lead the World Premiere performance of his first-ever standard piano trio at the National Library of Canada on Saturday, July 20, as part of the Ottawa International Jazz Festival’s Connoisseur Series. Boston’s Regattabar will host the group’s American premiere less than a week later on Thursday, July 25. The all-star trio of Blake, bassist/composer Ed Schuller and drummer/composer George Schuller will perform a mix of revitalized standards, vintage Blake originals, and freely improvised group compositions in support of their critically acclaimed September 2001 debut, Sonic Temples (GM Recordings).

“The idea of putting Ran together with a rhythm section started to hatch in me about two years ago,” writes producer and Blake mentor Gunther Schuller in the liner notes for Sonic Temples. “It became clear to me that the support of bass and drums, and the inspiration from an older song repertory I knew Ran was familiar with but had not delved into very often, would bring out a side of his artistry not (in my opinion) heard often enough. I have never encountered anyone who can do some of the things Ran can do, with the utmost ease and naturalness, in the realm of touch, timbre, dynamic contrast, and digital fingertip control.”

The genre-defiant 67 year-old MacArthur Genius Grant winner celebrates his 40th anniversary as an active recording artist this year, as well as 35 years as a groundbreaking educator at Boston’s New England Conservatory. Along with documenting his individual, improvisation-based approach to his instrument on more than 30 recordings, Blake has influenced generations of students with his innovative ear training approach and work as Chair of NEC’s Third Stream/Contemporary Improvisation Department since co-founding it in 1973.

Although Blake’s stark reinventions of both himself and selections from the classic American songbook have received most of the trio’s attention, Ed and George Schuller are each 20-plus year veterans of the international jazz scene. Bassist Schuller has performed on over 65 recordings as a sideman, including Joe Lovano’s latest, Viva Caruso (Blue Note), and his innovative solo bass recording, Ong Song (GM Recordings), released in March. Drummer, composer, and arranger George Schuller led the all-star ensemble Orange Then Blue for more than a decade and currently leads The Schulldogs, Chump Change, and the Mili Bermejo/George Schuller Octet. He also performs with Gebhard Ullman’s Conference Call, Free Range Rat, and Matt Darriau’s Ballin’ The Jack among many others.