Jonathan Katz “East Meadow” (Roving Spirits 2014)
Jonathan Katz – piano
Making a solo piano CD takes guts these days. With so many piano solo, and piano trios focusing on the piano only, a new solo piano CD requires great tunes, a special vision, and the energy to see it through. Katz has all that and then some. On this solo recording of standards and originals, Katz puts together a gorgeous set of tunes with his own special voice, one that is very, very easy to like.“East Meadow” kicks off the set with a lively, upbeat original dedicated to where he grew up in Long Island before transplanting himself to the jazz scene in Tokyo. The tune could not be further from the full-on power of the Tokyo Big Band, which Katz leads, writes for and plays piano in. The nimble touch of the opening tune, places his piano playing front and center, with a high-quality recording that loses none of his nuanced phrasing.
After the bright and lively, “East Meadow,” the CD moves to standards, with a funky bass riff on “Take the ‘A’ Train” and delicate, intimate takes on “Softly as in a Morning Sunrise” and “What is this Thing Called Love?” Those standards feature re-workings that keep you guessing, and leaning in to hear more and more from his unique approach. Katz’s handlings and arrangements are natural and lively on these well-known tunes.“Hamabe no Uta” shows how steeped Katz is in Japanese music. With his former trio, Candela, Japanese music blended with jazz and world music, and here the Japanese tune both resonates and contrasts with the other modern jazz originals and the standards. Katz has an ease with music outside the reach of jazz, and makes deep connections among them all with fresh voicing, harmonies and tonalities.
His own compositions form the heart of the CD, though. “Continuance,” “Glorious” and “Dad & Uncle B” bring together recollections from his upbringing in America, but feel centered in the middle of the jazz scene in Tokyo, too. He works these songs into deeply felt directions, with an inner energy that makes each come out as reminiscence, but also as a strong presence felt in the moment of playing.
The CD is full of reflective intensity, but also with innovative joy in the possibility each tune presents. What makes the CD so special is the consistency and surety Katz commands. There’s no sense of trying to do too much, nor to hold back either, and that balance makes his keyboard work powerful, deep and satisfying.