In any conversation about music, bringing up pianist Keith Jarrett’s name is sure to stir up a lively debate. The 58-year-old has appeared on more than 130 recordings, which range from him playing electric jazz-fusion music with Miles Davis to improvising marathon solo concerts. It was during these concerts that he began to explore every possible way to extract different sounds from the piano, including plucking the strings in a harplike fashion and slapping on the wood with the palms of his hands as if it were a conga drum. His 1975 solo recording The Köln Concert drew millions of new fans for Jarrett and still stands out as a musical milestone from that era.
In 1983, he formed his Standards Trio, with bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Jack DeJohnette, which just finished celebrating its 20th anniversary of exploring the Great American Songbook, topped off by the scintillating album Up for It: Live in Juan-les-Pins (ECM)
