BRATTLEBORO — The Vermont Jazz Center welcomes legendary pianist Fred Hersch to its Cotton Mill venue on Saturday, March 12, at 8 p.m.
Hersch will be performing with his working trio of Jon Hébert (bass) and Eric McPherson (drums). Hersch is one of the leading jazz pianists in the world. Through his commitment to originality, embrace of romanticism, mastery of the bebop language, and chameleon-like ability to blend genres Hersch has carved out a unique niche that is - as Duke Ellington might have said - “beyond category.”
Now in his late 50s, Hersch's example serves as a bridge between younger players who have studied jazz formally and the old-schoolers who learned on the bandstand and from recordings.
Hersch says that he “learned in the oral tradition from older players” and he especially lauds any musician who has made it on their own and shaped their own voice. He affirms his own path on this road by saying “maybe that's the reason why I sound like me - because nobody interfered with me. I didn't take jazz piano lessons, I didn't go through all that kind of nonsense - what I play is mine.”
In the late 1970s, while in his mid 20s, Hersch emerged into the heart of the fruitful New York City jazz scene with force and tremendous ambition. He found work with titans like Joe Henderson, Stan Getz, Billy Harper, and Art Farmer and, as a young man, he even played gigs with his own trio at Bradley's - a legendary venue which served as an exclusive showcase for seasoned heavy-weight pianists like Kenny Barron, Tommy Flanagan, Hank Jones, and Barry Harris.
For many leading younger pianists (including Ethan Iverson and Jason Moran, both of whom studied with him), Hersch serves as a fundamental link in the lineage of jazz piano that expands beyond the groundbreaking work of Chick Corea and Herbie Hancock.
According to Brad Mehldau, another of Hersch's notable students, “Fred's musical world is a world where a lot of the developments of jazz history and all of music history come together in a very contemporary way. His style has a lot to do with thinking as an individual, and it has a lot to do with beauty. I wouldn't be doing what I do if I hadn't learned from Fred, and I think that's true of quite a few other people.”
Many pianists who have been trained within the jazz education curriculum are themselves stuck in the bebop and postbop traditions. Hersch's music and attitude serve as an example that gives jazz pianists (whose improvisational language is limited) permission to express their individuality and to stick to their own inner compass rather than to strictly emulate the playing of others.
What is it that makes Fred Hersch's music unique and personal? Perhaps it's that he knows what it's like to be on the edge of death and that has reinforced his commitment to being a truth-teller, to eschew the expectations of the mainstream and create a personal, improvisational language.
For many who support the causes of the LGBT community, Hersch is somewhat of a hero. He was the first jazz musician to come out as gay and HIV-positive in the early 1990s, and he survived a two-month AIDS-related coma in 2008.
“I've been through a lot, and I want to make something of it, musically,” Hersch said. “I thought every album I did was going to be my last album,” he went on. “Being sick and knowing my time is precious has made me want to be totally myself in my music.”
New Orleans-born John Hébert is one of the busiest bassists in NYC. Along with his work with Fred Hersch and his numerous projects as a leader, he has participated in more than 150 recording projects including those by Mary Halvorson, Adam Kolker, Uri Caine, Duane Eubanks, Mike Holober, Steve Lehman, Frank Carlberg, Andrew Rathbun, Peter Eldridge, Jon Irabagon, and Andrew Hill.
Drummer Eric McPherson, also in New York's top echelon, mentored under Jackie McLean at the Hartt School of Music and, as a student, was asked to join his band. He has performed or recorded with Abraham Burton, Andrew Hill, Pharoah Sanders, Richard Davis, Claudia Acuña, Avishai Cohen, Kurt Rosenwinkle, Jason Moran, Greg Osby. Luis Perdomo, Charnett Moffett, Jimmy Greene, Myron Walden, Steve Davis, and many others.