Pianist and 2010 MacArthur Fellow Jason Moran (b.1975, Houston) and his group The Bandwagon (bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer Nasheet Watts) have challenged the status quo in so many arenas - improvisation, composition, group concept, repertoire, technique and experimentation - that they have been called the "future of jazz". The Blue Note Records recording artist has established himself as a risk-taker and innovator of major proportions. Moran's debut recording as a leader, Soundtrack to Human Motion, was released in 1999 to tremendously enthusiastic response. Ben Ratliff of the New York Times named it Best Album of the Year, and the Jazz Journalists Association awarded it "Best Debut Recording." In the ensuing 12 years, Moran has garnered extravagant critical praise as he has released one innovative recording after another, gathering awards as he goes along. Drawing inspiration not only from musical heroes like Thelonious Monk, Moran frequently channels energy from favorite artists like Jean-Michel Basquiat, Egon Schiele and Robert Rauschenberg. He has received commissions from the Walker Art Center, the Dia Art Foundation and Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has lectured at Yale University, Dartmouth University, and the Eastman School of Music, and is on the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music.
Music excerpts:
Arizona Landscape (2005)
Jason Moran, piano
excerpted from The Shape, the Scent, the Feel of Things by Joan Jonas
from Artist in Residence (Blue Note 62711)
Refraction 1 (2005)
Jason Moran, piano; Joan Jonas, percussion
excerpted from The Shape, the Scent, the Feel of Things by Joan Jonas
from Artist in Residence (Blue Note 62711)
Study No. 6 (Conlon Nancarrow)
The Bandwagon: Jason Moran, piano; Tarus Mateen, bass; Nasheet Waits, drums
Pianist and 2010 MacArthur Fellow Jason Moran (b.1975, Houston) and his group The Bandwagon (bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer Nasheet Watts) have challenged the status quo in so many arenas - improvisation, composition, group concept, repertoire, technique and experimentation - that they have been called the "future of jazz". The Blue Note Records recording artist has established himself as a risk-taker and innovator of major proportions. Moran's debut recording as a leader, Soundtrack to Human Motion, was released in 1999 to tremendously enthusiastic response. Ben Ratliff of the New York Times named it Best Album of the Year, and the Jazz Journalists Association awarded it "Best Debut Recording." In the ensuing 12 years, Moran has garnered extravagant critical praise as he has released one innovative recording after another, gathering awards as he goes along. Drawing inspiration not only from musical heroes like Thelonious Monk, Moran frequently channels energy from favorite artists like Jean-Michel Basquiat, Egon Schiele and Robert Rauschenberg. He has received commissions from the Walker Art Center, the Dia Art Foundation and Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has lectured at Yale University, Dartmouth University, and the Eastman School of Music, and is on the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music.