Brad Mehldau Solo
Elbphilharmonie Opening Festival
The first jazz concert in the Elbphilharmonie Grand Hall
The first jazz musician to grace the stage of the Elbphilharmonie Grand Hall is pianist Brad Mehldau. He is recognised as the great romantic figure of jazz piano and in his highly expressive solo concerts he performs not only as a virtuosic improviser with brilliant technique, but also as an eclectic curator of his own live programme.
Along with his own compositions and jazz standards, the programme also always includes what appears at first glance to be music with little connection to jazz: The Beatles, Nirvana, Radiohead, Nick Drake and Massive Attack, for example. However, Mehldau never just ‘covers’ – the popular songs serve as a point of departure for his extended improvisations.
»My solo concerts are a direct, very intensive form of empathy with my audience. You can’t put what happens there into words«, Mehldau explains in the cover notes for his latest box-set »10 Years Solo Live«. This concert, which is part of the Elbphilharmonie opening celebrations, is the perfect opportunity to experience how this enthusiasm is transmitted to his loyal audiences.
Performers
Brad Mehldau piano