Ten

Jason Moran | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 21, 2010)
• Original Release Date: 2010
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Blue Note Records
• ASIN: B003L7JVFY
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,308 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

Since his formidable emergence on the music scene in the late 90s, jazz pianist Jason Moran has proven more than his brilliance as a performer. The Blue Note Records recording artist has established himself as a risk-taker and innovator of new directions for jazz as a whole.

In almost every category that matters - improvisation, composition, group concept, repertoire, technique and experimentation - Moran, and his group The Bandwagon - with bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer Nasheet Waits - have challenged the status quo, and earned the reputation as "the future of jazz."

Frequently influenced by the wider world of art as his muse, Moran has found inspiration in edgy 20th century painters like Jean-Michel Basquiat (check out "JAMO Meets SAMO" from Soundtrack to Human Motion, as well as his ongoing series of "Gangsterism" compositions); Egon Schiele (whose painting "Facing Left" provided the eponymous title to Moran's second album); and Robert Rauschenberg, whose chaotic refinement inspired Moran's third album Black Stars, featuring the legendary Sam Rivers.

Moran is currently preparing for the release of TEN, his 10th anniversary album with The Bandwagon, on June 22, 2010. The trailblazing trio has proven to be one of the most enduring and creative piano trios in jazz today. TEN represents their most assured and focused album to date.

Moran's debut recording as a leader, Soundtrack to Human Motion, was released in 1999 to great critical praise. Ben Ratliff of The New York Times named it the best album of the year and the Jazz Journalists Association awarded it "Best Debut Recording." The following year, Facing Left, established The Bandwagon trio with bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer Nasheet Waits, and prompted JazzTimes Magazine to declare the album "an instant classic." Moran augmented the trio for his third Blue Note release, Black Stars, adding avant-garde icon Sam Rivers, who plays saxophone, flute and piano on the recording. Gary Giddins of the Village Voice exclaimed, "Black Stars is possibly a Blue Note benchmark, definitely one of 2000's outstanding discs."

In 2002, Moran released his universally acclaimed solo piano disc Modernistic, prompting the Cork (Ireland) Jazz Festival to award him the 2002 Guinness Rising Star Award. Preeminent jazz critic Gary Giddins proclaimed it "a benchmark achievement and a profound illustration of his capacity to combine classicism and maverick innovation."

2003's release The Bandwagon, culled from the trio's six-day stint at New York's Village Vanguard, earned the team of Moran-Mateen-Waits a title as "the best new rhythm section in jazz! --NY Times." The Jazz Journalists Association awarded Moran with the "Up-n-Coming Jazz Musician" of 2003. Moran topped The Downbeat Critics Poll in three categories in 2003 and 2004 - Rising Star Jazz Artist, Rising Star Pianist, Rising Star Composer.

In 2005, his blues homage, Same Mother was released. This same year he received the first ever Playboy Jazz Artist of the Year award. Artist in Residence debuted in 2006 and showcased Moran's signature brilliance with ambitious undertakings. In the span of one year, Moran accepted and recorded three separate commissions from three pre-eminent and very diverse American arts institutions: The Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, the Dia Art Foundation, and Jazz at Lincoln Center.

In 2007, Moran was commissioned to create IN MY MIND: Monk at Town Hall, 1959, the critically-acclaimed multi-media performance investigating Thelonious Monk's famous recording, Monk at Town Hall. IN MY MIND examines Monk's process of creating this seminal concert using audio of conversations with Monk and the arranger Hal Overton.

This personal experience has been transformed into a feature documentary entitled IN MY MIND by director Gary Hawkins. The film premiered at the 13th Annual Full Frame Documentary Festival, and will have a special screening with the New York Public Library in April as part of the Jazz Loft Project exhibition.

Not surprising, the legendary Monk had a pivotal role in influencing young Moran to become a jazz musician. In 1981, at the age of six, the Houston native began studying the piano, but longed to quit until he first heard the sounds of Monk, an experience that established an early role model in Moran's creative development. Moran later honed his musical education at New York's Manhattan School of Music.

Music education still plays a central role in Moran's life. He is on the piano faculty at Manhattan School of Music. He has been lecturer/instructor at Yale University, Dartmouth University, University of Pennsylvania, Eastman School of Music, The Kennedy Center, The New School, New York's Museum of Modern Art, Banff Center for The Arts, Denmarks' Vallekilde Jazz Camp, Skidmore and Stanford Jazz Workshop.

A musician of diverse cultural interests, Moran is a connoisseur of modern furniture design who now exclusively performs in a chair specially built for him by the Danish designer Susanne Forsgreen. He is also a devotee of the painter Jean Michel Basquiat whose work continues to fuel his "Gangsterism..." series of compositions first heard on his debut's instant classic "Gangsterism on Canvas." That series reappears twice on Same Mother's opening and closing numbers, "Gangsterism on the Rise" and "Gangsterism on the Set," which correlate stride and dissonance.

Moran has performed and/or recorded with artists Cassandra Wilson, Wayne Shorter, Charles Lloyd, Dave Holland, Marian McPartland, Don Byron, Joe Lovano, Greg Osby, Steve Coleman, Von Freeman, Andrew Hill (duo), Uri Caine (duo), Bunky Green, Sam Rivers, Lee Konitz, Paul Motian, Chris Potter, Jenny Scheinman, Christian McBride, and Stefon Harris.

Product Description

"In 1999, the same year that Jason Moran released his debut Soundtrack To Human Motion, the prodigy pianist and composer also joined New Directions, a band made up of young stars from the Blue Note roster that went on tour in celebration of the label's 60th anniversary. At the core of New Directions was the genesis of a rhythm section-with Moran, bassist Tarus Mateen, and drummer Nasheet Waits-that would go on to become one of the most enduringly creative piano trios in jazz. Ten years later, the trailblazing trio-which Moran has since dubbed The Bandwagon-headed into Avatar Studios in Manhattan to record Ten, the most assured and focused album of Moran's acclaimed career, a snapshot of a mature band with a decade of shared musical experience from which to draw."

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 44 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Ten-acious Trio June 26, 2010

By Scott Williams

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

Overview:
Ten celebrates 10 years of Jason's bandwagon band with a release of new songs and arrangements. While previous bandwagon CDs tended to be driven by a concept, this CD is just straight forward playing by the trio. Bandwagon is made of up Jason Moran on piano, Nasheet Waits on drums, and Tarus Mateen on bass. In my opinion Jason is the top jazz pianist playing today. Of course there are many other pianists equally deserving this title, but for my taste Jason is the best. His technical ability is phenomenal. He can solo equally well with both hands, and can solo with both hands at the same time. He has his own distinct style and personality which you can hear not only in his compositions, but also, in his arrangements of standards. His style is modern sounding, primarily post bop, but with a touch of free jazz, and avante garde. From both his playing style and compositions you can tell he is a deep thinker.

This is my favorite Jason Moran CD to date. The CD features 6 songs written by Moran, 1 co-written by Moran and Andrew Hill, 1 by bassist Mateen, 1 by Thelonious Monk, 1 by Leonard Bernstein, 1 by Jaki Byard (a former teacher of Moran), and 2 versions of a song written by Conlon Nancarrow. The CD has a good mix of up tempo songs, and ballads. The only area I see for improvement would be to write some bigger parts for drummer Nasheet Waits. He plays great throughout the CD, but doesn't really get a chance to show off his skills. Typically you see more opportunities for the drummer to show off their stuff in a piano/bass/drums format. Overall a great CD and a must have for fans of the piano/bass/drums format, pianists, and Jason Moran fans.

Song Highlights:

Gangsterism over 10 years - This song has a raucous Wild West swinging feel to it. It is more or less the bandwagon theme song. It features some wild soloing from Moran. During one flurry he probably hits every key on the keyboard.

To Bob Vatel Of Paris - This Jaki Byard song opens with a solo statement by Moran. The song has a very happy, "walk in the park", early 50's bebop sort of mood to it. After Moran's intro the bass and drums come in with a nice walking bass line.

Crepuscule with Nellie - In this Thelonious Monk tune, Jason Moran injects his own personality while still staying true to the original Monk tune. Mateen has a great bass solo in the middle of the tune, where the song almost turns into a blues vamp for a few bars. The song starts of very true to the original, then veers off for a little bit, and comes back to the original with a nice recap statement at the end.

Blue Blocks - This song starts of with a Sunday morning sort of feel, and picks up pace as it goes along. At one point there is a section with a barrage of cascading chords that is just wonderful. The mood again is up-tempo and upbeat. This is another great new composition from Moran.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars monk, know monk, the innards November 15, 2011

By Case Quarter VINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

Ten is moran at his best. his style of playing finds space in unexpected places. foremost on compositions by thelonious monk. on Ten, moran describes his treatment of monk's Crepuscule with Nellie as tampering. monk's compositions command a scored approach, forcing musicians to interpret his work with the subtlety of say the best interpreters of a beethoven sonata, no matter how talented and original the sound of the artist, all of the notes scored are expected to be executed without deviation. moran more than tampers, he goes in like a surgeon or a focused bird of prey, a promethean eagle for particular viscera, slowly moving about parts, while leaving the body of monk recognizable as monk, but with a replaced organ or, to extend my metaphor, in removing the organ, his devouring becomes a form of borrowing, and when he's done with his improvisation, and flown away, the next musician to fly along has monk intact to contend with. i say Ten is moran at his best, but what takes place here is a group effort so neat seams do not show. call mateen on bass and waits on drums moran's wings.

moran's gangsterism pieces over a ten year span, inspired by the artist, jean-michael basquiat, are turning out to be variations on a theme of erato by andrew hill in the tradition of bach's Goldberg Variations. i suspect i'm not the only listener of moran's music to play his gangsterism pieces in tandem as they fly out the studios.

a single irritant, Feedback PT. 2, contains the deliberate overlay of feedback as tribute to the legendary jimi hendrix in concert. otherwise, a superb piano trio cd.

7 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The best Jazz album of 2010 April 5, 2011

By Dave

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

Voted the best Jazz album of 2010 by the Village Voice Critics Poll, and certainly deserved it. Virtuoso playing with a heck of a lot of soul. This is where jazz is today.