Szabo/Pasqua/Goldings PIANO FEST 4

Daniel Szabo

Daniel Szabo is an award-winning performer-composer-educator. He grew up in the culturally stimulating environment of Eastern-Europe where his artistic path had been shaped by the amalgam of a wide-spectrum of music influences, such as classical, jazz and several folk idioms. He is a prolific recording artist and producer and the winner of the International Martial Solal Jazz Competition (“Grand Prize of the City of Paris”) as well as the Montreux Jazz Piano Solo Contest.

Szabo and his trio were featured in “Mellon Jazz Up Close”, a prestigious jazz series hosted by Danilo Perez (Wayne Shorter Quartet) at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, and he has toured worldwide in such venues as the Jazz Gallery in NYC, the Blue Note Milan, Duc des Lombards of Paris or the Blue Whale and Catalina Jazz Club in Los Angeles, among others.

Szabo has recorded and/or performed with Peter Erskine, Chris Potter, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Bob Sheppard, Jimmy Haslip, Lionel Loueke, John Zorn, John Ellis, Rosario Giuliani, Julian Siegel, Flavio Boltro, among many others. His albums have been highly praised by such prestigious jazz magazines as Downbeat, All About Jazz, Modern Drummer or New York City Jazz Records.

Szabo regularly works with singers, actors, poets, dancers, theatrical directors and filmmakers as a composer-improviser, arranger and songwriter. He has a unique voice and always seeks for boundary-crossing compositional and improvisational approaches.

After being trained at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, Szabo has been mentored by Danilo Perez, Bob Brookmeyer, and Jerry Bergonzi while he was attended the New England Conservatory, and by Vince Mendoza, Peter Erskine, Bruce Broughton and Stephen Hartke at the University of Southern California. He holds a Doctorate degree in the field of jazz piano, classical composition and film scoring.

Alan Pasqua

Alan Pasqua, Professor of Jazz Studies at USC Thornton School of Music, has played and recorded with Tony Williams, Jack Dejohnette, Paul Motion, Dave Holland, Michael Brecker, Randy Brecker, Joe Henderson, Stanley Clarke, Gary Burton, James Moody, Gary Peacock, Gary Bartz, Reggie Workman, The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra, Sheila Jordan and Joe Williams. While performing a concert at Carnegie Hall in 1975, Pasqua met the legendary drummer Tony Williams.

Pasqua was asked to join The New Tony Williams Lifetime along with guitarist Allan Holdsworth. After recording two “Lifetime” albums for Columbia Records, Pasqua relocated in Los Angeles. His career in L.A. broadened as he started playing with more rock and pop artists. He has been a member of the bands of Bob Dylan and Santana. Some of his other pop album and touring credits include: Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Elton John and Queen Latifa. In addition, he has worked with composers John Williams, Quincy Jones, Dave Grusin, Jerry Goldsmith and Henry Mancini and on motion picture soundtracks. In addition, Alan composed the soundtrack for Disney’s hit movie, The Waterboy, and is co-composer for the CBS Evening News Theme.

He also recently provided the piano improvisations for Bob Dylan and his Nobel Prize acceptance speech.

Aside from his many critically acclaimed recordings as a leader in jazz, in 2008, Pasqua joined forces with Peter Erskine and Dave Carpenter, arranging, co-producing and playing on the Grammy Award nominated trio album “Standards”. His recent releases are “Twin Bill” (BFM JAZZ) and “Northern Lights”. “Twin Bill” features Pasqua recorded on two pianos, playing the music of Bill Evans. Northern Lights” is a new set of Pasqua original compositions, exploring his roots in classical, pop and jazz idioms. Both CDs have received critical praise from DOWNBEAT with 4 star reviews. His latest release, “Soliloquy” is a stunning solo piano recording of Alan’s favorite standards recorded in Los Angeles on his own Hamburg Steinway concert grand piano.

Larry Goldings

Larry Goldings is a Grammy-nominated pianist, keyboardist, composer, and songwriter. Among jazz enthusiasts, Goldings' organ trio with Peter Bernstein and Bill Stewart has been recognized for charting new ground, with synergistic playing and hard-swinging yet thoughtful music. Goldings' talents have been sought-after by an impressive range of musicians including James Taylor, Norah Jones, John Mayer, Madeleine Peyroux, Melody Gardot, Tracy Chapman, Ricki Lee Jones, Charlie Haden, Steve Gadd, Herbie Hancock, Sia, Christina Aguilera, Elton John, and Leon Russell.

Larry has recorded 18 albums as a leader, hundreds more as a sideman, and has collaborated on a long-term basis with Maceo Parker, Jim Hall, Michael Brecker, and John Scofield. Goldings has been recording and touring with iconic singer-songwriter James Taylor since 2001, and is the featured musician on Taylor's One Man Band CD/DVD, the culmination of a two year world-wide tour with James and Larry in duet.

In 2007, Goldings received a Grammy nomination (Best Instrumental Jazz Album of the Year) for his live album Trio Beyond - Saudades (ECM) with John Scofield and Jack DeJohnette. His compositions have been recorded by Pat Metheny, Michael Brecker, John Scofield, Toots Thielemans, Jim Hall, Gaby Moreno, Bill DeMain, Jane Monheit, Spencer Day, Curtis Stigers, Mike Viola, Lea Michele, Sia, and others. The 2014 UK Songwriting contest awarded Larry, along with Dannielle DeAndrea and David Batteau, "Best Song" in the Jazz/Blues category for the composition, "High Dreams."

Goldings composed the music for the 2013 feature film Dealin' With Idiots, written and directed by Jeff Garlin (Curb Your Enthusiasm). His music graces the soundtracks of Seth Rogan's Neighbors, Judd Apatow's Funny People, as well as the films Space Cowboys, Proof, NBC's The Office, and most recently, an upcoming TBS sitcom, Your Family or Mine, for which Larry co-wrote the music. Goldings' music is frequently heard on NPR's critically-acclaimed This American Life.

Larry's most recent recording, Music From The Front Room, is a freshly untraditional piano trio outing, with Larry playing Steinway upright piano, and features David Piltch on bass, and Jay Bellerose on drums.