I Want My BTV

Pianist-composer Noah Baerman has given his fans a Holiday (and beyond) treat.  If you go to www.noahjazz.com/home.html, you will find information (and an amusing YouTube clip - see below) advertising the arrival of "Know Thyself."  


You may recall the world premiere of the piece held on November 13, 2009, in Crowell Concert Hall at Wesleyan.  The 65 minute piece, played by Noah's Trio augmented by his long-time friends Wayne Escoffery (tenor saxophone) and Amanda Monaco (guitar) plus Erika von Kleinst (saxophones) and Chris Dingman (vibraphone), is filled with melodic strength, great interplay, and a host of strong solos.  At that debut show, the work felt like a culmination of Baerman's influences, his years of studying and absorbing the history of jazz and the reaffirmation of the idea that music is more than just sound, that it has the power to awaken and excite the senses.  


If that sounds like hyperbole, understand that I have watched Noah Baerman play music for over a decade, in performance spaces, restaurants and elsewhere.  He has struggled, at times, with the effects of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (read about that here) which has often limited his "playing" time.  On the night of the Wesleyan show, his climactic piano "rocked" the audience with its lyricism, its scope and, yes, its power.

Nowadays, jazz is considered "fringe" music, viewed by mainstream media as "past its prime" and "commercially defunct." Who wants to sit still for 65 minutes in their living room to really absorb "Know Thyself" (I mean, besides me.)  In the absence of the "star maker machinery", what Noah Baerman has do to get his works heard, is to promote it himself, create the package, sell it to concert halls, performances spaces, and jazz festivals. 



Here's your opportunity to check out the "goods."  Click on the website above where you can listen for free.  Enjoy the video below.