But for an unfortunate knee injury in 1997, Yaron Herman (b. 1981, Tel Aviv) might have joined the ranks of professional basketball. Thankfully the Paris-based pianist fell back on another passion, studying music with renowned theorist Opher Brayer before moving on to Berklee.
His adventurous trios have drawn comparison to The Bad Plus, oozing virtuosity and attitude with their fresh original material and choice left-field pop covers (Britney Spears’ Toxic has rarely sounded so good).
Alma represents something of a departure, because while 2005’s Variations (LaBorie) was a solo recording it was a significantly more premeditated affair. This time Herman left his charts at home, choosing instead to create each piece “in the moment”. It’s not instant composition in the same sense as the radical European free improvisers, though. It’s more akin to Keith Jarrett’s recent solo odysseys, as Herman reaches for relatively conventional forms and techniques and never flies completely blind.
There’s a rigour to Alma which seems to betray Brayer’s early influence, and some of the more reflective pieces could be mistaken for études by Chopin (Ode To Nearness) or Bach (Forever Unfolding) if you didn’t know otherwise. Yet Herman’s rapid turnover of ideas and mercurial improvisational flights should keep even the most demanding listener on their toes. The driving rhythms and angular lines of Round Blue suggest Monk’s unique relationship to bebop, while Herman’s vivid reimagining of All The Things You Are could be a four-handed romp by Art Tatum and Cecil Taylor.
If I have one gripe it’s simply that the brevity of the pieces often left me wanting to hear Herman develop his ideas at greater length. The fleeting brilliance of pieces like Rituel and Playground Time certainly confirm his extraordinary talents, yet they disappear all to quickly as he twists his kaleidoscope and starts afresh.
Discography
Forever Unfolding; Cards; Rituel; Magnolia; Little Melody; Tone Field; Here And Now; Ode To Nearness; Round Blue; Silver Lining; All The Things You Are; Yeah Li Sikuy; Playground Time; Après Un Rêve; How Dares A Star; Rebirth; Song Without Words (59.54)
Herman (p). Studio de Meudon & Salle Colonne, Paris. No dates.
Näive Records BLV7837
