![]() ![]() ![]() While Alexander's set was a precocious marvel, Corea and long-time bandmates McBride and Blade played with the ease of old masters. That was before Corea, the 22-time Grammy Award winner and former Miles Davis collaborator, even took the stage. An 11-year-old pianist from Indonesia being hailed as a jazz prodigy is about to make his debut on some of New York City’s biggest stages. The lyricism and clarity of tone were extraordinary, but it was his inventiveness - a run of perhaps a dozen distinct and complete musical notions in a 10-minute piece - that truly astonished. An early promise of latent energy spilled over before long into an infectious swing. The first, "City Lights," was his best performance of the set. He began with standards by John Coltrane and Wayne Shorter before moving to two original compositions. ![]() ► Skonberg keeps this women's jazz fest rollingĪlexander - it seems silly to refer to him by his last name, but it is the convention - tapped his feet nervously in high-top sneakers and occasionally rose up from the bench to get better purchase on the keys. Imagine going to a T-ball game and watching a 6-year-old club one over the fence, breaking a car windshield. It cannot be emphasized enough how jarring it is to see a small child walk on stage, in clothes that clearly came from the children's department, and proceed to play a set of music with not only technical proficiency but a deep well of creativity and a finely tuned sense of interplay with his two bandmates. Watch 12-year-old jazz prodigy Joey Alexander J/ 11:30 AM / CBS News When jazz great Wynton Marsalis first heard Joey Alexander play the piano, he was blown away. While drummer Dan Brubeck was reviving his father's piano work with his trio, the 75-year-old Corea and the precocious Alexander put on an awe-inspiring performance at the Eastman Theatre.Īlexander went first, making a repeat appearance in Rochester after his solo debut last year. He was 11 then and is 13 now, having celebrated his birthday Saturday. Tuesday was a remarkable night for jazz piano at the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival. Sitting off in the wings just 30 feet away was 13-year-old Joey Alexander, listening intently. The three of them collectively have played with nearly every important jazz musician in the last several generations. He was discovered by legendary jazz trumpeter Wynton Marsalis after the elder musician watched one of his videos on YouTube.Jazz legend Chick Corea was at the piano bench at Kodak Hall late Tuesday night, engineering a seamless musical collaboration with equally legendary bassist Christian McBride and drummer Brian Blade. The album entered the Billboard 200 at number 174, making him the first Indonesian act to crack the U.S. He released his debut album, My Favorite Things, last May. Listen 3:45 3-Minute Listen Download Embed Transcript Enlarge this image Once a young prodigy, Joey Alexander emerges as a full-blown jazz star on his new album Warna, writes NPR's Tom. They moved to New York City after he was granted an O-1B Visa, awarded to “individuals with an extraordinary ability in the arts or extraordinary achievement in motion picture or television industry.”ģ. “When I got back from work, I saw him playing a very complex melody,” Joey's father Denny Sila told CBS New York in 2014.Īlexander was born in Bali and later moved to Jakarta with his parents. He taught himself to play piano at the age of six after his father bought him a keyboard. Joey began playing the piano at six years old in Indonesia, after listening to his father’s jazz albums. So who is he? Here are five quick facts about the child prodigy.ġ. To be frank, I had resisted jumping on board regarding the early accolades on the piano child prodigy (at age nine), Joey Alexander. 12-year-old Grammy nominee Joey Alexander stole hearts and won a standing ovation at tonight's ceremony with his precocious piano skills and bashful demeanor. ![]()
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