A Jazz Appreciation Month celebration should honor both the originators of the music and the new, emerging original voices. Our 89.1 Jazz premiere this morning achieved that goal. Breakthrough is the new CD by pianist Eldar Djangirov and his trio for a new label: Motéma Music.
Do not be deceived by the disc title. This is not Eldar’s first CD. His first recording was released in 2001 when he was 14 years old. But by age 14, he was a veteran having made his first professional appearances at age 9 in his native Russia. Among Eldar’s early champions were piano legends Dave Brubeck and Marian McPartland. At age 12, Eldar was Marian’s youngest guest. Pursuing piano studies and a recording career, Eldar was soon mentored by Chick Corea, another pianist of prodigious technique and significant emotional impact. The wise counsel of the three masters has not been lost on Mr. Djangirov who controls his dynamics and phrasing to convey the meaning behind the music. Breakthrough is a marvelous jazz piano CD. Djangirov’s rich, multi-layered original compositions such as Hope and Tokyo Pulse are balanced with classic covers of Somebody Loves Me and No Moon At All as well as Radiohead’s Morning Bell. We welcome another Breakthrough by pianist Eldar Djangirov to WEMU and what he will do to perpetuate jazz music
