Pianist Cliff Korman has spent his career playing both high-quality jazz and Brazilian music, often combining the two, and here he has brought in bassist Harvie S and drummer Rafael Barat as they work through composers as diverse as Benny Golson and Caetano Veloso. Korman is playing an 1896 Steinway C grand piano, and the quality of the sound is simple divine. He has a wonderful delicacy of touch, and while the drum and basslines are highly inventive and fascinating, they are there just to provide a structure for the piano to sit against and to allow Korman to put in gaps and breathing spaces from the main melody, so the listener understands they are always being taken on an inventive journey.

Like many youngsters I learned the piano at an early age, and my mother was an acclaimed accompanist, so I grew up either hearing it being played in the house, or playing it myself, and I could often be found playing classical piano records with Joseph Cooper being a particular favourite. Korman’s touch in many ways feels far more classical than jazz, yet he combines this with Latin styles to create an album which reaches across multiple genres and is an absolute delight. It is music I can get lost inside, where nothing else matters except what is taking place in my ears, and the sustain on the piano is amazing. This will appeal to lovers of piano music, no matter what the style, as Korman has created something very special indeed.

Rating: 9/10

Links:
https://cliffkorman.com/