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January News
19/01/10 10:39
ENGLISH / FRANCAIS / DEUTSCH
2009 has been a very successful year for the pianist Yaron Herman. His album "Muse" was "one of the 10 best new jazz albums for the National Public Radio in the U.S (NPR), the best jazz album on Itunes Music Store in France (Rewind 2009), one of the best jazz record sales in Japan. The Canadian newspaper Le Devoir said it was one of the top 5 jazz albums of the year. A real international success, accompanied by an amazing series of concerts, more than 100 concerts in Europe, Asia and in the U.S for the last year. 2010 is here, and the buzz keeps growing. In Spring, Yaron will tour in Canada, will perform a special concert in Paris, with Dhafer Youssef, will play in duet with the classical pianist Franck Braley, will tour solo in Germany. This summer he will be invited by the most prestigious festivals (Marciac, Montreux, La Roque d'Anthéron..) and will tour in Asia next september. Next Fall, Yaron Herman will release his first album for the label Act. His popularity with younger audiences and his dazzling career to date confirm that he is an exceptional phenomenon, unique in the history of piano playing.
2009 fut une année exceptionnelle pour le pianiste Yaron Herman: Son dernier disque "Muse" a collectionné les trophées l'an dernier, un des 10 meilleurs disques de Jazz pour la prestigieuse radio Américaine NPR, le meilleur album de jazz sur l'Itunes Music Store, une de meilleures ventes jazz au Japon et un des cinq meilleurs disques de jazz pour le quotidien canadien Le Devoir, un vrai succès international. Succès discographique accompagné par plus de 100 concerts en Europe, en Asie et aux Etats-Unis. Et l'année 2010 s'annonce tout aussi exceptionnelle: Au printemps, des concerts exceptionnels, une tournée au Canada, une rencontre très attendue avec Dhafer Youssef dans le cadre du Festival Jazz à Saint-Germain à Paris, un duo avec le pianiste classique Frank Braley, une très belle tournée en piano solo en Allemagne et un été où il sera invité par les plus grands festivals de jazz (Marciac, Montreux, La Roque d'Anthéron...). Yaron sera en Septembre en tournée en Asie. A l'Automne, Yaron sortira son premier disque sur le prestigieux label européen Act Music, Son actualité, le succès rencontré auprès du jeune public, la fulgurance de sa carrière confirment qu'il s'agit bien là d'un phénomène exceptionnel et unique dans l'histoire du piano.
Das Jahr 2009 war für den Pianisten Yaron Herman ein großer Erfolg. Sein Album „Muse“ wurde in den USA vom „National Public Radio“ (NPR) unter die zehn besten Alben des Jahres gewählt, wurde eines der meistverkauften Alben in Frankreich und erreichte dort auch die Nr. 1 im Itunes Music Store (Rewind 2009). Die Kanadische Tageszeitung „Le Devoir“ wählte „Muse“ in die Top-5 der besten Jazzalben des Jahres. Der enorme internationale Erfolg des Albums wurde von einer beeindruckenden Serie von Konzerten begleitet – Yaron Herman absolvierte allein im letzten Jahr insgesamt mehr als 100 Auftritte in Europa, Asien und den USA. Das Jahr 2010 knüpft natlos an das großartige Vorjahr an. Im Frühjahr sind Tourneen in Kanada, ein besonderes Konzert mit Dhafer Youssef in Paris, sowie ein Duett mit dem klassischen Pianisten Frack Braley und eine Solo-Tournee in Deutschland geplant. Für den Sommer ist Yaron Herman auf den bedeutendsten Festivals, wie Marciac, Montreux oder La Roque d'Anthéron zu Gast und geht danach, im September, auf Asientournee. Im Herbst 2010 veröffentlicht Yaron Herman sein erstes Album für das renommierte Label ACT. Seine Popularität, besonders bei einem jüngeren Publikum, und sein kometenhafter, in seiner Form einzigartiger Aufstieg, machen Yaron Herman zu einem Phänomen in der Geschichte des Klavierspiels.
Muse, from Yaron Herman
01/02/09 11:16
I've often been asked why I don't write any text in the booklets with my records. I think it stems from an intimate conviction that music doesn't need words be presented or described. Music is in essence a subtle yet explosive mixture of intellectual rigour (composition, improvisation, complexity and form) and emotional depth (related to its expression). In the specific case of improvisation I would add the essential part played by physical gesture, as totally inseparable from the two previous elements, since it is the real-time physical accomplishment of an interior mental process..
When we use words to describe this creative process, I always feel that we never manage to express things precisely. How can one describe an emotion or a sound with words? We could turn to poetry but music already possesses a poetry that transcends words.
It is because of the limits of language that I have always preferred to let the music speak for itself. What brings me to write to you now, therefore, is the desire to tell you the story behind this trio and the album you are holding.
For two years now, I've had the pleasure of touring around the world with two exceptional musicians. I met Gerald Cleaver in New York where we briefly shared an appartement. We quickly discovered that we had the same approach to the creative process and I immediately felt that we would work well together both musically and on a more human level. I'd had a chance to admire his work, as a composer with different groups, and the really personal way he treats rhythm and sound. He is one of the most original and versatile drummers of today. He constantly strives to reach the essence of the music and gives it an extremely creative form which makes him an extraordinary musical partner, always surprising.
I feel the same about Matt Brewer, whom I first came across in that virtual jungle « myspace » . He was an incredible find! Matt has one of the finest double bass sounds that I have ever heard – it's immediately identifiable. His way of playing when he accompanies a solist or during his own solos shows a unique treatment of melody and rhythm and reveals an unusual depth of construction and continuity. He is also an excellent composer as will become apparent when you listen to « Joya » or « And the rain ».
From the very first time we played together I realised the potential of our trio. When we
recorded « A Time for Everything » we hadn't yet performed together. Matt and Gerald had heard of each other but hadn't yet played together. We set off into unknown territory and were delighted with the result but at the same time we wondered how our music would develop after months on tour.
The year that followed allowed us to get to know each other better and as the tour progressed we felt that the music took on a different dimension and intensified with each concert - which were never the same. All three of us consider that the real essence of jazz is not :« playing it safe » but rather by going further into the music each time. This has allowed us to find our own universe and a personal sound.
The music for this album was essentially composed on the road. in planes, trains , hotel rooms and some cafés. In my mind it's directly linked with travelling – while on the road your frame of mind changes. You don't see the same things nor see things the same way. You are freed from the regular constraints of time and therefore you look at what you are going through in a different way.
A Quote by the Austrian Ludwig Wittgenstein suggests that « If we consider eternity not as infinite time but as the absence of time then he who lives in the present lives in eternity.».
The improviser’s quest is particularly paradoxical since jazz and more especially improvisation is by definition a music of the present (composed and performed in realtime) which aims to touch eternity. Each moment is unique and will never repeat itself which requires an acute level of awareness .The artist has to find the seeds of eternity which lay hidden in these fleeting moments. Sincerity becomes essential .
Improvisation can allow us to experience those magical moments when time disappears and we contemplate something which is intimately linked with the present but which also touches infinity. something eternal, perpetual, that in reality has always existed.
The time outside fades away like in a journey and all that's left is the music. As Charlie Parker said : « Now's the time . It is this never-ending search we have been engaged in on this album.
I warned you that I expressed myself much better with my piano!
I can only wish that wherever you are my music will enable you to share (be it only for an instant) what we feel when we play– the pleasure of the absence of time.