JD Allen Archives - Lisa Hilton Music

Ahhh….summer!

June 14, 2018 by Lisa Hilton

Escapism, jazz, JD Allen, Jeremy Pelt, Larry Grenadier, Lewis Nash, lisa hilton, piano jazz

Hello Hello,

I couldn’t resist sending this shot out after I recovered it from an old email -it’s really my favorite band shot of all times! That’s saxophonist, JD Allen, bassist Larry Grenadier, trumpeter Jeremy Pelt and drummer Lewis Nash with me on a rainy day in 2009 in a photo by David Gordon. The adjectives “hard working” are normally attached to my name, but you can see very clearly we still have time to enjoy ourselves! I loved the “Twilight & Blues” recording sessions at Avatar Studios in NYC- Jeremy and JD were really close friends and very fun and upbeat working together. Lewis is, of course, a legend, and I worked with Larry so long he really did seem like family, and we’re both from California – doesn’t he look like he could be family? (Although it’s JD, who calls me ‘sis’.)

I hope you’re enjoying the beginning of summer – always my favorite time of year – and also my Composing Season – longer days at the piano go perfectly with beach walks and bbq’s if you ask me. Yes, I’ve got plenty of new music I’m developing and then will record later this summer, for a late 2018 release, and with new band mates this time around, so I’m excited about what we’ll create. I, (very surprisingly), got a vacay this year – in Japan – and enjoyed the time off, the culture and, everywhere I went there, the jazz. Jazz in coffee shops, vintage clothes shops or teeny smoke filled bars – sounding like the sound track to my life. A great trip!

Still thankful for all the support from everywhere for our album, ESCAPISM – which is still doing well at radio, and currently on one radio chart. I’m hoping that everyone is playing “Hot Summer Samba!”

I’m also working to set up the tour dates for next year – although the tickets are not on sale, or the listings up yet, here are a few dates, so mark your calendars:

JANUARY 5TH/SATURDAY ZIPPER HALL/ down town Los Angeles/ 8PM – THIS IS MY BIRTHDAY!

JANUARY 10th/THURSDAY WEILL HALL/CARNEGIE HALL/NYC 8PM

FEBRUAY 28TH/THURSDAY/SAN FRANCISCO JAZZ/8PM

APRIL 2/TUESDAY/BUDDY GUY’S LEGENDS/CHICAGO/6PM

Handy Links: iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/escapism/id1300363720

CDBaby: http://cdbaby.com/cd/lisakhilton

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/LisaHiltonMusic/featured

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Escapism-Lisa-Hilton/dp/B075ZB7L5M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1511235882&sr=8-1&keywords=lisa+hilton+escapism

Enjoy these long days – hopefully filled with sunshine!

Lisa

Where ESCAPISM began….

March 13, 2018 by Lisa Hilton

Blog, Escapism, Jazz, Lisa Hilton

jazz, JD Allen, lisa hilton, piano, Rudy Royston

Hello Hello,

I am thrilled at the support this week for our album, ESCAPISM! #8 on the JazzWeek chart (that posted March 8/Women’s Appreciation Day!), and #8 on the ZMR chart too! That is so wonderful! Thank you very much! We are appreciative of this encouraging news. Thank you!

The photo above is of my new studio in the breakfast nook of my new (but vintage) home a short walk from the beach in Malibu, and close by hiking in the Santa Monica Mountains – this is where all the ESCAPISM music was composed and developed from May-August last year. Just before I moved in May, I already had done the little embryos of the tunes, but the actual development of the compositions, and all the coloring, happened in a fairly short time last summer. You can barely make out the iconic shot of Miles Davis on the left in a photo by my friend Ken Franckling, and you can’t quite see another classic shot of Monk at Monterey Jazz fest at the top of the bookshelves, (filled with music books and jazz musician bios). Miles is my muse that represents soul, innovation, and perhaps perseverance. Monk is my muse of hard work (since he’s sweating at the piano), creativity, and someone I consider to be a piano giant. You also can’t quite see photos of me with the classical giants of today: pianists/friends Yuja Wang and Lang Lang. All the books and music books represent the greatest composers in the world from Bach to Bartok to Basie. On the right is a painting by an ex of mine, and 2 black & white photos (nudes) I took in college when I was an art student. It looks a bit messy because it’s a work day and I had just moved in. You can see the ferns and tropical foliage that influenced Hot Summer Samba – originally that tune was going to be a slow blues, but it was a gorgeous summer day, the AC wasn’t working and somehow, the song just moved itself into a hot Latin number! The view that I have in the opposite direction inspired Zero Gravity – just this feeling of summer at it’s best – a floating feeling inspired by palm trees.

Sitting in my new studio, filled with the lightness of summer, I wanted to create music that would lift spirits around the globe – to remember that beauty is still everywhere if only we can remember to look. That by lifting listeners energy maybe we can communicate the strength and goodness that cannot ever be taken from us. This is where the tracks from ESCAPISM were developed. I wanted a way to capture the great energy I was feeling and communicate it to others, so they can feel uplift too and bring that into their lives. It’s just amazing and really cool that so many people have embraced the album. (In fact, I am hoping that ESCAPISM will be the OFFICIAL JAZZ ALBUM of SPRING BREAK this year! Hah!) To me, sitting there at my piano IS Spring Break – it’s ESCAPISM or the ultimate vacay even. I start with a little melody, or perhaps a groove and then add a little bit and a little more, and a few hours later I return from what feels like a visit far, far away – all while sitting with my piano in a breakfast nook! In August I took the music to Avatar studio with my long time friends Gregg August, Rudy Royston and of course JD Allen. I explained each tune and the energy and inspiration and then we recorded – no rehearsal ever – a la Miles Davis. But I’m always a bit nervous – what will they think of these new tunes – my new “babies”? (And I am asking them to play a waltz on Zero Gravity even!) Of course they are professional and won’t comment, but ….?? A recording studio is not the place for indecision or insecurity though, it’s the place for committing to the ideas and creating the leadership to create great music, while hoping for the best. When we where done, what was their favorite piece? Zero Gravity – yep – the waltz!

Thank you for the support and wishing you a great week!

Lisa

Escapism Press Reviews

February 7, 2018 by Lisa Hilton

Blog, Category 1

composer, Gregg August, jazz and piano, JD Allen, lisa hilton, piano jazz, Rudy Royston, Terell Stafford

Lisa Hilton/piano

JD Allen/sax, Terell Stafford/trumpet, Gregg August/bass, Rudy Royston/drums

“Hilton’s music is picturesque and impressionistic…the pianist has excellent technique.” Downbeat

“Pianist Lisa Hilton has left an impressive creative footprint…Escapism continues her probing investigation of the American jazz landscape. Hilton has a knack for distillation, which is reducing music to its essences: harmony, melody, tempo, rhythm.” C. Michael Bailey/All About Jazz

“Hilton’s writing is quite expansive.” Cadence Magazine

“Hilton is a pure original… she has a magical ability to make her piano tell compelling stories. Certainly
on Escapism her facility for make her instrument talk and sing and wear its emotions on its proverbial sleeve is immense and you can hear this almost immediately as the recording begins. There is so much drama in her playing that one finds oneself constantly at the edge of the seat… She seems to be able to make her instrument a living, breathing thing. This is an album to die for.” Jazz da Gama/ Canada

Escapism “Blows open your mind and ears….this is a hot, happening date that charts a new course for pianist Hilton. Tasty jamming throughout. Well done.” Midwest Record

“Hilton is excitingly edgy during “Another Everyday Adventure” while showing her swinging digits on “Meltdown.” Her compositions are impressive… A Great Escape.” Jazz Weekly

“Lisa’s breadth of creativity and range of ideas are astounding as she reveals the virtuosity of her pianism, musicality & artful sound. Hilton has a lot to say. So listen. And then listen again.” Sounds of Timeless Jazz

“Hilton’s approach is fresh and uninhibited, taking musical paths less trodden and using expressive and unique chords.” Dee Dee McNeil/Musical Memoirs Jazz Journal

“A piano that seduces & captivates; a true passion in motion.” Actual Jazz/Uruguay “Artistic entertainment with splendid moments.” Vento Azul/Japan

“Great collection from Lisa Hilton – a really nice diversity.” The Music Korner Magazine “Lisa Hilton is top drawer.” Don Martin/Style Quarterly

“Fantastic!” Bebop Spoken Here

“Great energy, great creativity and broad range.” Jazz HQ

“This is a truly original musician with her own creative style and it is not surprising she is considered one of the leading pianists in the American jazz mainstream.” JazzQuad Russia

December 1, 2017 by Lisa Hilton

Blog, Escapism, Jazz, Lisa Hilton, twenty first century jazz

composer, Gregg August, jazz, jazz and piano, JD Allen, lisa hilton, piano, Rudy Royston

Composer Lisa Hilton Escapism Album Cover by Justin Bettman

Lisa K. Hilton Photo by Justin Bettman.

Happy Holidays, (or HOLIDAZE as the case may be),

Just in time for the Holidays my CD Escapism releases DECEMBER 1st! Yeah! My 20th release in 20 years! And yes, I do feel a wee bit overworked, but euphoric too. It is my passion, and I always feel extremely grateful when a new one is released – it really does feel a bit like a new child that you hope goes out into the world and makes a difference in others lives. This CD has myself on piano with JD Allen again on tenor sax, Gregg August on bass, Rudy Royston on drums and Terell Stafford on trumpet. Each CD has a different musical theme and ESCAPISM is about dealing with the challenges in life today by savoring the beauty and uplifting moments that are still there around us. You can get an idea of the energy of the music by the track titles: HOT SUMMER SAMBA, MELTDOWN, ANOTHER EVERYDAY ADVENTURE, TOO HOT, ON A CLEAR DAY, MOJAVE MOON, ZERO GRAVITY, ESCAPE VELOCITY BLUES, 29 PALMS, and UTOPIA CORNUCOPIA. Here is the just out video that was filmed in Joshua tree this month called Mojave Moon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lz8GApePLc Please share the video around!

CDs are available here my website and I also have sheet music and downloads for sale. The CDs are great as hostess gifts, teacher gifts, co-worker or “last minute” gifts. https://lisahiltonmusic.com/shop-1/ Of course you can always buy on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/escapism/id1300363720 or Amazon too: https://www.amazon.com/Escapism-Lisa-Hilton/dp/B075ZB7L5M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1511235882&sr=8- If you do get the CD and like it, please write a quick review on Amazon to help us out!

It’s still really early but here are a few reviews already out:

“Escapism blows open your mind and ears….this is a hot, happening date that charts a new course for pianist Hilton. Tasty jamming throughout. Well done.” Midwest Record

“Hilton is excitingly edgy during “Another Everyday Adventure” while showing her swinging digits on “Meltdown.” Her compositions are impressive… her own reading of “On A Clear Day,” is wonderfully dreamy. A Great Escape.” Jazz Weekly

“Hilton’s breadth of creativity and range of ideas are astounding as she reveals the virtuosity of her pianism, musicality and artful sound. Lisa Hilton has a lot to say. So listen. And then listen again.” Sounds of Timeless Jazz

“Truly unique compositions, flawlessly played. Regardless of the tempo, an inherent momentum informs Hilton’s music. Her left -hand has the pounding momentum and synergy of overtones that is so incredible. To say nothing of the right- hand improvising on a theme or taking off into absolutely unexpected and unpredictable places in such a beautiful way. Hilton & company are relentlessly in search of excellence, while achieving it with a frequency that leaves one in jaw-dropping awe.” Hugh “Hurricane” Carson, KVNF radio

“Hilton’s approach is fresh and uninhibited, taking musical paths less trodden and using expressive and unique chords.” Dee Dee McNeil/Musical Memoirs Jazz Journal

“A piano that seduces & captivates; a true passion in motion from the exquisite pianist Lisa Hilton.” Actual Jazz/Uruguay

Hoping You a Wonderful Holiday Season!

Lisa
Twitter: @lisahiltonmusic

Instagram.com /LisaHiltonMusic
Facebook:LisaHiltonMusic

THANK YOU TO RADIO EVERYWHERE!

February 9, 2016 by Lisa Hilton

Blog, Jazz, Lisa Hilton, piano jazz

#AntonioSanchez, Carnegie Hall, composer, Gregg August, Ingrid Jensen, jazz, jazz and piano, JazzWeek, JD Allen, Junior Blind of America, lisa hilton, Pepperdine University, piano, Rockwood Music Hall, Rudy Royston, SFJazz, Terell Stafford

Hi There!
Did you enjoy the SuperBowl? I think it’s always more fun to have a closer game – like last year, but the weather in California was spectacular for a February day and I liked GaGa’s arrangement of our anthem too.
Here’s a photo from NYC last month with JD Allen on tenor sax, Ben Williams on bass, Ingrid Jensen on trumpet and Rudy Royston on drums at Carnegie Hall. We had a great time! We had the same band last year but we were lucky to have Ben Williams join us – he’s just terrific and so nice too. Love those acoustics and my big Steinway at Carnegie!

Well Thank you, Thank You, THANK YOU radio stations EVERYWHERE for playing NOCTURNAL. Just 2 weeks after our Jan. 22nd release date, we are #20 on the JazzWeek radio chart and being played around the world. We have deep appreciation for this. There is a lot of music out there – mostly from larger labels, so it is a great vote of support to Antonio Sanchez, JD Allen, Gregg August, Terell Stafford and myself that the music is connecting so well. As artists, a lot of our creative work is done in relative isolation and then 6-12 months later you find out if anyone likes what you do, (no instant gratification!), so this has been great news. Stations that we know are playing NOCTURNAL our first couple weeks are listed here (did I miss anyone?) – as well as my Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LisaHiltonMusic. I just got this not from Russ Davis at MOJA RADIO/VOICE OF AMERICA: “You can add the 134 million people who hear JAZZ AMERICA on Voice of America as Nocturnal will be featured with our interview this coming Valentine’s Day weekend!” www.mojaradio.com – WOW! You can also listen here too:

WAER/NY, WBGU/OH, WBLU/WBLV/MI, WCLK/GA, WDNA/FL, WECI/IN, WERU/ME, WFCR/MA, WFMT/CA, WFDU/Jazz& What’s more/NJ, WGMC/NY, WGVU/MI, WHRV/VA, IL, WJSU/MS, WLRN/FL, WNCU/NC, WNMU/MI, WPFW/DC, WPPB/NJ, WQSU/PA, WRIR/VA, WRTI/PA, WSHA/NC, WSNC/WSSU/NC, WTJU/VA, WUEV/IN, WUMR/TN, WWOZ/LA, WWSP/WI, WWUH/CT, WXPN/PA, WYCE/MI, KANU/KANH/KANV/KS, KBEM/MN, KCBX/CA, KCCK/IA, KCSB/CA, KCSM/CA, KEWU/WA, KIOS/NE, KKRN/KWMR/CA, KKUP/CA, KMBH/KMHD/TX, KNTU/TX, KRFC/CO, KSDS/CA, KSJS/KSJD/CA, KTEP/online, KTSU/TX, KUSD/SD, KUVO/KVJX/CO, KUTX/TX, KVNF/KUMT/CO, KXPR/KYJZ/CA, KYGT/CO, 2MaxFm/Australia, ClassicFm/Abu Dhabi, All Jazz Radio/South Africa, AnimaJazz/Italy, Apple Music, Echoes/syndicated, Hawaii Public Radio/HI, Jazz After Hours/syndicated, Jazz from Gallery 41/CA,JazzHappeningNow/syndicated, IO Radio/UK, M3Radio/NY, MOJARadio/syndicated, No Solo Jazz/Spain, Otras Musicas/Spain, Peaceful Radio/Netherlands, Radio Despi/Spain, Radio Jazz/Uruguay, PRX Jazz/syndicated, Radio Swiss Jazz/Switzerland, Radio Valencia/CA, RadioVideoJazz/online, Rhapsody, RTVA/Spain, Soul&Jazz/UK, Spotify, Taint Radio/syndicated, Toppy Jazz/Netherlands, Radio Rick/Netherlands, BO FM/Canada, RLI/Madagascar, JazzCoRadio/Australia, Radio 794/Netherlands, Spectrum Jazz/online, CIWS/Canada, 2RRfm/Australia, Solar Radio/UK, Pacific Jazz, Canoefm/Canada, CFRO/Canada, CUIT/Canada, BBC Radio Stoke/UK, Scotland69fm/UK, 2NVR Australia, O’s Place Jazz, Output Radio/Netherlands, Style Quarterly Radio/online, West Gippsland Community Radio/Australia, …. Thank you all!

-MARCH 4th/Friday/Smothers Hall Pepperdine University/Malibu, CA 8pm 4255 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu/   https://pepperdinearts.ticketforce.com/eventperformances.asp?evt=132
-MARCH 10th/Thursday /Junior Blind of America, Los Angeles 4pm Performance for special needs students: 5300 Angeles Vista Blvd. L.A. www.JuniorBlind.org
-MARCH 12th/Saturday/Classic Pianos Portland, 3:30pm www.PortlandClassicPianos.net/events       http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2495400
-MARCH 24th/Thursday/ SFJazz: https://www.sfjazz.org/events-calendar
-APRIL 10th/Sunday/Rockwood Music Hall/NYC 8:30pm: http://www.rockwoodmusichall.com/   https://www.ticketfly.com/purchase/event/1090601
Hope you can come out to one of the performances for NOCTURNAL – see ya there!

Lisa

January 22, 2016 by Lisa Hilton

Blog, Lisa Hilton

Antonio Sanchez, Carnegie Hall, composer, Duke Ellington, jazz, jazz and piano, JD Allen, lisa hilton, New Release, NOCTURNAL, piano, piano jazz, reviews, Terell Stafford

Happy January 22nd – our Official Release Day!

We are very excited today! For us the release of NOCTURNAL represents months of creative passion, HOURS of rapt attention to detail, and two days of recording bliss. Truly the best band ever: Antonio Sanchez on drums (well known for his Birdman score), once again the deep Detroit tenor sax sound of JD Allen and the Julliard trained Gregg August on bass, and the addition of the virtuosic Terell Stafford on trumpet, as well as my piano too. After seventeen albums of compositions, I decided on my eighteenth to dig for more emotional depth and length on some tunes too, and I ended up enjoying the composing time more than ever. We’re proud of how it came out and we hope the world enjoys it. We’ve gotten a few early reviews:
-“SIMPLY PHENOMENAL.” KVNF Radio
–“Traditional modern jazz is represented by a contemporary style, and newly recorded by the long-awaited quintet of Lisa Hilton. Antonio Sanchez on drums, in front of JD Allen tenor, along with the wonderful trumpet of Terrell Stafford, and Gregg August on bass – mainly original songs with a fresh melodic beauty – her piano it’s great”. HMV.com
– “A collection of hard-hitting originals… her strongest outing yet.” George Harris/JazzWeekly
– “No one plays, writes or puts together a band better than this great, talented lady! NOCTURNAL is another in a growing list of deep excellent works from Hilton.” Russ Davis/Voice of America
– “Lisa Hilton has done a remarkable job.” The New York Jazz City Record
-“Highly anticipated….” New York Cool
– “What a wonderful album.” Exploring Jazz/WUNH
–“Speaks subtly of Satie and sublimely of Ellington…. Hilton has put together the right band and chosen the right repertoire to demonstrate her treasure trove of musical influences….” About.com
-“Remarkable emotional depth and clarity from all band members…” World Jazz News
-“Hilton’s compositions and melodies bear repeat listening sessions. I found myself returning to this CD several times…” Audiophile Audition
– “Composer/pianist/bandleader Lisa Hilton composes distinctive originals that are influenced by a wide swath of music.” Dan Ouellette/Zeal!nyc
Here are a couple spots where you can check out the album: Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Nocturnal-Lisa-Hilton/dp/B017Y6AQRE iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/nocturnal/id1058965612 or www.lisahiltonmusic.com or you can listen to a few tracks here: https://soundcloud.com/lisahiltonmusic

We had a wonderful time last week debuting the new music at Carnegie Hall – see photo/video here:https://www.facebook.com/LisaHiltonMusic . We’ll be at Pepperdine, in Malibu, CA, March 4th/Friday, Junior Blind of America March 10th, Classic Pianos/Portland March 12th and SF Jazz March 24th. We will add some more dates too. See more info here: https://lisahiltonmusic.com/tour-3/

Enjoy your weekend, and please let us know what you think of the new music if you get a chance.

Lisa

H O L I D A Y S!

November 29, 2015 by Lisa Hilton

Blog, Jazz, Lisa Hilton, piano jazz, twenty first century jazz

Ben Williams, Carnegie Hall, Holiday Gift Ideas, Ingrid Jensen, jazz, JD Allen, live, NYC, piano, piano jazz, piano students, Rudy Royston

Hope you had a nice Holiday weekend!

I enjoyed family time, hiking, a movie or too and food of course! Time to listen to NOCTURNAL – our new release that arrived Wednesday, which was exciting too, (it will be available for sale January 22nd, 2016). I also got time to play piano – so there was MUCH to be thankful for here in still sunny SoCal.

Every one has a discounted deal going on right now, but I try and offer a good price at Lisa Hilton Music all year round. With 17 CD’s out, plus 1 vinyl, digital downloads and sheet music, I hope you will find some good ideas to make your Holiday shopping easier!

I’m also getting excited about upcoming tour dates – especially January 17th, 2016 at 2pm at Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall in NYC. Perfect acoustics, an awesome piano, and a great band: Ingrid Jensen/trumpet, JD Allen/tenor sax, Ben Williams/bass and Rudy Royston/drums. FUN! I really like to encourage students to all performances, but especially for the matinees. Student tickets (or APAP passes) are available at the Box Office: http://www.carnegiehall.org/Calendar/2015/1/11/0200/PM/Lisa-Hilton-and-Friends/ Other dates are coming up for next spring too:

MARCH 4th/Friday/Smothers Hall Pepperdine University/Malibu, CA 8pm
4255 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu/ www.arts.pepperdine.edu/ (310) 506-4522 West Coast premier of NOCTURNAL/ SOLO PIANO

MARCH 10th/Thursday /Junior Blind of America, Los Angeles 4pm SOLO PIANO
Performance for special needs students: 5300 Angeles Vista Blvd. L.A. www.JuniorBlind.org

MARCH 12th/Saturday/Classic Pianos Portland, 3:30pm
3003 SE Milwaukie Ave, Portland, OR 97202 (503)546-6522 www.PortlandClassicPianos.net/events SOLO PIANO

MARCH 24th/Thursday/ SFJazz
201 Franklin Street, San Francisco, CA 94102 (826)920.5299 SFJazz.org SOLO PIANO

APRIL 13/Thursday/Chicago Lighthouse for People who are Blind or Visually Impaired
1850 W Roosevelt Rd, Chicago, IL 60608 (312) 666-1331 http://chicagolighthouse.org/ A short solo piano performance for special needs students.

There will be more performances coming up in 2016 too of course.

Enjoy your week and the start of the Holiday Season – my favorite time of year!

Lisa

HORIZONS IS OUT!

April 8, 2015 by Lisa Hilton

Blog

Gregg August, jazz, JD Allen, lisa hilton, piano, Rudy Royston, Sean Jones, SFJazz, The Smith Center, Vibrato Grill Jazz

Hello and Happy April!

Hope you enjoyed a nice Holiday weekend. I was up in SF visiting family – catching a couple sunny days and a couple rainy ones. The BIG news here though, is that our new release, HORIZONS is Officially out as of today, April 7th! Yeah! After several months composing, a couple months post production, and then a few more months working on packaging and finishing it feels GREAT to share with the world. The experience is like a new baby or perhaps Christmas – there’s a lot of work and prep time that goes on for quite a while behind the scenes, and then you get to enjoy the experience. Each album is a bit different: HORIZONS features some new players: the clarion trumpet of Sean Jones (he also is head of the trumpet dept at Berklee College), Julliard trained bassist Gregg August and the ever inventive drummer, Rudy Royston. My favorite tenor sax player, JD Allen, is on this recoding as well. HORIZONS takes it’s inspiration from nature: when my life is touched by challenge I can find answers and peace by looking outside. Every day I see so much beauty, truth, and healing after difficulties in nature. In our highly tech world, I believe we need nature and art more than ever, so we have tried to explore these ideas musically through sound, melody and improvisation to create a sense of expansiveness, depth, beauty and hope for today and our future. There’s some terrific playing by the band, and I really think you’ll like of the tunes – a playlist of styles and moods so there’s something for everyone. You can hear references to Count Basie, Horace Silver, Satie or Duke Ellington, in my original compositions, but we also included covers of the Mancini classic, “Moon River” and the Black Keys, “Gold on the Ceiling” . Here’s our Official video: The Sky and the Ocean: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WlTblOPs1c Some people have already started buying HORIZONS – thank you as always for your support. NEW and exciting this year: we have a 10 track vinyl option as well as the 12 track CD, or digital version. (Vinyl comes with a free download card as well). Here are the buy links: Amazon, CDBaby as well as downloads at iTunes and www.lisahiltonmusic.com . Kind words: “An intimate soundscape inspired by the forces of nature …an all star band.” Critical Jazz “A winning new release.” Time Out New York “The music is artfully constructed but delivers an affecting punch.” The New York Jazz City Record “Absolutely incredible music and an album well worth your attention.” Hugh Carson KVNF Radio. Thank you, and hope to see you soon – oh and please wish us luck on this! Take care, Lisa https://www.facebook.com/LisaHiltonMusic

PLEASE COME EXPERIENCE THE MUSIC LIVE:

MAY 14 Thursday at SF Jazz/Joe Henderson Lab 8:00pm * (Mark your calendar – this will be posted soon).

MAY 15 Friday at The Smith Center, Las Vegas/NV 7:00pm * http://www.thesmithcenter.com/calendar/
MAY 16/Saturday at The Smith Center, Las Vegas/NV 7:00 pm * http://www.thesmithcenter.com/calendar/
MAY 17/Sunday at Vibrato Grill Jazz/ L.A. 7:00 & 8:30 pm * https://vibrato.herbalpertpresents.com/show-calendar/ (I recommend calling for a table reservation: 310.474.9400)
* With Lisa Hilton/piano, Ben Street/bass & Rudy Royston/drums.
JAN 17, 2015/Sunday at Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall/NYC 2:00 pm (Mark your calendar – this will be posted later in the year).
Photo by Steven Lippman See all tour dates: Tour For More information contact: www.lisahiltonmusic.com P.O. Box 6368, Malibu, CA 90264

EXCITING NEW MUSIC FOR APRIL 2015

March 25, 2015 by Lisa Hilton

Blog, Lisa Hilton, piano jazz

Black Keys, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Gregg August, Henry Mancini, JD Allen, lisa hilton, Rudy Royston, Sean Jones

HORIZONS
Lisa Hilton and her Band Explore Nature Through Sound, Melody and Improvisation

“Every day I see so much beauty and truth in nature…” acclaimed composer/pianist Lisa Hilton writes about her latest release, Horizons. “By exploring these ideas musically, we hope to have created a sense of expansiveness, depth, beauty and hope.” Horizons, out April 7 in a twelve track CD or ten track vinyl release, features exceptional performances from the deep tenor sax of J.D. Allen, the clarion trumpet of Sean Jones, the fluency of Julliard trained Gregg August on bass and the ever inventive Rudy Royston on drums along with Hilton’s evocative piano. Hilton and her band bring a playlist of jazz styles inspired by Count Basie, Horace Silver or Duke Ellington, but also including covers of the Mancini classic, “Moon River” and the Black Keys, “Gold on the Ceiling” as well as nine of Hilton’s compositions. Horizons is out April 7, 2015 in a twelve track CD or ten track vinyl version on Amazon, CDBaby as well as downloads at iTunes.

“An intimate soundscape inspired by the forces of nature …an all star band.” Critical Jazz “Alternately lush and hard-driving post-bop on a winning new release.” Time Out New York
“The music is artfully constructed but delivers an affecting punch.” The New York Jazz City Record
“Absolutely incredible music and an album well worth your attention.” Hugh Carson KVNF Radio

Watch Official Video: The Sky and the Ocean: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WlTblOPs1c

COME EXPERIENCE THE MUSIC LIVE:

APR 16 Thursday at Junior Blind of America/Los Angeles 4pm (solo piano)
MAY 14 Thursday at SF Jazz/Joe Henderson Lab 8:00pm *
MAY 15 Friday at The Smith Center, Las Vegas/NV 7:00pm *
MAY 16/Saturday at The Smith Center, Las Vegas/NV 7:00 pm *
MAY 17/Sunday at Vibrato Grill Jazz/ L.A. 7:00 & 8:30 pm *
* With Lisa Hilton/piano, Ben Street/bass & Rudy Royston/drums.
JAN 17, 2015/Sunday at Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall/NYC 2:00 pm
Cover photo by Steven Lippman See all tour dates: Tour

For more information: www.LisaHiltonMusic.com

Happy Holidays To YOU!

December 23, 2014 by Lisa Hilton

Ben Street, Blog, Carnegie Hall, Ingrid Jensen, J.D. Allen, Lisa Hilton, piano jazz, Rudy Royston, twenty first century jazz

Ben Street, Carnegie Hall, Ingrid Jensen, JD Allen, lisa hilton, piano jazz, Rudy Royston

Hopefully you are making it through the Holiday Season well so far and I hope that you soon will have some time to relax with your loved ones. I’m sharing this photo of my little 14 year old Italian greyhound Ricky from last year – I’m thankful for every year he’s still with me – he seems to get sweeter as he ages!

I’ve been the elf around here after my piano time. It’s been so busy that this year I’m waiting until the last minute to do the cookie baking, which means that I’m going to be pushed for time very soon – sound familiar? I’ve been preparing for our performance at Carnegie Hall January 11, 2015 at 2pm – hope you can come! (Please pass the link on if you have friends that might be interested). I’ll be there with JD Allen on tenor sax, Ingrid Jensen on trumpet, Ben Street on bass and Rudy Royston on drums If you’ve never been to a performance at Carnegie before, I think it’s time for you to come, don’t you? : http://www.carnegiehall.org/Calendar/2015/1/11/0200/PM/Lisa-Hilton-and-Friends/ We will be debuting new music from our new 2015 release H O R I Z O N S which I’m extremely excited about. Here is the very new video from HORIZONS: The Sky and the Ocean: http://youtu.be/2WlTblOPs1c and a solo piece from the album from a live video at Cornell: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3B4et-OcDE When it Rains.

Wishing everyone Holidays filled with riches: love, friendship, family, art, music, nature, and peace,

Lisa

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