Echo Canyon Art Hirahara

• 1 Echo Canyon 05:32
• 2 Aoi Blu 05:08
• 3 Aftermath 04:58
• 4 To The Sky 04:10
• 5 Shura 04:41
• 6 Major Waltz 04:48
• 7 The More Things Change 05:34
• 8 Mia 'Bella 04:09
• 9 Spider's Dance 05:37
• Total Runtime 44:37

Info for Echo Canyon

Pianist Art Hirahara resounds with unstoppable melodic sensibility and a wide palette of colors and sounds on his latest effort "Echo Canyon." Joining Hirahara on this piano trio date are his familiar collaborators bassist Boris Kozlov and drummer Rudy Royston, both of whom contribute exciting ideas and add a solid foundation to the session. “Echo Canyon” unfolds steadily as an engaging program of original compositions where Hirahara seeks to combine his inner reflections with moments of humble reverence for the greater and ineffable depths of our collective experiences. Whether one is already familiar with the music of Hirahara or discovering him for the first time, his latest effort is certain to bring insights and bright moments to jazz fans and serious listeners everywhere.

Art Hirahara, piano
Boris Kozlov, bass
Rudy Royston, drums & percussion

Art Hirahara
a jazz keyboardist and composer based in New York, NY. Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, Art moved to New York in 2003 to be challenged by its pool of world-class musicians. Here he has honed his craft, performing in a wide range of musical situations ranging from straight ahead standards to time cycle-based progressive jazz to free improvisation. From the traditional to the avant-garde, Art has found a sound of his own that cuts across genres and boundaries.

Art began his training in music at the age of four, studying with Sue Shannon, an unconventional classical piano teacher who taught improvisation and composition from the earliest stages of musical development. This provided the foundation for his awakening to jazz during his studies at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he earned a degree in Electronic and Computer Music. During his junior year, he began jazz piano studies with the Cleveland jazz giant, Neal Creque.

He then continued at California Institute of the Arts, where he was mentored by David Roitstein, Charlie Haden and Wadada Leo Smith. It was there that he immersed himself in world music, focusing on West African drumming and dance, Balinese gamelan and North Indian tabla. After his move to New York, Art studied at the Banff Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music program with Dave Douglas in 2004.

Art has had the privilege to perform with Stacey Kent, Freddy Cole, Akira Tana, Rufus Reid, Don Braden, Roseanna Vitro, Dave Douglas, Vincent Herring, Victor Lewis, Travis Sullivan s Bjorkestra, Jim Black, Jenny Scheinman, Greg Cohen, Fred Ho, Sean Nowell, royal hartigan and Hafez Modirzadeh. He has performed around the world in Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, the Middle East and extensively around the United States.

In New York, he has played at the city ’s premier venues, including Birdland, Smalls, Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Jazz Standard and 55 Bar. In addition to performing, Art is an educator. He has taught master classes both domestically and abroad. He taught at the Brooklyn-Queens Conservatory and was a performing member of NY PopsEd, an educational organization focusing on bringing music to elementary and secondary schools.

Art ’s piano and compositional sound are an amalgamation of the varied musical influences he has studied and the wide range of leaders he has worked for. Art is constantly seeking new situations to challenge his musicality. Most recently has worked as a producer for recordings and musical director for various artists of different genres.

This album contains no booklet.