Jason Moran
Jason Moran creating a painting using piano keys. Photo credit: Bolade Banjo
Jason Moran is a singular pianist who has excelled as composer, scorer, teacher, multidisciplinary artist and culture leader. He has a riveting, inspiring aura but remains real. He creates constantly and absorbs voraciously, his life blurring with art. He isn’t to be put on a pedestal but a bandstand, with his hands outstretched to pull others up with him.
Such an artist will always be acutely aware of the historical and metaphorical shoulders that have propelled him into a rarefied space. They will keep him grounded, eyes firmly fixed on what is important and the place that art has in the evolution of humanity, culture and society.
In the past he has placed his attention on Thelonious Monk (“In My Mind: Monk @ Town Hall 1959”), a Fats Waller Dance Party, the Very Very Henry Threadgill Festival and the early 20th-century Black innovation of James Reese Europe (From the Dancehall to the Battlefield, 2023). When Moran chose to place his inner gaze on Duke Ellington for his latest album, the solo piano exploration Jason Moran Plays Duke Ellington, it was done with a clarity of intention and a sense of timing.
In his own words, it took him years, decades, to feel that he was ready to open the door to the Duke’s mastery as a composer, bandleader and above all a piano player, an area that is often sidelined. Duke, as many of his champions have emphasized, played much more than “composer’s piano.”
Read full interview at jazztimes.com