by Nick Fernandez

With dim red lighting and a small but attentive crowd, Hey Rim Jeon's pre-dinner set at the Birdland Jazz Club Wednesday night could have easily been confused with an after-hours jam session downtown. The audience, however, told a different story: While appreciative of each clever phrase or cross-bandstand connection, the gathering of friends and family held their applause until the conclusion of each number and refrained from the vocal outbursts that often occur as the hours pass. To Jeon’s credit, instead of a meandering mélange of impromptu arrangements, she and her trio were our guides on a carefully planned musical exploration celebrating her U.S. album release party.

Introducing Hey Rim Jeon musically reflects the multinational and eclectic experience of the pianist who, born in Seoul, Korea, went from classical prodigy to jazz and popular devotee while at the Berklee College of Music. The album includes standards (“Softly as in a Morning’s Sunrise” and “Autumn Leaves”), impressions of “places you wish to visit, but haven’t yet” (“Prague”), and even a Korean folk song (“Arirang”).

After a slightly rocky start marked by timid playing and delayed communication, the trio found its bearing in “Prague,” the third song of the evening. Ms. Jeon came to life in a rubato introduction that offered panoramic views of imagined beauty—skirting the edges of the city to paint rural greenery and folk dancers. Bassist Luques Curtis and drummer Richie Barshay, high school friends who Ms. Jeon met while at Berklee, joined her in traveling into the city’s center. Mr. Curtis took over Jeon’s lyrical melodies while Barshay offered march-like accompaniment.

by Michael Cirigliano II

Throughout his week-long residency at the Baryshnikov Arts Center, pianist Alexei Lubimov showed himself to be a most versatile performer. After tackling a pair of performances of John Cage’s 4 Walls last week, Lubimov returned to the BAC for a program of Beethoven, Schubert, and Glinka. Choosing to perform these works in a period context, Lubimov played on a 6 ½-octave copy of an 1820s Viennese fortepiano made by Roger Regier of Freeport, Maine. Unlike most fortepianos, which can have a very brittle color, Regier’s copy proved to be an agile instrument, and Lubimov extracted a wide array of colors.

Bookending the evening were two of Beethoven’s late sonatas: No. 30 in E Major and No. 32 in C minor. The sunny E Major Sonata relied on crisp, light textures throughout, only delving into Beethoven’s inner turmoil in fleeting passages. Lubimov excelled most in the chorale moments, where his sense of pacing and phrasing were elegant and captivating. At times, the heavier fugato section lacked clarity—certainly forgivable at times, given Beethoven’s delivery of fistfuls of notes. The C minor Sonata, however, was given an incredibly dramatic reading of cinematic scope, full of suspense and power throughout. The fortepiano only lacked depth in the deepest register of the instrument; unlike the modern piano’s booming and cavernous bass tones, the fortepiano sounded shallower by comparison. Lubimov accounted for the difference in timbre by making sure the bass register was never overpowered by the richer middle and upper registers.

Rounding out the program were two Schubert Impromptus—fleeting pieces that showcased Lubimov’s incredibly nimble finger work—and Glinka’s Introduction and Variations on a Theme from “I Capuleti e i Montecchi” by Bellini, full of dramatic harp-like flourishes and fanfares. The sold-out audience was enthusiastic throughout, even gasping at the evening’s most intimate and delicate phrases.

Here's a new one: clarinetist Richard Stoltzman and marimbist Mika Yoshida will join forces and present a concert of world premieres by Chick Corea (“Marika Groove”), Marcos Valle, Tamar Muskal, Mike Mainieri, Michiru Oshima & William Thomas McKinley at Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall next Wednesday, April 4 at 8pm. They will be joined by special guests Eddie Gomez on bass, Mike Mainieri on vibraphone and Steve Gadd on drums. Tickets available at the Carnegie box office or online.

Listen to "Marika Groove" HERE