Lisa Hilton, Author at Lisa Hilton Music

lisa hilton transparent sky cover with quote

new… New… NEW!

September 1, 2021 by Lisa Hilton

Favorite Tracks, summer, Transparent Sky

Late summer has its own vibe, don’t you think? Early summer, (especially this year), had a palpable enthusiasm and euphoria for long sunny days, travel plans and get – togethers with family and friends along with new stuff to wear or do after the inactivity of 2020. By August it’s hotter, and good luck finding a vacay rental, window seat on a flight, or new sandals you like, right? But it’s human nature to desire and share something that’s new so in August I like to think of “new” in simpler terms:

– concocting a new recipe (I need a good recipe for anything with blackberries!)
– experimenting with grilled vegetables (BBQ avocados anyone?)
– hiking or biking a less traveled path (I like beach biking)
– reading different kinds of books
– playing music, I don’t normally play (this year Brubeck and Bach)
– tuning in to new music – like Transparent Sky!

Normally we release an album in early December, but this year, (and last year), are different of course, so here we are with new music to share to perk up everyone’s end of summer. It’s out September 3rd and I absolutely think it’s great for road trips, dinner parties, work at home, airport time, carpools, household tasks, happy hours or beach days! If you are at all interested in jazz, please download/buy right away so you can enjoy it over the last few days of summer and beyond. I’m not always sure how Amazon charts work, but it is currently #1 Amazon NEW RELEASE/ cool jazz before it’s on sale date – so thank you everyone who is already buying there! It will also be available on all streaming services after that date and is currently brightening jazz radio playlists around the world. I think we all desire something new and uplifting right now in our lives, and we hope you will enjoy Transparent Sky.

As a composer, there is a fun, and an eternal quest to try and create a new jazz classic that everyone loves. So, what are my favorite new tracks? I’ve spent a lot of time with each new song – composing, notating, playing, and overseeing the recording, editing, mixing, and mastering, and I absolutely adore Santa Monica Samba as a mood booster, and the love song, Nightingales & Fairy Tales. I also like the groovy vibes of Random Journey and Living in Limbo. A couple people on my creative team said that Transparent Sky (which I performed as solo piano), really touched them and I’ve heard that people like Fall Upon a Miracle and Infinite Tango, (this one is doing well at jazz radio). I think my bandmates liked Extraordinary Everyday Things, and my best friend mentioned the cover of God Bless The Child was always one of her favorites after hearing the band Blood, Sweat, & Tears record it. So that just leaves my tune Chromatic Chronicles, but that is a favorite to play with its interlocking blues lines! The truth is there are a lot of favorite tunes on Transparent Sky, and we hope that you enthusiastically enjoy the new music as well as the last few sun bleached days of summer.

– Lisa

Q & A For Transparent Sky

August 17, 2021 by Lisa Hilton

Billie Holiday, Q&A, Studio, Transparent Sky

Q & A with composer/pianist/band leader, Lisa Hilton on her new release TRANSPARENT SKY out Sept 3, 2021 with bandmates Rudy Royston/drums and Luques Curtis/bass

Q. You, Rudy & Luques recently came out with the acclaimed 2020 release, More Than Another Day. How soon after that were you back in the studio for Transparent Sky?

A. We recorded More Than Another Day in August 2020 and Transparent Sky in May 2021- so about nine months apart. We all had a bit of extra time on our hands since there has not been any touring, so it was wonderfully normal to be playing again! I felt incredibly happy to be together and we had a much better experience than we did last August when we were anxious and awkward wearing masks and staying apart. This year, post vaccines, we could be ourselves and enjoy things. I have been very thankful that More Than Another Day has been so successful – one of the top recordings at Jazz Week so far for 2021 – but it was a bit stressful to create. Transparent Sky is very uplifting and has a lot of energy, so we hope listeners will like this one too.

Q. Is there a concept behind the title?

A. I think the title refers to how many of us are feeling right now: If a sunny sky connotes a good future, and a dark sky represents where humanity was in 2020, Transparent Sky has a sense of taking the moment for what it is – and to cherish what we can here and now. We don’t have any promises for tomorrow, do we? Today looks pretty good though.

Q. There’s a lot of different kinds of swing and movement on this album – was that intentional?

A. I always let the music emerge as I compose: I don’t know what I will create and I don’t try and force a direction or try to control it. What developed was a LOT of movement and richer chords and harmonies this year – which makes sense when you consider how static last year was and how we had less activities – as musicians we need to challenge and entertain ourselves too, so I think that’s why I subconsciously wrote in so many rhythm changes and multiple harmonic directions. Then of course, it was great fun to have Luques and Rudy add all their ideas and textures too. Our engineer, Chandler Harrod, did a great job recording and I love hearing all the cool bass and drum additions to the compositions. This music really gets me moving and I love that!

Q. Was this recording a new direction for you and your trio?

A. I began working in the direction of splicing different rhythms, genres and eras compositionally with our 2014 album Kaleidoscope. I feel that music of today should have genre mobility – that we prefer multiple ideas and references musically from any era or style, and like the colored pieces inside a kaleidoscope, that life/humanity/music is more interesting because of variety. Transparent Sky, my band, and our music are examples of this approach: that beauty in our world is created through inclusion – if there were only red squares in a kaleidoscope, it would have no appeal.

Q. That’s true! I’m curious, do you bring sheet music scores to the studio or do you just wing it? Do you rehearse?

A. When I first began recording, I didn’t use any written scores at all – I just played the tune a couple times and then we recorded – a la the Miles Davis Kind of Blue approach. But I think it’s kinder to have the sheet music, so now I do all the scores ahead of time in Sibelius: being self -taught it took me a while to master notation software, but now it’s fun for me to create the scores – of course there is always room for improvisation too – the scores are more like skeletons for the band to work from. We still don’t rehearse though – jazz has never been about perfection – it’s supposed to be a bit loose and capture the energy of the moment, whether it’s partially written or improvised. In classical music you shoot for perfection, but jazz has the energy that anything can happen at any moment, and for jazz lovers we find that much more engaging and dynamic.

Q. You included the cover God Bless The Child that was popularized and sung by Billie Holiday. Tell us about that selection please.

A. For a long time I’ve been trying to record cover songs by women who were composers, because there is very little attention paid to them in jazz – they are normally identified as singers or instrumentalists. I’ve recorded tunes by Joni Mitchell, Ann Ronnell and Janis Joplin, and I was surprised that I hadn’t even realized that Billie Holiday had written/co-written several songs. She is one of the most well – known and enduring jazz recording artists, yet we seem to know a lot more about her love affairs and drug habits than we do about her talents, right?

Q. That’s true! Did she write God Bless The Child?

A. Yes, she was the co-writer with Arthur Herzog Jr. I’ve read two books and seen a movie about Billie Holiday, and they never highlighted the fact she was a composer! I think it’s important to give women recognition for all for their talents, and by promoting these talents maybe we will see less discrimination in jazz/classical/opera music. Thankfully we see more women as bandleaders, producers, instrumentalists and recording engineers, but performing arts centers, opera houses and jazz clubs around the world are still almost entirely focused on presenting music of male composers. Billie Holiday should be recognized for her skills as a songwriter – it’s a great tune!

Q. Ok, last question that’s on everyone’s mind – do you and your trio plan to perform at all in 2021?

A. We had planned something for this fall, but we realized there are a lot of restrictions that some venues feel they need to require for performers, staff and audience too this year. Everyone wants to get back to “normal” but we are not quite there yet, so we are going to be patient for now. So I’m sorry everyone – we want you to have fun and we don’t want anyone excluded, so we are going to wait a while longer for a live show.

Transparent Sky is available for pre-order August 3^rd, 2021 and out Sept 3^rd, 2021 at Amazon, Apple Music and LisaHiltonMusic.com

lisa hilton at the beach in a white dress and tan hat, in the studio with her band mates, and playing using sheet music at the piano

Photos by Aaron Regan. Band photos by Leigh Shane.

album cover for lisa hilton's transparent sky album. Lisa stands on some stone wearing a white dress and a hat

Lisa Hilton and her Trio with Rudy Royston and Luques Curtis Masterfully Blend Traditions in an Inspiring New Recording

July 28, 2021 by Lisa Hilton

Lisa Hilton, Luques Curtis, Rudy Royston, Transparent Sky

Lisa Hilton’s Transparent Sky is Available September 3/Pre-order Aug 3

As America and other countries re-emerge from the limitations of 2020, Lisa Hilton and her trio with Rudy Royston and Luques Curtis, enthusiastically embrace the moment with a vibrant new jazz offering titled Transparent Sky, that will inspire, uplift and motivate us all. Rich with glorious harmonies and unique compositions, Hilton’s swinging band radiates a sun bleached aura to listeners. Throughout the album Hilton, Royston and Curtis develop a surprisingly wide range of rhythmic ideas from a variety of genres, masterfully blending classic traditions with new approaches and upbeat style.

The recording jumps in with the Latin tinged “Santa Monica Samba,” quickly following with the equally energetic “Random Journey” on this collection of nine originals, plus one cover. “What developed this year was a LOT of movement and richer chords and harmonies – which makes sense when you consider how static last year was. As musicians we need to challenge and also entertain ourselves, so I think that’s why I subconsciously wrote in so many rhythm changes and multiple harmonic directions,” says Hilton. “Living In Limbo,” “Chromatic Chronicles,” “Fall Upon a Miracle” and “Infinite Tango,” highlight the multiple creative rhythms of Hilton’s compositions and showcase ample opportunities for Curtis’s agile bass, and the delightful details of Royston’s drums.

Hilton has a way with ballads, and “Nightingales & Fairy Tales” is no exception. With its slight nod to Bill Evans in the sixties, this has the making of a jazz classic for a twenty – first century audience. In the same vein, a cover of “God Bless The Child,” co-written by Billie Holiday and Arthur Herzog Jr, is a charmer, and like all the tracks here, is skillfully and originally presented without being forced. “For a long time I’ve been trying to record cover songs by women who were composers, because there is very little attention paid to them in jazz. I think it’s important to give women recognition for their range of talents, and by promoting them, maybe we will see less discrimination in music”, Hilton muses.

Slowing towards the album’s end, “Extraordinary Everyday Things” is a calm and expressive soundscape, but with a surprise twist, Hilton finishes up with the title track, “Transparent Sky” as a sonorous piano solo. “The melody is beautiful and has a bit of swing, but the harmonic ideas are quite chromatic and dissonant with overlapping/lingering sonorities between bar lines.” She says. “This piece needs to be played sensitively or it will sound harsh, but that is like our lives today – we are living in sensitive times and need to be aware of how we connect and communicate. The solo piano clearly delivers those delicate harmonies along with the emotions. It’s about accepting our world as it is, whatever may be happening at that moment. Tomorrow will bring what it will, but there is still beauty to be found if we look for it, amid the dissonance of our times.” Hilton explains.

Lisa Hilton’s new album, Transparent Sky, is available everywhere September 3rd, 2021 – Pre-Order August 3, 2021

About Lisa Hilton

Lisa Kristine Hilton is a distinctive composer of jazz, an acclaimed pianist, a bandleader and producer. Growing up in a small town on California’s central coast, she originally taught herself to play piano with a colored keyboard guide, writing her first simple songs around six years, before beginning studies in classical and twentieth century music starting at the age of eight. In college she switched majors from music, and graduated instead with a degree in art. This art background informs her musical creations: she describes “painting” compositions using improvisation, and harmony or “sculpting” with multiple rhythmic ideas from different cultures. Hilton’s music draws on classical traditions, and twentieth century modernists as well as classic American jazz greats such as Cole Porter, Thelonious Monk, and Horace Silver, as well as blues heroes Muddy Waters and Robert Johnson. Hilton’s music annually tops the jazz charts and appears on popular shows such as Apple Music’s Pure Jazz Playlist. In the book, “The New Face of Jazz: An Intimate Look at Today’s Living Legends and Artists of Tomorrow” by Cicily Janus, it states that Hilton has been “compared to some of the best pianists in history.” Noting that the overwhelming majority of music performed in jazz clubs and concert halls today are of compositions written by male musicians, Hilton is outspoken about the importance of presenting, and listening, to music composed by women in these fields as well.

pianist lisa hilton sitting behind a mixing board in a recording studio wearing a dress and a hat

Harvesting Creativity

June 4, 2021 by Lisa Hilton

Creativity, Growth, Jazz, Recording

My mind has been going over this idea the last couple of weeks as I finish my new compositions and prepare for the upcoming recording session: How do you nurture a blossoming creative project and see it through to a successful “harvest” or culmination? Whether it’s new music, a remodel or home grown veggies, it takes work, skill, time and experience to nurture peak conditions for a successful finish.

Hmmmmm… I really don’t know if there are any answers, but I think there are things you can do that allow for the creativity and growth to flourish. My personal motto is: “Get your work done ahead of time.” There are always quite a few little things that can be done ahead of time like planning lunch orders, personal needs, parking spots, etc. so they won’t occupy your mind when you need to be finalizing things. This is especially true in my case for practicing and knowing the music well enough to communicate it to others. But these things are really just common sense, right?

From experience I think the best approach is to be “of service” to the creative project: to do whatever it takes to deliver it and to be sensitive and intuitive to what it might need under any circumstances that arise. Making a commitment to nurturing yourself and the project consistently so that you can, (hopefully), create at the highest level.

I’ve been watching my mini veggie garden growing this spring in several large containers, silently betting which tomato plant might produce the best tomatoes – but we won’t know until it’s time to harvest – anything can happen of course. It’s only with the right conditions, at the right time, that you can harvest what you’ve been dreaming of and looking forward too. It’s all about the work, nurturing and growth that is needed to improve over many months. It’s all the small decisions every day that add up, but at the very end you hope for the best conditions and a bit of luck too. Please wish us good luck as we record the new music!

Enjoy this spring!

– Lisa

How to Succeed in the Music Biz

May 14, 2021 by Lisa Hilton

Al Schmitt, Capitol Studios, Creativity, Recording

I’m not sure if people will ever come to me on how to make it in the music biz, but if they do I’ll tell them: “Do what Al did – as in Al Schmitt, the celebrated engineer and producer and 23 time Grammy award winner that passed away at ninety – one last week. But before I share those thoughts, let me tell you how I met Al and started working with him sixteen years ago.

When I started composing, I recognized that I had to record the music if I wanted to share it with others. Somehow I found good people right away to work with and I generally was able to create work I was proud of even though those first few albums were low budget affairs dominated with performance anxiety. One year as I headed into mastering – the final step before finishing the music – I was particularly depressed at the sound of the piano. The mix engineer had over processed the piano so that it was hardly recognizable! I did a lot of research looking for better piano sounds and one name kept popping up: Al Schmitt.

I listened to Bill Evans, Diana Krall, and Rosa Passos and every great piano sound had the same engineer. Stuck in traffic on my way to the studio in Hollywood I came up with three wishes for my career that I repeated emphatically in my brain: 1) to have enough finances to pay my band, 2) to work in a studio with better bathrooms, (I had been working in some low budget studios sometimes), and 3) to work with the engineer Al Schmitt. Still feeling a bit glum as I arrived at the studio, I greeted my engineer Gavin Lurssen and his boss, Doug Sax.

Then Gavin introduced me to Doug’s client – Al Schmitt. Imagine my surprise to meet the one person I had been thinking about in traffic for ninety minutes! How remarkable was that? Al did agree to work with me the following year, and gradually we worked in better studios and fortunately my financials improved too. He engineered sixteen albums with me and we shared the same fondness for cookies, Cole Porter and great audio. The first couple years I thought I’d watch Al closely to discover his “secrets”, but like any great artist his work was effortless and just a natural part of who he was. But by watching him I saw the aspects that I see so often in people who are highly successful: of course he had a strong work ethic and top skills, but he always had time to look people in the eye and chat, and would easily give his time to teach or share with others.

When I worked with him he led a very balanced life, always nicely dressed, working out every morning and calling his wife when he left work every single day. He kept his commitments – if his job with Diana or Anita was running behind schedule, he still honored his commitment to our studio time. It was rare to hear a complaint from him even if the air conditioning went out on a hot day, although if you weren’t prepared he’d let you know you were slowing him down. Most of all, he loved what he did, and when you’re doing what you love doors seem to open up along the way – as they did for him time and time again, and as they have done for me too.

These days we seem to measure peoples’ lives by size, and by that yardstick Al’s life seemed bigger than anyone I have ever met. Imagine that every day he had the privilege of working with the greatest artists in the world, (Duke, Thelonious, Barbra, Natalie, Diana, Chick, Quincy, Frank, Norah, Joao, Liza, Elvis, and Madonna just to name a few), doing what he loved? I think we all would like to be able to just do what Al did and excel so consistently for decades and decades. He was a skilled master and an inspiration to all who knew him, and he will be missed by many.

– Lisa

First row: Al Schmitt at working at what he loved, At Avatar Studios NYC with Jeremy Pelt,
Christian McBride, Lewis Nash and Steve Wilson 2007.
Second row: Working with engineers Chandler Harrod and Al Schmitt at Capitol Studios 2019.

Life Feels Better…

April 14, 2021 by Lisa Hilton

Billie Holiday, Bossa Nova, Diana Krall, More Than Another Day

Billie Holiday, Diana Krall, Jazz Playlists, Music Sale, Podcast

I think you and I both know in our hearts that life feels better with music. Sometimes though it seems easy to just do what we’re doing without it, but we know that everything not only feels better but somehow can even become fun, just by listening to the right tunes! Last year really ground this concept in for me: faced with new additions to household tasks replacing performance opportunities that had disappeared, the old “whistle while you work” idea popped in my head.

Since I share pretty much everything with you, I thought I’d also share my playlist from the last year too. I think you could characterize, (and paraphrase), this playlist perhaps as: Something old, something new, something borrowed, and some blues – it’s a bit of this and that but it’s a jazz playlist and it puts you in a great mood for more than three hours. I have affectionately called it the Corner Café Jazz playlist because I have missed the convivial spirit of a local coffee spot with lively jazz playing to set the mood, so I have tried to recreate that as best as I can here.

Listen to Corner Café Jazz on Spotify

Listen to Corner Café Jazz on YouTube

Listen to Corner Café Jazz on Pandora

Most playlists are created with different song tracks, but this is an album playlist so it has four different upbeat jazz approaches. You can see I’m starting out with our new album More Than Another Day and then I segue to Billie Holiday, who has been getting a much deserved moment lately. Although I have read two books about her, I really hadn’t realized that she also composed too. What we should all know about Lady Day, is that her music is timeless and appealing to so many around the world, and this collection is a very upbeat compilation called Billie’s Best.

After Billie, I add in some of the best bossa nova ever recorded: Getz/Gilberto. You have to be careful with bossa nova because it can actually be too relaxing, but it’s nice to have the lilting Latin energy, right? I’m a huge fan of composer Antonio Carlos Jobim who was also the pianist on this one. Next up is another favorite album, Diana Krall’s Live In Paris recorded by my engineer Al Schmitt and his fabulous crew. Diana is not normally referred to as a pianist – only as a singer, but she is a terrific pianist, and she’s clear as a bell and singing as well here! This playlist has gotten me through a lot of tasks and good times too this last year, so I hope enjoy it too.

Before I sign off, I want to say another big THANK YOU to the incredible support our album: More Than Another Day, has received from radio and streaming sources around the world: #1 Apple Music Pure Jazz Playlist, #1 Amazon.com New Release/Cool Jazz, #3 PhilsPicks.com, #5 JazzWeek Jazz Radio chart, #7 ZMR International Radio chart – and more. Just posted is this Straight No Chaser jazz podcast hosted by Jeffrey Siegel. It was really fun to be on this wonderful podcast again – please take a moment to listen soon.

Click here to listen to the Straight No Chaser podcast

As a springtime/goodtime gift, lisahiltonmusic.com will be selling CD’s and 1 vinyl album April 1-15th for only $5.00 (+ shipping in the USA only – limited to 10 CDs total). Digital downloads will be specially priced at $5.99 (also limited to 10 per customer).

Use the discount code: ENJOY

Wishing you a happy spring and great month!

Lisa

Springtime favorites: Hiking in the Malibu mountains and by the sea, spring flowers in bloom, and kale growing in my garden. Middle row: A few of the albums featured on the Corner Café Jazz Playlist including the ever amazing Diana Krall and Lady Day.

lisa hilton wearing a hat sitting in front of a piano

More Than Another Day Reviews ✨

March 16, 2021 by Lisa Hilton

Lisa Hilton, More Than Another Day, Press, Reviews

Thank you for your support and encouragement for our album, MORE THAN ANOTHER DAY:

#1 AMAZON.COM NEW RELEASE/COOL JAZZ first week on sale

TOP TEN LIST DEC/2020: #3 More Than Another Day PhilsPicks.com

#5 Jazz Week Jazz Chart –multiple weeks

“Hilton is an inheritor/successor to the mantle of Erroll Garner: classy, intelligent and accessible without bowing to commercial-type compromise.” New York Jazz Record/Mark Keresman

“It’s a sophisticated, yet engagingly accessible sound that brings to mind the classic work of artists like Vince Guaraldi, Dave Brubeck and Ramsey Lewis….swinging acoustic jazz.” Matt Collar/All Music Guide

“In a few instances, the compositions written for More Than Another Day are absolutely breath-taking. Hilton has a way of injecting such warmth into her left hand that, no matter what sort of piece the pianist tackles, she leaves behind a sense of delicate intimacy not found in the repertoire of other artists.” Peter J. Hoetjes/All About Jazz

“Wonderful music…vibrant…spilling over with cheer, hope and serious jazz chops…each track percolates…unadulterated exhilaration..mesmerizing…intoxicating…” Jazz Medium/Carol Banks Weber

“Impressions of color and depth.” Jazz Weekly

“A smoking trio date, but what it really is, is a tour de force for her piano chops to really walk the walk. The kind of classic sound/feeling date that first got you into jazz piano trio sets, this might appear simple but that doesn’t stop it from being as tasty as it gets. Hot stuff.” The MidwestRecord

“The trio is perfect…another solid collection of very memorable, interesting compositions… in the performance, there is a sense of optimism in every note here.” Jazz Squared/Russia

“A year-end gift to aficionados everywhere.” Mike Jurkovich/All About Jazz

“More Than Another Day is an exceptional offering that ranks at the top of Hilton’s repertoire. It gives the listener the complete picture of her masterful talents as a pianist, composer and bandleader, in addition to offering nearly an hour of awesome entertainment.” Sounds of Timeless Jazz

“Yet another compelling effort. These are a fresh set of Hilton’s tunes that have an easily embraceable warmth. There’s a touch of blues and several beautiful ballads over ten selections.” O’s Place Jazz Magazine

“Hilton has a clear vision of how she wants to sound as she beautifully plays the Steinway…her piano sound is lush, delicate and highly melodic…. A rich balance of emotions and harmonic colors as well.” Glide Magazine/Jim Hynes

“Hilton’s elegant piano and the profound dynamism-filled rhythm create beautiful melodic piano trio works”. Vento Azul /Japan

“This quite compelling new album – one that showcases the creative range of Hilton and her trio…an album that not only uplifts the soul and spirit within the listener, but ensures they are also given a breath of fresh air in which to continue….” Exclusive Magazine

“A refined and organic pianist….lyrically and harmoniously engaging.” Windout Magazine/Italy

“This quite compelling new album…an album that only uplifts the soul and spirit within the listener.” Exclusive Magazine

“I’m always glad to listen to Lisa Hilton!” Aiding & Abetting blog

RADIO REVIEWS:

“Delightful music with some twists. Where has Lisa been hiding! Now that I have found her, I want to hear more.” CKHA/Canada

“I always enjoy Lisa Hilton’s trio albums, and More Than Another Day is one of the best. I’m honored to share her music with my audience”. Mike Chimeri, host of Instrumental Invasion, WCWP-FM

“Good stuff!” WXPN/BluesNet Radio/PA

“Lisa Hilton’s original compositions continue to get better and better. Her trio with Rudy Royston & Luques Curtis deliver a wonderful and listenable journey of music.” Kayonne Riley-WUCF/FL

“Amazing!” The Network Radio/Italy

“More Than Another Day’ fits right in with the sound of our station. I really like what’s she’s done on this project” Jaelon Jackson-KNTU/TX

“Excellent!” RadioVideo/Ireland

“Easy going music. Perfect fit for drivetime airplay.” Jonathan Turner-WXTS/OH

“Attention grabbing!” KVNF Radio

“Love the playful, whimsical spirit…” Outsight Radio/NC

“From upbeat, tight, pulsing to ethereal, evocative, gymnopedie like: always pleasing.”CILU/Canada

“It’s always a pleasure to listen to Lisa Hilton’s piano! And thank you to Luques Curtis & Rudy Royston.” Radio Arc-en-Ciel 103.4 FM /France

“I always look forward to a Lisa Hilton release.” CIWS/Canada

“Lovely!” Villa Bota Radio/Belgium

“Real nice set of tracks.” CJSW/CANADA

“Another excellent album from the great jazz lady of the piano. I like it!!!!!” FM Urquiza /Argentina

“Great piano playing especially with the trio.” CKSJ Coast 101.1FM/NL

“NICE!” WDCE/VA

“Good album!” Urban Jazz Radio

“A Lisa Hilton album is always a treat & especially welcomed during these dark days.”SINE FM/UK

“Gentle, swinging & with a hint of whimsy. Another fine recording.” Just Jazz/New Zealand

“Beautiful!” Good Ratio Music / Germany

“As always, a great, rich sound.” WMWM/ MA

“So super!!!!” Free FM / Greece

“Lisa Hilton never disappoints, and on the contrary, manages to surprise…, combining freshness & vivacity with poetry… rich in a preciousness that confirms the value of the pianist.”Animajazz/Italy

“Another great work by Lisa. Unusual & inspiring mix of songs played by a tight, wonderful trio.” 2MBS NSW, Australia

“Great vibes on this one.” K107 FM/UK

“REAL GOOD!” Radio MUZKOM/Russia

lisa hilton sitting behind a black and gold piano

New Growth 🌱

March 11, 2021 by Lisa Hilton

Cole Porter, Composing Season, Creativity, Miles Davis

Some musical experiences I find pretty tricky to describe, so I try to convey them through similar experiences that we all can share. Take riding a bike down a hill – that feeling of flying – whoosh! Or roller skating on just the right kind of smooth pavement, or skiing down a lovely hill fresh in the morning with just a little powder and no bumps. These experiences describe a sense of freedom and joy, and a type of beauty too I suppose. You didn’t get to see Ricky, my little 11 lb Italian greyhound run on the beach, but anyone who did witnessed his unbridled physical expression of sheer joy and freedom, bringing smiles to everyone who did see it. When I’d see him all fast, sleek and tireless – I’d think to myself that is how I aspire to play the piano
someday! When I watch the great pianists Yuja Wang or Lang Lang, I think they play like Ricky ran – with a lot of joy and a lot of speed. The effort it takes to play well is more than repaid for in the freedom it bestows on a pianist.

Even tricker perhaps to describe is composing. When I mention that it feels like a vacation to me, most people conjure visions of swimming pools with umbrella drinks, and that is not at all what I mean. The essence of a vacation or travel is new experiences and a sense of surprise: Where will we go today? What will we do? The sense of curiosity that flavors vacation travel is a very similar feeling to what I experience when I compose: Where will I go today musically? What will I create? There is a sense of unfolding, new growth and discovery along with wonderment too. If I were a film composer, the director would tell me what was happening when, and how long it would last, but artists don’t really know where they will end up – the path/map/destination is unknown: we only have a vague direction of where we will go on any given day. But composing is also like laying the railroad tracks or building the car for that journey – it’s an incredible amount of time and work, but I can imagine that if you really liked cars it would be fun to build your own, and I bet that Steve Jobs kept persisting with his
computer creations because it was, at its core, a thrilling and creative adventure for him.

I’ve come to affectionately call springtime my “Composing Season” and it does seem to get started every year right about the time I plant my veggie garden. Every spring, I begin again – for the exploration, curiosity, excitement, challenge, discoveries and new musical growth it always brings, not because I need a new album, or have to create material for a tour, or a TV show. It’s always fun to head off without knowing where you will go, right? The virtual back seat on my composing excursions is filled with all my favorite artists along for the ride – Miles, Monk, Chopin, Jobim, Cole Porter, (the life of the party), Duke and Lady Day of course. Once again, it’s about time for me to wave bon voyage, as I head to my beloved Steinway in my breakfast
nook – time to sit in one place and travel through musical ideas: I wonder what I’ll create today? I wonder where this new path will take me?

Wishing everyone spring-around-the-corner weather, and a joyful start to new creations,

Lisa

A few of my favorite things: My Steinway, bike riding, the pianist Yuja Wang, new lettuce growing, Ricky, and being in the countryside. With the pianist Lang Lang, sunset in the Mojave desert, and composing. Top photo by Ricky Chavez.

Isn’t It Romantic? 💗

February 12, 2021 by Lisa Hilton

Antonio Carlos, Bill Evans, Cole Porter, Holidays

Performing with my band last year in Santa Cruz, California, at the cool Kuumbwa Jazz Club, I mentioned to the audience that I didn’t think we’ve been romantic since the 60’s, and I got a big warm laugh in response. What I really meant was that I don’t think music has been very romantic for decades.

Consider this: the 1963 hit by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, Close To You, as well as the John Lennon & Paul McCartney tune I Want To Hold Your Hand… also written in 1963, are maybe the last tunes of the romantic song era that began about 1930. What happened? No more Dancing Cheek to Cheek (Irving Berlin/1935), Misty (Errol Garner/1955), or Elvis Presley’s Can’t Help Falling In Love (1961). Romantic songs began to fade when folk music brought social issues into lyrics like Bob Dylan’s 1962 Blowin’ In The Wind. Dylan, along with artists like Pete Seeger, Joni Mitchell and Joan Baez, began writing lyrics with a completely different tone – no more Three Coins in a Fountain (Jule Styne & Sammy Cahn/1955). Times changed, and music changed as well. Today’s love songs should, and do sound different.

Now when we listen to jazz standards from the 30’s to the early 60’s they do sound almost overly romantic in a warm nostalgic way – they are of another era and time.

In 2005 I was talking with actor Tony Danza at our local gym and he suggested that I should “play standards.” This was a smart idea, but being a composer, I really prefer to write my own, so instead I decided to compose a tune in the general form of a romantic standard, which I called, So This Is Love. For years we’ve enjoyed playing it as a band, so last February when I got the urge to write another romantic song for Valentine’s Day, I figured it would be pretty simple, right? I loved delving into a bunch of romantic tunes – especially Cole (I’ve Got You Under My Skin) Porter, and Antonio Carlos (Girl From Ipanema) Jobim as well as the intimate playing style of composer/pianist Bill (Waltz for Debby) Evans. Well, I was wrong!

Romantic songs may sound very simple, but they proved to be trickier than I thought. I consider the tunes I hoped would be romantic – No Sleep Until… and Today I Looked At Love off our latest album, to be more in the ballad range, just a bit short of romantic. So what makes the perfect love song? After a couple months I just gave up on romance, and recorded a new version of So This Is Love!

Whatever you play or do this week, wishing you a sense of joy and hopefully romance too!

Take care,

Lisa

Valentine’s Day Favorites: roses, lattes, hydrangeas, beautiful Malibu sunsets, pastries from Dominique Ansel Bakery, the film Top Hat featuring Irving Berlin’s Cheek to Cheek, the sheet music for So This is Love, which you can buy on my website, and my beloved piano.

lisa hilton in a black dress with a quote about how grateful she is for the support she's received in the last 20 years

Thank You! 👏

February 3, 2021 by Lisa Hilton

More Than Another Day, Press, Radio Jazz Charts

I’m not quite sure, but I think it was around 2000 that I decided I should send my CD to radio stations to see if I could get airplay. So I researched radio stations in the US, (no streaming services or iTunes then yet), although I don’t remember how I did that since internet search engines were still new! Somehow I painstakingly typed up a list of appropriate stations and snail mailed my CD’s out, and later, following up with a call. At that time it was a big step for someone from a small town to do this, although it doesn’t seem like much of a big deal looking back. I grew up being told not to “talk to strangers” but here I was calling them! I was pretty nervous at first, but found the radio show hosts to be nice and of course, knowledgeable about music and jazz, so they were fun to talk to, great conversationalists of course, and had terrific voices too. Now we all have “friends,” but this was my first experience befriending people I had never met, and it felt cool.

It’s been awhile since then and now my 23rd album, More Than Another Day, is now being played at radio stations throughout the world. With each new recording I still get a bit nervous and excited too to see what people think of our latest effort, (even if I’m not calling up stations myself any more). It’s feels good to have some experience and a track record now – that always feels better, right? But you never know when you spend eight months on a creative project how it will go over when it is released. Last year our album was #11 on the JazzWeek Radio Chart and #2 on the ZMR radio chart – what will it be this year? It’s now out of our hands: we just wish that it brings joy and uplift to listeners around the world. So far we have been very fortunate – just a month after the release date and only a couple weeks at radio stations we debuted at #22 on the JazzWeek chart which is a WONDERFUL start – don’t you agree? So I want to take a moment to thank everyone for their kind words, radio spins, support and encouragement the last twenty years – applause and bravo to you all! Radio shows are still personally curated – that’s actually what you call entertainment!

Take care and wishing us all hope, health and optimism this year,

Lisa

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