TWO CONCERTS NIGHTLY ~ 6:30 PM and 9:00 PM
Atlanta native Joe Alterman expresses a certain upbeat naivete, with a broad smile and bright eyes that make you feel welcome. One would not guess that this is a man hailed by greats; Ramsey Lewis describes his piano playing as ‘a joy to behold’, Les McCann states ‘As a man and musician he is already a giant’. Journalist Nat Hentoff championed three of Alterman’s albums, as well as his writing (Joe wrote liner notes to three Wynton Marsalis/JALC albums), calling one of Joe’s columns “one of the very best pieces on the essence of jazz, the spirit of jazz, that I’ve ever read, and I’m not exaggerating.” ...
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TWO CONCERTS NIGHTLY ~ 6:30 PM and 9:00 PM
Atlanta native Joe Alterman expresses a certain upbeat naivete, with a broad smile and bright eyes that make you feel welcome. One would not guess that this is a man hailed by greats; Ramsey Lewis describes his piano playing as ‘a joy to behold’, Les McCann states ‘As a man and musician he is already a giant’. Journalist Nat Hentoff championed three of Alterman’s albums, as well as his writing (Joe wrote liner notes to three Wynton Marsalis/JALC albums), calling one of Joe’s columns “one of the very best pieces on the essence of jazz, the spirit of jazz, that I’ve ever read, and I’m not exaggerating.”
Joe Alterman began at NYU with a BA and Masters in Jazz Piano, followed by performances with Houston Person, Les McCann, Dick Gregory, and Ramsey Lewis. Downbeat describes his sound as “rooted in the blues, and with a touch reminiscent of the great pianists of the 1950s—Red Garland, Ahmad Jamal, Bill Evans.” It is clear Joe hits all of the necessary points for Jazz critics and fans alike.
But there is more to the story, of course. The twenty-first century has thus far seen yet another transition for this thing called Jazz. In one moment we see the push and pull between tradition and progression, and in another we see Pop and Hip-Hop musicians emulating and sampling. In Joe Alterman we find none of this struggle; the music just sounds good. Our conscious faculties are instantly disabled as we tap our feet, feeling the intent and joy of his playing. An old classic is new when you feel good in the moment.
This fresh and joyful intent is captured on Joe Alterman’s new release The Upside Of Down. Taken from two live shows at Birdland in November 2019 and February 2020, the album reminds us of a not-too-distant time when we gathered and danced. Joined by Nathaniel Schroeder on bass and Marlon Patton on drums, Alterman cruises gently and delightedly through timeless selections from Les McCann, Oscar Peterson, Henry Mancini and more, with some of his compositions in the mix.
“Joe Alterman combines outstanding musical technique with infectious enthusiasm for his work. I’ve seen him fill a room with joy as his skill at the keyboard combines seamlessly with his delightful and appealing onstage personality. Young Alterman is one fine, first-class entertainer.” – Dick Cavett
“All the musicians who are now considered jazz legends played there [Birdland]: Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, Lester Young, Count Basie, Oscar Peterson and Duke Ellington, among others. Alterman would have been able to hold his own jamming with any of them.” — Nat Hentoff
“Joe Alterman, although much younger than I, is an inspiration to me! His piano playing, his will to explore and his ability to swing is something to behold. God bless him!”— Ramsey Lewis
“Little Joe – yeah, that’s what I call him, ’cause I am big and he is tiny, but only in stature. As a man and a musician he is already a giant. His zeal for life and learning is the perfect formula for taking our music to new levels. Right now, hes young. Right now, he gets it. He is on the verge of fully becoming himself. Little Joe, my man…He beeza bad MF. He is a true inspiration to me.”— Les McCann
“Joe Alterman is doing his part to keep alive the art of the swinging trio. He is a wonderful pianist whose playing brings smiles and good feelings to his listeners – as he has caused me to experience when I heard his enjoyable album.” – Monty Alexander
“Joe is, for me, absolutely one of the most musically enjoyable, swingingest Jazz pianists who can be heard playing today. Everything about his genuine love and affinity for the spirit and essence of straight-ahead Jazz and blues shines through his piano. Joe plays, arranges and improvises with a wholly honest and compelling depth of feeling, a gift of melodic substance, the ability to communicate with an economy of superfluous notes and an abundance of warm, honest to goodness soul. Joe always swings his tail off, honors the heritage of the Jazz language and the voices of his astutely-chosen influences, as well as conveying the spontaneity of the moment. He conveys his musical ideas with a rare kind of directness and clarity and has so much fun in what he’s doing, never failing to bring the listener along for the ride. Joe’s music sings with tremendous, unpretentious joy in every brilliant note – he is not to be missed!” – Benny Green
“Joe has a great sense of what is most meaningful in the history and tradition of our music, and a real solid musical vision of where he wants to take it.”— Houston Person
“Pianist Joe Alterman pulls off one of the rarer feats in modern jazz: he swings — hard.” – Downbeat Magazine
In a recent interview with Brian Lehrer on WNYC, legendary journalist Nat Hentoff stated, “The last piece I did for them [The Wall Street Journal] – I’m so glad I had a chance to do it – is about a 24 year old pianist [now 27] and composer named Joe Alterman, who is really the personification of the past of jazz – he’s really deep into that -, the present of jazz – he has his own voice – and that leads him into the future of jazz, and he’s so important in terms of the validity of jazz…[Joe Alterman & one of his mentors, tenor saxophonist Houston Person] make recordings that – to use the phrase that Duke Ellington really had a chance to use – are ‘beyond category’ because they’re timeless.”
Alterman’s most recent recording, Georgia Sunset, which was produced by Houston Person, garnered much critical praise and reached #6 on the JazzWeek radio charts.
Speaking about Alterman, legendary pianist Ramsey Lewis stated, “When listening to Joe Alterman perform, it is obvious that he has studied the history of jazz piano. However, his own style of playing is appealing, challenging and quite satisfying.”
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