Generations in Jazz Festival - Jazz at Lincoln Center - New York City Article

“Generations in Jazz Festival”
Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola
Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Frederick P. Rose Hall
Broadway at 60th Street, 5th Floor
Through October 7

Long an annual institution at Jazz at Lincoln Center, the “Generations” festival at Dizzy’s originally presented musicians of different ages and backgrounds working together. But lately it has come to have a larger meaning, one which is perfectly symbolized by the brilliant pianist Ted Rosenthal and his all-Gershwin program. Presented on the 120th ceremonial birthday of the great composer, Mr. Rosenthal’s astute arrangements, and the improvisations of himself and his partners in his trio, bassist Martin Wind and drummer Tim Horner (he of the single earring) illustrate how the good ideas of today’s generation can continually rekindle our love for the great music of generations gone by.
Mr. Rosenthal’s treatments of the Gershwin canon are brilliant examples of how much there is still left to be done with some of the most familiar and beloved songs ever written. A particular stunner is “Someone to Watch Over Me,” for which Mr. Rosenthal started with the iconic Bill Evans composition “Peace Piece” (itself based on Leonard Bernstein’s “Some Other Time”) and rejigged it to fit the Gershwin melody - “Someone” now has more than a piece of “Peace Piece.” On “Fascinatin’ Rhythm,” Mr. Wind expresses the melody on arco bass, and the piece continually fascinates, not least for the many rhythmic changes that occur.
Then too, Mr. Rosenthal’s trio adaptation of the “Rhapsody in Blue” is a tour-de-force, something more like a medley of various tunes from the 1924 concert work. It amounts to a capsule history of jazz piano in the way it goes from one style to another, at one point stride-ent like Fats Waller, then the most happy piano style of Erroll Garner, and eventually, the en clave Latinate keyboard approach of Eddie Palmieri or Chuchu Valdez. All of the above are captured on the Trio’s 2014 Rhapsody In Gershwin album, but more recently Mr. Rosenthal has since devised with a worthy addition in the form of “Embraceable You,” now rendered in 5/4 time but still lovingly melodic and never flakey or freaky for its own sake.
The Generations Festival continues until next Sunday - among other multi-generation celebrations you don’t want to miss are the music of Horace Silver (Friday, September 28 through Sunday September 30, with Louis Hayes) and Freddie Hubbard (Friday, October 5 through Sunday October 7, with Willie Jones III), a night of contemporary jazz from Poland (Ya! Wednesday, October 3), and two notable Pan-American female creators, vocalist Magos Herrera (September 27) and pianist-composer Abelita Mateus (October 2).

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