Brad Mehldau – piano, Larry Grenadier – Bass, Jeff Ballard – drums
Jazz pianist BRAD MEHLDAU has recorded and performed extensively since the early 1990s. Mehldau’s most consistent output over the years has taken place in the trio format. Starting in 1996, his group released a series of five records on Warner Bros. entitled The Art of the Trio (recently re-packaged and re-released as a 5-Disc box set by Nonesuch in late 2011). During that same period, Mehldau also released a solo piano recording entitled Elegiac Cycle, and a record called Places that included both solo piano and trio songs. Elegiac Cycle and Places might be called “concept” albums made up exclusively of original material with central themes that hover over the compositions. After ten rewarding years with Rossy playing in Mehldau’s regular trio, drummer Jeff Ballard joined the band in 2005.
In 2012 Nonesuch released an album of original songs from the Brad Mehldau Trio – Ode. Ode went on to garner a Grammy-Nomination.
Mehldau’s musical personality forms a dichotomy. He is first and foremost an improviser, and greatly cherishes the surprise and wonder that can occur from a spontaneous musical idea that is expressed directly, in real time. But he also has a deep fascination for the formal architecture of music, and it informs everything he plays. In his most inspired playing, the actual structure of his musical thought serves as an expressive device. As he plays, he listens to how ideas unwind, and the order in which they reveal themselves. Each tune has a strongly felt narrative arch,
His music has appeared in several movies, including Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut and Wim Wender’s Million Dollar Hotel. He also composed an original soundtrack for the French film, Ma Femme Est Une Actrice. Mehldau composed two new works commissioned by Carnegie Hall for voice and piano, The Blue Estuaries and The Book of Hours: Love Poems to God.
Larry Grenadier (Bass) attended Stanford University where he received a BA Degree in English Literature. After moving to the East Coast he played Gary Burton Band, touring US and Europe. He moved to New York City and played with Joe Henderson, Betty Carter, Pat Metheny and the John Scofield Group. For the past year when not touring and recording with Brad Mehldau Trio he tours and records with the Pat Metheny Trio.
Jeff Ballard (Drums, Percussion) grew up in Santa Cruz, California. Toured with Ray Charles from 1988 – 1990. Moved to New York in 1990. Since then, he has played and recorded with Lou Donaldson, Danilo Perez, Chick Corea, and Joshua Redman to name a few. Currently, as well as being a member of the Brad Melhdau Trio, he is a co-leader of the collective group FLY (feat. Mark Turner, Larry Grenadier, Jeff Ballard), and Joshua Redman’s Elastic Band.
