Variations Kevin Hays

• 1 Variations on a Theme by Schumann I 01:01
• 2 Bluetude I 03:05
• 3 The Dervish of Harlem I 01:16
• 4 Song for the Amiable Child I 02:17
• 5 Contrapunctus I 02:45
• 6 Rumi's View I 03:22
• 7 Countermyth I 00:44
• 8 Rhyming Game I 01:13
• 9 The Dervish of Harlem II 02:49
• 10 Countermyth II 01:03
• 11 Langsam 02:13
• 12 The Long Line 00:46
• 13 Song for the Amiable Child II 01:12
• 14 Countermyth III 00:51
• 15 Variations on a Theme by Schumann II 02:25
• 16 Bluetude II 02:28
• 17 Rhyming Game II 01:42
• 18 Countermyth IV 00:57
• 19 Rumi's View II 02:11
• 20 Contrapunctus II 02:59
• 21 Song for the Amiable Child III 02:18
• 22 The Dervish of Harlem III 03:00
• 23 Bluetude III 03:49
• 24 Variations on a Theme by Schumann III 03:44
• Total Runtime 50:10

Info for Variations

There is a lot to discover in and behind Kevin Hays' piano solo music. It is music that appears to be classical yet deeply breathes in the spirit of jazz. It is the music of a jazz improviser who integrates the vocabulary of various epochs of piano music in an exceptionally natural way, transforming it into a distinctive musical language. Kevin Hays is a musician with an enormous gift for the unusual who creates a fascinatingly integral whole out of a multiplicity of idioms.

“On the whole, Variations tends to lean toward the modern classical side of music, with improvisatory creationism being its one and only true link to jazz, but labeling is beside the point. Variations is pure pianism on parade.” (Dan Bilawsky, All About Jazz)

“With their taut, imaginative beauty, they also share this gifted improviser’s rigorous refusal to dwell for long on any one variation.” (Ray Comiskey, The Irish Times)

“Overall, the music on Variations is tautly focused and bracing … But, with respect, I’d have to say that Hays’ disc possesses a brilliance on its own terms.” (Peter Hum, Ottawa Citizen)

“Touching on everything from Baroque to late Romantic to contemporary classical, Hays applies his own jazz-honed techniques to small gems that may be partially or wholly improvised. Either way, they’re consistently engaging, nearly all giving way to surprising musical depths despite their brevity.” (Philip Booth, Jazz Times)

Kevin Hays, piano

Kevin Hays
Grammy Award-winning jazz pianist, composer, and singer/songwriter Kevin Hays’s many recordings have received critical acclaim from The New York Times, Downbeat Magazine and Jazz Times, as well as the “Coup de Coeur” award from the Académie Charles Cros (France).

Kevin has appeared on numerous albums as a guest artist, recording with Chris Potter, Bill Stewart, Joshua Redman, Jeff Ballard, Nicholas Payton, and Al Foster, among many others. Notable collaborations include a piano duo project with Brad Mehldau (Modern Music - Nonesuch), world tours with James Taylor, Sonny Rollins, John Scofield, Joe Henderson, and Roy Haynes.

In addition to his celebrated work as pianist and composer, Kevin has become increasingly known as a gifted and expressive singer/songwriter. In 2015 he released the widely lauded recording New Day (Sunnyside), on which he performed his own songs along with a riveting performance of the Jimmy Webb classic ‘Highwayman’.

Hope, the highly anticipated 2019 collaboration with Beninese guitarist Lionel Loueke, was released on Edition Records. Their music moves effortlessly between melodic serenity and rhythmic interplay, highlighting the beauty and intimacy of the piano/acoustic guitar format.

Hays co-wrote several compositions on Steve Gadd Band’s eponymous album which garnered the 2019 GRAMMY Award for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album. The album features Kevin’s own ‘Spring Song’, the sole vocal track.

This album contains no booklet.