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John Pizzarelli; Taylor Eigsti and Julian Lage Duo

Saturday, April 8 • 8pm

“[Pizzarelli is] an exceedingly gifted vocalist, guitarist, and bandleader who delivers standards with crackling swing.”—The New Yorker

In both a full-length evening performance and a shorter Family Matinee Concert, singer/guitarist John Pizzarelli takes the stage in the wake of a new Ellington-themed CD. In The New York Times’ words: “[Pizzarelli’s] music portrays the kind of joy that sneaks up on you at odd moments when you’re just walking around and feeling good.” Young virtuosos Taylor Eigsti (piano) and Julian Lage (guitar) share this fun-loving program of great jazz.

Program Notes

Indeed, the fruit doesn’t fall too far from the tree. Guitarist John Pizzarelli’s father is 80-year-old Bucky Pizzarelli, the seven-string marvel who continues to actively gig as well as perform on his son’s recordings. Take, for example, last year’s Knowing You, where Bucky joined John on four tracks, freeing him to concentrate on the crooning.

“If you know the best rhythm guitar player in the world, of course you invite him to the sessions,” says John Pizzarelli, who still seeks guidance from the master. “I can sit here in New York and work on a guitar piece, then take it to my dad in New Jersey and he always has an answer. He picks up his guitar and plays something. He’s constantly thinking about how to raise the bar.”

Working with Duke Ellington songs from an upcoming recording project, Pizzarelli’s SFJAZZ appearance will showcase him dipping into ballads as well as speeding fluid guitar notes while scatting rapid-fire in unison. Even though dad won’t be along for the ride, he’ll be there in spirit and in encouragement. Says Bucky, in giving John high grades: “We connect; we both have the same heroes, masters like George Van Eps, George Barnes, Les Paul, Django Reinhardt. You have to think about them when you play. You can’t jive.”

There’ll be no jiving in the opening act either as two of the young stars on the jazz scene, pianist Taylor Eigsti and guitarist Julian Lange, perform a duo set. Eigsti recently signed with Concord Jazz, while Lage is likewise a rising star, mentored by vibraphonist Gary Burton. Based on their performance last fall at Dizzy’s Club at Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Eigsti-Lage duo promises to heat up the house.

— Dan Ouellette