JASON MORAN: Ellingtonia (USA)

Jason Moran – piano 

Pianist and composer Jason Moran (Houston, 1975) got into music listening to the records of Thelonious Monk, Jaki Byard, Andrew Hill and Muchal Richard Abrams were his teachers, and he gained his first experiences with Greg Osby, Steve Coleman and Sam Rivers. By 2014, he had released 9 albums under Blue Note, founded Yes Records with his wife Alicia Hall Moran, and released 8 more albums in various settings. He also took a notable part in the albums of Cassandra Wilson, Henry Threadgill and Ralph Alessi, and his long-term collaboration with Charles Lloyd is especially impressive. He also works on applied music (film, ballet), and is engaged in pedagogical work. 

From 2003 to 2005, he combined the titles of Rising Star Jazz Artist, Pianist, and Composer on the DownBeat magazine critics' polls, and in 2011, he won the triple crown and "among the greats" as Best Musician (Absolute Category), Pianist, and for best album (Ten). He achieved this success a year after his trio's first performance at the Belgrade Jazz Festival, when he again appeared with Charles Lloyd and had a public Before and After interview with critic Thomas Conrad. This year, he achieved four ratings in the top ten, in the categories of musician, pianist and small ensemble (Lloyd's Quartet), and played the piano on the best album (Lloyd's The Sky Will Still Be There Tomorrow).

In his projects, he demonstrates openness to sound experiments, including samplers and mathematical models. He also seeks inspiration from classics, folklore, blues and pop, blending them into an interesting matrix outside the jazz community. The current solo project, Ellingtonia, represents an authentic reflection on Duke Ellington's legacy on the 125th anniversary of the birth of the most famous jazz composer ever, who opened the first Newport Jazz Festival in Belgrade on October 31, 1971.