Julius Rodriguez, a younger pianist fusing (all) the music from inside-out
In June, the pianist/drummer Julius Rodriguez launched his debut album, Let Sound Inform All, a challenge so dynamic that even the umbrella of jazz could not fairly comprise its essence. Although the style was absolutely current, the songs “All I Do” and “In Heaven” confirmed reverence for R&B and gospel — the previous a complicated cowl of Stevie Wonder‘s 1980 music, the latter a piano-focused ballad rooted within the sound of Black church. It culminated in his ascendance from White Plains, N.Y., the place Rodriguez studied classical piano and taught himself how you can play drums, tagging alongside to jazz concert events together with his father, who drove the then-11-year-old to golf equipment like Smalls whereas Thelonious Monk performed on the automobile radio. Alongside the best way he studied on the Manhattan Faculty of Music, then Juilliard, earlier than dropping out to tour with rapper A$AP Rocky in 2018.
Rodriguez is now a rising star on the intersection of jazz, soul, hip-hop and blues, enjoying alongside different multi-hyphenates like José James, Madison McFerrin and Meshell Ndegeocello. On Let Sound Inform All, by way of an amorphous mix that he merely calls “the music,” Rodriguez converged previous and current with stellar outcomes, showcasing himself as a torchbearer amongst a cohort of younger New York gamers bringing historical past into the long run. Individuals like him, vibraphonist Joel Ross and flutist/producer Melanie Charles mix conventional jazz with up to date rap, electronica and soul, nudging listeners to drop preconceived notions of what Black classical music is meant to be. Like others earlier than them, they’re exhibiting that jazz could be edgy and expansive, not simply the backdrop for sipping overpriced drinks in cramped nightclubs. Can Rodriguez play that scene? Positive. However his virtuosity is broader than that, transcending age and style, making him one of the crucial well-rounded performers I’ve encountered in recent times.
I’ve seen Rodriguez carry out 3 times this 12 months — at a private taping in Greenpoint, Brooklyn (above), then twice at BRIC JazzFest because the chief of his personal band and as lead pianist for José James’ headlining set. As chief, he’d change between piano and drums, wading by way of the fragile “The place Grace Abounds” or pounding out the frenetic “Two Means Road.” Even when he wasn’t on the helm, Rodriguez nonetheless commanded the stage from the piano bench, enjoying excellent solos with out overtaking the present’s star.
“What makes him so particular is his distinctive capability to go deeply into the music, whether or not it is jazz, hip-hop, R&B, experimental, no matter,” James instructed me not too long ago. “He actually will get contained in the idea of the music or challenge and creates from inside it, reasonably than adorning it from the skin. That is a delicate factor however so vital. As a result of it means he is absolutely current within the second and strolling the sting of creation always.”
Certainly, there is a fluidity to Rodriguez’s work, the sensation of defiance based mostly within the renouncement of industry-crafted tags. Whether or not he is retooling Erykah Badu cuts or constructing his personal soundtrack, his artistry is limitless and Let Sound Inform All was one of many strongest statements of 2022.
The 12 months in jazz
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