Friday, December 30th, 2011 6:57 PM
What The Critics Say About Fred Hersch
"A master who plays it his way." — Ben Ratliff, The New York Times
"...the most arrestingly innovative pianist in jazz over the last decade or so." — Tad Hendrikson, Vanity Fair
"...a pianist, composer and conceptualist of rare imaginative power." - Nate Chinen, The New York Times
“Hersch’s work has developed an intensity of intelligence and emotional directness unparalleled among his peers.” — Steve Futterman, The New Yorker
"Fred Hersch has earned special acclaim for his work as an unaccompanied soloist capable of building a mesmerizing intensity across the span of an entire set. His latest album, Alone at the Vanguard, demonstrates this knack." Time Out New York
"He's as cutting-edge as any of the younger lions yet as true to the melody and bop tradition as any of the elder statesmen." — Will Friedwald, The Wall Street Journal
"Hersch is in a musical league all his own." - Jon Regan, Keyboard Magazine
"Hersch is consistently able to excavate deep emotions from the wellspring of timeless beauty, ancient traditions, and always the true spirit of modern jazz." — Michael G. Nastos, Billboard
“...a modern master.” — Ted Panken, Downbeat
"Solo Hersch is a complete, self-sufficient, uniquely pure art form." — Thomas Conrad, Jazz Times
“Singular among the trailblazers of their art, a largely unsung innovator of this borderless, individualistic jazz—a jazz for the 21st century—is the pianist and composer Fred Hersch.”
— David Hajdu, The New York Times Sunday Magazine
"...specializes in high lyricism and high danger." — The New Yorker
"...one of the small handful of brilliant musicians of his generation.” — Fred Bouchard, Downbeat
"Fred Hersch has earned special acclaim for his work as an unaccompanied soloist capable of building a mesmerizing intensity across the soan of an entire set. His latest album, Alone at the Vanguard, demonstrates this knack." Time Out New York
"...one of the great masters of jazz piano." — David Adler, New York City Jazz Record Review
“Mr. Hersch has honed a solo piano concept second to none in jazz.” — Ben Ratliff, The New York Times
"... jazz does not get any better." — Peter Hum, The Ottawa Citizen
"...truly transcendant." — Bob Blumenthal, The Boston Globe
“Few jazz pianists have ever struck as beguiling a balance between technique, feeling, insight and imagination...Hersch’s engagement with each of these songs is so complete that he evokes the sort of secret meanings words cannot.” — Ed Hazell, Jazziz
"...a fervent force to be reckoned with." — John Regen, Keyboard Magazine
"Hersch improvises with the sharp conceptual clarity of a classical composer; instead of merely skimming atop the familiar chord changes of standard songs, he forges them into rigorously structured, highly personal re-creations.” — Terry Teachout, The New York Times
"Hersch has remarkably produced a lasting legacy of performances, recordings, and compositions that represent the highest level of musical achievement—works unrivaled in their beauty, imagination, and complexity...a clarity and musical genuis of the highest order. — Victor Schermer, All About Jazz
“There isn’t a false note--technically or emotionally--on the album, a tribute to Hersch’s unerring ability to play music that is as intelligent as it is touching, as virtuosic as it is swinging.” — Don Heckman, Los Angeles Times
“Solo piano is a damn near impossible feat, yet Mr. Hersch seems born to it.” — Joseph Hooper, The New York Observer
“A pristine pianist with a poet’s soul--a pair of qualities that combine to especially dazzling effect” — Joan Anderman, The Boston Globe
“A brilliant technician, a thoughtful, elegant improviser and an artist with a curious ear.” — Fernando Gonzalez, The Miami Herald
“Hersch combines a crystalline touch with soaring lyricism and breathtaking harmonic sophistication.” — Andrew Gilbert, San Jose Mercury News
“The beauty of Hersch’s playing lies in how he honors Monk’s dictums while avoiding Monk’s solutions. Only the most substantial and self-assured of players can speak their own minds while using the words of others.” — Steve Futterman, The New Yorrker
“Hersch has a track record of staying true to himself and making records that are worth listening to and owning.” — David Zych, Jazziz
“...one of the most prolific and thoughtful players around.” — Josef Woodard, Entertainment Weekly
“...a poet of a pianist.” — Whitney Balliett, The New Yorker
“Hersch has become a wise player, with a melodic sense that makes his most technical passages accessible yet uncompromising...an artist enamored of the gestures of music.” — Sylvia Chan, San Francisco Bay Guardian
“A quiet, unassuming monster of a pianist.” — New York Magazine
“Hersch's nearly perfect piano playing...has a magical sense of time and space. He lives the song.” — Bradley Parker-Sparrow, CD Review
“...a pianist of unquestioned distinction...his piano solos revealed bottomless reservoirs of imagination and sensitivity.” — Ernie Santosuosso, The Boston Globe
“...Hersch steps into the front rank of today's pianists.” — Neil Tesser, USA Today
“...the broad, full-bodied piano playing of Fred Hersch...provides an open excitement that is exceptionally effective.” — John S. Wilson, The New York Times
“...a constantly inventive soloist.” — Leonard Feather, The Los Angeles Times
“Hersch is masterful--a strong yet controlled keyboard touch, a knowing use of the full keyboard and an impeccable rhythmic and harmonic sense.” — Phil Elwood, The San Francisco Examiner
“Hersch has arrived. It shows in his repertoire, his touch, his sound, and his growing audience.” — Stuart Troup, New York Newsday
“...one of the leading lights of this generation's pianists.”
— Fred Bouchard, Jazz Times
“one of the most sensitive and genuinely lyrical players in jazz” — Bob Blumenthal, The Atlantic Monthly
“...showed himself to be an astute, responsive, and authoritative player...consistently inventive.” — Richard M. Sudhalter, The New York Post
“...Fred Hersch is a gas!” — Don Nelson, The New York Daily News
"...the most arrestingly innovative pianist in jazz over the last decade or so." — Tad Hendrikson, Vanity Fair
"...a pianist, composer and conceptualist of rare imaginative power." - Nate Chinen, The New York Times
“Hersch’s work has developed an intensity of intelligence and emotional directness unparalleled among his peers.” — Steve Futterman, The New Yorker
"Fred Hersch has earned special acclaim for his work as an unaccompanied soloist capable of building a mesmerizing intensity across the span of an entire set. His latest album, Alone at the Vanguard, demonstrates this knack." Time Out New York
"He's as cutting-edge as any of the younger lions yet as true to the melody and bop tradition as any of the elder statesmen." — Will Friedwald, The Wall Street Journal
"Hersch is in a musical league all his own." - Jon Regan, Keyboard Magazine
"Hersch is consistently able to excavate deep emotions from the wellspring of timeless beauty, ancient traditions, and always the true spirit of modern jazz." — Michael G. Nastos, Billboard
“...a modern master.” — Ted Panken, Downbeat
"Solo Hersch is a complete, self-sufficient, uniquely pure art form." — Thomas Conrad, Jazz Times
“Singular among the trailblazers of their art, a largely unsung innovator of this borderless, individualistic jazz—a jazz for the 21st century—is the pianist and composer Fred Hersch.”
— David Hajdu, The New York Times Sunday Magazine
"...specializes in high lyricism and high danger." — The New Yorker
"...one of the small handful of brilliant musicians of his generation.” — Fred Bouchard, Downbeat
"Fred Hersch has earned special acclaim for his work as an unaccompanied soloist capable of building a mesmerizing intensity across the soan of an entire set. His latest album, Alone at the Vanguard, demonstrates this knack." Time Out New York
"...one of the great masters of jazz piano." — David Adler, New York City Jazz Record Review
“Mr. Hersch has honed a solo piano concept second to none in jazz.” — Ben Ratliff, The New York Times
"... jazz does not get any better." — Peter Hum, The Ottawa Citizen
"...truly transcendant." — Bob Blumenthal, The Boston Globe
“Few jazz pianists have ever struck as beguiling a balance between technique, feeling, insight and imagination...Hersch’s engagement with each of these songs is so complete that he evokes the sort of secret meanings words cannot.” — Ed Hazell, Jazziz
"...a fervent force to be reckoned with." — John Regen, Keyboard Magazine
"Hersch improvises with the sharp conceptual clarity of a classical composer; instead of merely skimming atop the familiar chord changes of standard songs, he forges them into rigorously structured, highly personal re-creations.” — Terry Teachout, The New York Times
"Hersch has remarkably produced a lasting legacy of performances, recordings, and compositions that represent the highest level of musical achievement—works unrivaled in their beauty, imagination, and complexity...a clarity and musical genuis of the highest order. — Victor Schermer, All About Jazz
“There isn’t a false note--technically or emotionally--on the album, a tribute to Hersch’s unerring ability to play music that is as intelligent as it is touching, as virtuosic as it is swinging.” — Don Heckman, Los Angeles Times
“Solo piano is a damn near impossible feat, yet Mr. Hersch seems born to it.” — Joseph Hooper, The New York Observer
“A pristine pianist with a poet’s soul--a pair of qualities that combine to especially dazzling effect” — Joan Anderman, The Boston Globe
“A brilliant technician, a thoughtful, elegant improviser and an artist with a curious ear.” — Fernando Gonzalez, The Miami Herald
“Hersch combines a crystalline touch with soaring lyricism and breathtaking harmonic sophistication.” — Andrew Gilbert, San Jose Mercury News
“The beauty of Hersch’s playing lies in how he honors Monk’s dictums while avoiding Monk’s solutions. Only the most substantial and self-assured of players can speak their own minds while using the words of others.” — Steve Futterman, The New Yorrker
“Hersch has a track record of staying true to himself and making records that are worth listening to and owning.” — David Zych, Jazziz
“...one of the most prolific and thoughtful players around.” — Josef Woodard, Entertainment Weekly
“...a poet of a pianist.” — Whitney Balliett, The New Yorker
“Hersch has become a wise player, with a melodic sense that makes his most technical passages accessible yet uncompromising...an artist enamored of the gestures of music.” — Sylvia Chan, San Francisco Bay Guardian
“A quiet, unassuming monster of a pianist.” — New York Magazine
“Hersch's nearly perfect piano playing...has a magical sense of time and space. He lives the song.” — Bradley Parker-Sparrow, CD Review
“...a pianist of unquestioned distinction...his piano solos revealed bottomless reservoirs of imagination and sensitivity.” — Ernie Santosuosso, The Boston Globe
“...Hersch steps into the front rank of today's pianists.” — Neil Tesser, USA Today
“...the broad, full-bodied piano playing of Fred Hersch...provides an open excitement that is exceptionally effective.” — John S. Wilson, The New York Times
“...a constantly inventive soloist.” — Leonard Feather, The Los Angeles Times
“Hersch is masterful--a strong yet controlled keyboard touch, a knowing use of the full keyboard and an impeccable rhythmic and harmonic sense.” — Phil Elwood, The San Francisco Examiner
“Hersch has arrived. It shows in his repertoire, his touch, his sound, and his growing audience.” — Stuart Troup, New York Newsday
“...one of the leading lights of this generation's pianists.”
— Fred Bouchard, Jazz Times
“one of the most sensitive and genuinely lyrical players in jazz” — Bob Blumenthal, The Atlantic Monthly
“...showed himself to be an astute, responsive, and authoritative player...consistently inventive.” — Richard M. Sudhalter, The New York Post
“...Fred Hersch is a gas!” — Don Nelson, The New York Daily News
Friday, January 21st, 2011 6:57 PM
"Fred Hersch has earned special acclaim for his work as an unaccompanied soloist capable of building a mesmerizing intensity across the span of an entire set. His latest album, Alone at the Vanguard, demonstrates this knack." Time Out New York