Jeremy Siskind Trio
Prophecy
An up-and-coming piano trio swinging in ways both old and new.
"It may suffice to say that Jeremy Siskind is a brilliant young musical talent who plays on a level of sophistication usually reserved for players further along in life’s struggles. The music on Prophecy, however, goes well beyond recognition of an emerging young lion. Siskind and his trio mates, bassist Jesse Breheney and drummer Dave Tedeschi, have released a collection of tunes that successfully stretch the boundaries of pre-conceived notion while simultaneously paying homage to the legacy of innovation concerning piano trios of the past...
Siskind is a unique musical force developing in an overcrowded jazz world too often content with imitation and generic offerings. Prophecy is a well conceived and brilliantly executed release which will hopefully have a chance to reach within listening range of industry movers and shakers."
- John Barron, jazzreview.com
Pianist, composer, and educator Jeremy Siskind is is “a remarkable pianist” and “a rising star on the jazz scene” according to legendary pianist Marian McPartland. The release of Prophecy is the first full collection of original music from Siskind, who - along with trio-mates Jesse Breheney and Dave Tedeschi - provides a compelling mix of introspection, exuberance, humor, and tradition.
Siskind, born in 1986, hails from Irvine, California, and began playing the piano at a very young age. When his parents noticed he had a knack for picking up tunes, they enrolled his brother and he in a Yamaha piano class; soon, Siskind surpassed his older brother and was soon welcomed into the Junior Special Advanced Course, under the guidance of Suzanne Wong-Abe.
Siskind thrived in the Yamaha system, especially in the creative aspects .. improvisation and composition. These strengths led to his entry into many Junior Original Concert (JOC) competitions, Yamaha events designed to showcase students performing their own pieces. Through the JOC program, Siskind found himself playing all over the country: at the Yamaha piano manufacturer's in Thomaston Georgia, at the National Association of Music Merchants' convention in Los Angeles, and at the University of Madison in Wisconsin, among others. Twice, Siskind was flown to Tokyo, Japan to perform his jazz-influenced pieces for Japanese audiences.
As it became apparent that he was more interested in improvising than in playing Bach, Siskind was soon introduced to jazz. His first jazz teacher was Linda Martinez, a fantastic composer and pianist who quickly became his mentor. Both his playing and composing quickly thrived - he won first place in the soloist competition at the Fullerton College Jazz Festival, "Most Outstanding Rhythm Player" in the Reno Jazz Festival, and won scholarships from the Friends of Jazz, O.C. Community Foundation Centennial Arts, and the Vail Jazz Foundation; also, he became the youngest winner of the American Society of Composers, Authors, & Publisher's (ASCAP) Young Jazz Composer's Awards (he traveled to New York to accept the award where he met jazz legend Hank Jones).
Siskind then won a sizable scholarship to the famous Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York where he went to study with Harold Danko, Tony Caramia, and Bill Dobbins, among others. Siskind's excellence was quickly noticed at Eastman - he became pianist for the famed Eastman Jazz Ensemble in only his sophomore year (where he's performed with Dick Oatts, Peter Erskine, and Slide Hampton, among others), and was the only undergraduate in the award-winning group Saxology. Siskind also got his first important teaching opportunities: he has taught privately as an intern in the Community Education Division (CED), taught small groups through the CED, and taught an Eastman class, Jazz Piano for Keyboard Majors. Siskind also initiated an artist-in-residency program with his alma mater, Irvine High School, in which he brought a group of Eastman musicians back to Irvine to clinic the jazz bands; the program has met with overwhelming success.
In addition, Siskind began to attract notice outside of Eastman. He was the youngest finalist and took second place at the Kathleen T. and Philip B. Phillips Jazz Piano Competition, and joined a list including Bill Evans, Teddy Wilson, and Wynton Marsalis as a guest on the famed NPR show Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz. He also was gratified to begin studies with one of his musical heroes, pianist Fred Hersch in the spring of 2006. In January, 2007, the American Piano Association made Siskind one of only five finalists nationwide to compete for their Cole Porter Fellowship in Indianapolis, Indiana; the competition, to be held in April of 2007, will be judged by jazz luminaries Fred Hersch, Renee Rosnes, and Lynne Arriale.
The Jeremy Siskind Trio was formed for a month-long residency as house jazz-trio at Mackinac Island's famed Grand Hotel. Here, the trio developed into a musical entity and began performing more original music. Soon, the trio was asked to back Broadway diva Lea DeLaria in Provincetown, Massachusetts. The West Palm Beach Jazz Society has invited the trio to perform in April in their monthly concert series.
Jazz: Neo-Bop