The past few decades have seen legendary pianist and composer Denny Zeitlin focus on a few vehicles for his adventurous journeys in music making. Playing solo, with his trio, or in the acoustic-electronic duo with George Marsh have provided ample avenues for exploration, which Zeitlin hopes to provide a wide scope of on his new, varied collection, Panoply.

For nearly 15 years, Zeitlin has released new recordings yearly on Sunnyside Records. These documents highlight the different methods he has centered upon as a leader. Zeitlin's trio that features bassist Buster Williams and drummer Matt Wilson is a seasoned and adventurous ensemble that continues to generate fire in performance. Zeitlin's nearly six-decade long collaboration with drummer/percussionist George Marsh continues to yield extraordinary results, especially as they have continually broadened their color and textural palettes with electronic sounds. Finally, Zeitlin continues to perform solo piano recitals, maintaining his status as one of the foremost solo improvisers and musical interpreters.

For Panoply, Zeitlin has collected unreleased performances from the past decade that highlight his and his musical partners' fantastic command in improvisation regardless of genre or medium. Zeitlin carefully curated this program to provide a sequence that blends acoustic and electronic music which transitions well and let's the music unfold.

The solo piano pieces come from a recording made on December 1, 2012 at the Piedmont Piano Company in Oakland, while the trio recordings were captured live at Mezzrow Jazz Club in New York City from May 3 to 4, 2019. The duo pieces with Marsh were collected over a decade of home recordings at Zeitlin's Double Helix Studio from 2013 to 2023.

For nearly a decade, the endlessly exploring pianist / composer / improviser Denny Zeitlin has focused on an individual composer for his annual solo concert at Oakland's Piedmont Piano Company. Zeitlin brings his full creative force to these efforts to transform these well-known pieces into remarkable musical journeys. In 2018, Zeitlin decided to focus on the great American composer, George Gershwin, for his concert and recorded the proceedings, released now as Crazy Rhythm: Exploring George Gershwin.

A Note From Denny Zeitlin // George Marsh and I began our Sunnyside duo electro-acoustic recordings with "Riding The Moment" in 2015. "Expedition" followed in 2017, chronicling an exciting and enriching evolution. And now "Telepathy," consisting primarily of pieces recorded since then, finds us exploring broader and deeper dimensions of spontaneous composition as our attunement and musical vision continue to expand. // For listeners having a first contact with our duo, I'll repeat my remarks from our previous albums, since the set and setting remain the same. // This album, like "Riding the Moment," and "Expedition," has roots going back to the late sixties, when I began a decade of exploring the electro-acoustic integration of jazz, classical, funk, rock, and free-form music. My trio included Mel Graves or Ratzo Harris on bass, and throughout, the incredible drummer/percussionist George Marsh. We recorded and toured the West Coast, concluding this period with my electro-acoustic-symphonic score for the 1978 remake of "Invasion Of The Body Snatchers." // I then returned to a focus on acoustic solo, duo, and trio music for a couple decades, and George went on to numerous other projects. With the passage of the millennium, synthesizer and recording technological advances lured me back into a major and ongoing studio upgrade. "Both/And" (Sunnyside 2013) was devoted to the electro-acoustic domain as a soloist. And since 2013, George and I have musically re-united, and have been exploring the potential of duo electro-acoustic free improvisations-the co-creation of what we often refer to as "sound paintings." // Our goal has been to approach the music without a score or any preconception; to be as fully present as possible, "riding the moment," and allowing the music to go where it wants-without any constraint of genre, or fixed harmonic, rhythmic, or melodic structure. We hope our "telepathy" allows the emergence of spontaneous compositions that have freshness, beauty, excitement, internal logic, new sounds, and a sense of journey-an "expedition." Over 95% of this music was recorded in "real time" with one pass. On those occasions where I didn't have enough hands to play what I was hearing, I over-dubbed some orchestration or a solo voice. And in those instances, I typically went with the first take, to preserve the spontaneity of the project. // I believe you will hear in our interaction that George is a full partner in the co-creation of this album. To preserve acoustic separation during recording we were unable to see each other; we were carried by our shared musical vision, trust, and an extraordinary rapport. We often feel like we are some kind of galactic orchestra.

Over the years I've had the opportunity to perform in a wide range of venues-from jazz festival stages for thousands of outdoor fans to jazz clubs with fewer than a hundred listeners. And while there is a special excitement in sharing music with a huge crowd, I find myself drawn more to the intimate settings, like Mezzrow. Spike Wilner and his staff have created a unique place for music in a long basement room in NYC's Greenwich Village. He keeps his Steinway Grand in perfect shape; the acoustics are miraculously superb; and people are really listening. During this trio gig with Buster Williams and Matt Wilson, it felt like we were all in it together-players and listeners deeply involved in the emerging music. // This CD marks our 18th year as a trio, and though we don't perform that often, due to the complexities of schedules and the demands of my psychiatric practice and teaching, the music has continued to evolve. Our two nights at Mezzrow were inspiring, and I hope you will enjoy this CD, our 5th album together.-Denny Zeitlin

The great pianist Denny Zeitlin has always been interested in surprising listeners (and himself!) with his improvisational explorations on his original pieces and those from other composers. For the past five years, Zeitlin has been focusing on a single composer to reinterpret on solo piano for his yearly residency at the Piedmont Piano Company in Oakland, California. In December 2016, he decided on the singular trumpeter and musical iconoclast, Miles Davis. Zeitlin's new Remembering Miles is a recording of this spellbinding performance.

2018 release by the jazz pianist. "By 2009, Buster Williams, Matt Wilson, and I had been performing as a trio for eight years, and this recording of a night at Dizzy's Club Coca Cola captures some of our best music-full of surprise, exploration, confidence, excitement, nuance, and empathy. The program has some of my favorite originals and standards. I had recorded all of them previously; they have always provided a special springboard into improvisation." - Denny Zeitlin.

2017 release from the jazz pianist. Note from Denny Zeitlin: "In the two years since Sunnyside's 2015 release of Riding The Moment, George and I have continued our expedition into new territories of free improvisation, and have found the journey to be very enriching and exciting. For listeners having a first contact with our duo, I'll repeat my remarks from our first album, since the set and setting remain the same. This album, like Riding the Moment, has roots going back to the late sixties, when I began a decade of exploring the electro-acoustic integration of jazz, classical, funk, rock, and free-form music. My trio included Mel Graves or Ratso Harris on bass, and throughout, the incredible drummer/percussionist George Marsh. We recorded and toured the West Coast, concluding this period with my electro-acoustic-symphonic score for the 1978 remake of Invasion Of The Body Snatchers."

EARLY WAYNE - EXPLORATIONS OF EARLY CLASSIC WAYNE

RIDING THE MOMENT

Denny Zeitlin has recorded over thirty critically acclaimed albums; twice won first place in the Down Beat International Jazz Critics Poll; written original music for Sesame Street; and appeared on network TV, including repeats on the Tonight Show, and CBS Sunday Morning. Zeitlin's lecture-demonstration "Unlocking the Creative Impulse: The Psychology of Improvisation" has been presented across the U.S. and in Europe. He has concertized throughout the U.S., Canada, Japan, and Europe, at colleges, jazz clubs, and major festivals; appearing with jazz greats such as Joe Henderson, Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny, Tony Williams, Bobby Hutcherson, John Patitucci, John Abercrombie, Marian McPartland, Charlie Haden, David Grisman, Kronos Quartet, Paul Winter, David Friesen, Matt Wilson, Buster Williams and many others.

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