Solo Piano
Review
“Recorded at a private concert at Zipper Hall in Los Angeles, with Jacob playing on a Hamburg Steinway Model D Grand. Both the scene and the instrument helped to shape this album, but it's Jacob who delivers on the promise of the title. Beautiful Jazz it is.``
– All ABOUT JAZZ
While Christian Jacob mainly tours with his ensemble groups, his early years were dedicated to solo piano. Then in 2014 he released his first solo piano recording, Beautiful Jazz: a private concert, which led to a series of performances.
“My transition from classical solo works to ensemble jazz happened many years ago, but I found myself longing to revisit the solo experience. This time with a jazz audience. There’s just so much room for expression in solo piano. And I almost forgot how much I enjoy the intimacy of the touch in that setting. It’s a very specific joy.”
~ Christian Jacob
How Long Has This Been Going On
The Christian Jacob Trio
Review
``Jacob, a lyrical player in the Bill Evans/Keith Jarrett stylistic mode with touches of Oscar Peterson flash, offers a nicely
crafted rendering of nine Jule Styne standards, as well as a sensitive look at four of his own compositions. The trio’s
readings of Jacob’s tunes, grouped near the middle of the disc, offer the album’s high points.``
~ DOWN BEAT MAGAZINE
Christian Jacob often tours and records with his longtime band mates bassist Trey Henry and drummer Ray Brinker. They met on the Maynard Ferguson band and have been performing together ever since. Their 2019 release The Originals is a thrilling and diverse collection of original music that draws the listener deeper into the trio’s musical wonderland.
Christian Jacob
“It is like being in a room with 2 guys you love and trust and having a great conversation. Not a conversation where everyone continually agrees to everything the other says, but a meaningful conversation where you sometimes disagree, show your point of view, learn something new, get excited, amused, etc. each tune we play is a different conversation, so the stream of feelings will vary.”
Trey Henry
“I’ve had a recurring musical epiphany. It’s happened with just 3 musicians – Ray Brinker, Christian Jacob, and Herbie Hancock. When you play with great players you want desperately to contribute. With these musicians you simply listen to what they play and your fingers go directly to all the right places and you sound like a genius.”
Ray Brinker
“There is a combination of trust, respect, support and spiritual searching that we achieve together that is unique and extremely rewarding each time we play together. Playing with these guys puts me in the head-space of always wanting to play my absolute best, out of respect for the musicianship that these guys exude.”
Looking Up
The Tierney Sutton Band
Review
``The roller-coaster of emotional highs and lows can be unnerving, but this is satisfying, richly-textured work. All involved are journeyman jazzers who can tilt the listener's head with technique. But the Tierney Sutton Band are not trying to flash you with what they can do. Rather, this is music for grown-ups, and thoughtful ones at that.``
- All ABOUT JAZZ
The Tierney Sutton Band
Tierney Sutton, Trey Henry, Kevin Axt, Ray Brinker and Christian Jacob
With a recording and touring history spanning over 20 years, 6 consecutive Grammy Nominations for Best Vocal Jazz Album and each member receiving a nomination for arranging, the band continues to seek out new musical territory. The group’s 2019 Grammy nominated recording ScreenPlay beautifully re-imagines 19 compositions from the first century of American film music.
“Trey, Ray, Tierney, Kevin and I continue to make this band a priority in our lives because it is purely about playing as a group. No one is a sideman and no one is the leader. Since we don’t have a leader it sometimes takes us forever to make the littlest decision, but the reward is that everyone is always 100% invested into what we’re creating.” – Christian
COLLABORATION
Betty Buckley
Music DirectorFor more than ten years Christian has been musical director, arranger and pianist for Broadway legend Betty Buckley. “My love of arranging drives my playing with Betty,” Christian says. “She wants to be fresh and not do things the way they have previously been done. She’s a great musician and she wants the excitement of new material. So we welcome each other’s creative approach and sensibilities. And we always have fun playing together.”
Jack Jones
Music DirectorI began working with Jack Jones about five years ago and it’s really been a fantastic experience. He has a remarkable energy and stage presence that constantly surprises me. He’s so comfortable and free on stage that I have to be ready for anything. We toured the U.K with a big band and some nights he would feel like doing some standards he hadn’t done in years. And he would blow the audience away. Bassist Chris Colangelo and drummer Kendall Kay make up the trio behind him that produces a great swinging result.
Antonia Bennett
Music DirectorWorking with Antonia Bennett is relatively new for me, but I’m really enjoying the partnership. I’m very fond of how she delivers a song and the fun energy she brings to the stage. I love the tinge of innocence I hear in her voice, mixed with sultry and classy. This must run in the Bennett family…
Kunihiko Murai
ArrangerCollaborating with renowned Japanese composer Kunihiko Murai is always a fun and creative event. His talent as a composer and producer has been proven time and again, but what never escapes my notice is the pure joy and love of music that drives him. We’ve become great friends over the years and his approach to every project noticeably brings out the best of my own creativity.
