Hamptons Jazz Fest: Pianist Michael Wolff

Monday, July 1, 2024 @ 6PM

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General Admission: $15 in advance, $20 at the door

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EAST END UNDERGROUND LIVE CONCERT SERIES IN ASSOCIATION WITH HAMPTONS JAZZ FEST PRESENT

PIANIST

Michael Wolff

Renowned jazz pianist/composer/author Michael Wolff, celebrates life and cancer rebound, with “Memoir,” his first new album in four years, set for release August 2nd on Sunnyside Records.The 11-Track Set Showcases Wolff with his trio, featuring Bassist Ben Allison and Drummer Allan Mednard.

After a miraculous triumph over a four-year battle with a rare form of misdiagnosed Cancer that had him at death’s door, internationally renowned pianist/composer Michael Wolff continues to celebrate his incredible recovery and life on “Memoir,” his first studio album in four years, set for release August 2, 2024, on Sunnyside Records. The highly anticipated collection will be available on Amazon, Spotify, iTunes, and Wolff’s website (www.michaelwolff.com) or wherever you purchase your music.

Wolff is known for playing with a Who’s Who of jazz legends from Cal Tjader, Cannonball Adderly, and Sonny Rollins, to Herbie Hancock, Nancy Wilson, (he was also her musical director,) Sheila E., Christian McBride and so many more. In pop culture, he’s best known for his five-year run as the musical director and bandleader for Arsenio Hall on the star’s award-winning, late night TV talk show.

“Memoir” features Wolff in his trio with longtime collaborators bassist Ben Allison and drummer Allan Mednard. The 11-track collection is a deeply inspired compilation of new music and fresh interpretations of some of Wolff’s favoriewte unreleased original compositions he decided to revisit. True to its title, “Memoir” is a rhythmically dynamic, yet simultaneously soulful exploration that highlights the rich, intricate quality of Wolff’s playing and the musicianship of all three artists. With over twenty-one solo albums to his credit, “Memoir” is one of Wolff’s most personal and significant records to date. “I wanted every note and song to resonate emotionally with the listener and reflect the journey of my experiences. This album conveys a feeling that’s very personal and thoughtful, but still has great energy,” stated Wolff.

That ‘personal feeling’ is expressed in several ballads reflective of Wolff’s more contemplative playing and composing, most notably on the charming and seductive “Afternoon,” written spontaneously at the piano while his wife, actress/writer/director Polly Draper was busy in the kitchen on a sunny afternoon in New York. A melancholy feeling is also expressed in another reflective piece, (and the album’s sole cover,) “You’ve Changed.” Originally popularized by Billie Holiday, Wolff’s interpretation evokes an emotional and tactile feeling, motivated by his memory of finally waking up after so long and beginning the process of exploring his inner self.

The record is a musical expression of Wolff’s amazing life story and how his experiences have impacted his evolution as a musician, whose fresh perspectives continue to move his music forward. “Memoir” follows the publication of Wolff’s recent Amazon best-selling autobiography, “On That Note: A Memoir of Jazz, Tics and Survival,” which chronicles his life and musical career from his unique roots growing up in the segregated south, his lifelong struggle with Tourette’s Syndrome, to his rise to fame in the jazz world and pop culture, and ultimately his amazing conquest over the grueling, life-threatening battle with the rare cancer that almost stole his life.

“The pieces on ‘Memoir’ truly reflect who I am today as an artist and person,” he adds. “Having gone through the frightening cancer battle and facing my mortality has made me a more mature artist. Writing the book was like finding myself and this music reflects and builds on my personal story of struggle, and ultimately triumph over the odds.” Wolff explains.

“Memoir” is truth, beauty, and freedom in the music,” says Wolff. The music is a manifestation of my feeling that artists should let what they play land, to give the music the space it needs. It’s about the space between the notes,” Wolff continued.

Known for his virtuoso performances and innovative style, Wolff’s musical exploration of new sonic ideas can be found on the polyrhythmic “Zawinul,” (an ode to jazz fusion keyboardist Joe Zawinul,) which is driven by propulsive grooves and Wolff’s percussive piano. His fresh approach is also evident on “No Lo Contendré,” one of the unreleased tunes he chose to revisit. The fiery, freewheeling Latin-influenced jam, with its dramatic piano riffs, spirited runs and Wolff’s improvisational playing is a musical celebration of life.

“My intention was to create an album that would be an important testament to my life and music. I wanted to make everything as meaningful as I could, not pushing for anything specific, but simply going with the feeling. With this material I was a musical explorer, able to find the melody within the melody, always at the mercy of inspiration.” Wolff expressed.

MICHAEL WOLFF

Michael Wolff is a renowned jazz pianist, composer, and bandleader known for his virtuoso performances and innovative style. After leaving music school early to join the Latin jazz great Cal Tjader’s band in the early ’70s, he spent the next two decades gigging and recording extensively.
Wolff can be heard on over 21 recordings with a veritable hall of fame
ranging from Tjader to Cannonball Adderley, Sonny Rollins, Nancy Wilson, Sheila E, Christian McBride, Tony Williams, and more. During this time, he mingled with the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra, Duke Ellington Band, and the Count Basie Orchestra.

In addition to appearances at esteemed global venues such as Carnegie Hall, Royal Albert Hall, Birdland, Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society, Snug Harbor, and Mezzrow, Wolff has performed with and
conducted over 25 symphony orchestras worldwide including The Dallas Symphony, The Fort Worth Symphony, The Berlin Radio Orchestra, and The Atlanta Symphony. He has also performed as a soloist with The Memphis National Symphony and The Pittsburgh Symphony.

Wolff became a part of pop culture in 1989 when he began a five-year tenure as the musical director of the high-energy house band on

Arsenio Hall’s groundbreaking late-night talk show. This journey led to him accompanying saxophonist and Presidential candidate Bill Clinton in 1992, “While I have begun to feel less possessed by my music,
and the accomplishments of being a musician, I have
become more attuned to my inner voice – my inner ear, my spirituality, and my true musical self. I've almost lost the need to be hip, different, or consciously interesting,
and instead, have been letting the music that feels right comes out.” - Michael Wolff as well as backing musical giants including Ray Charles, B.B. King, Patti LaBelle, Whitney Houston, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Al Green, James Brown, Sammy Davis Jr., Jerry Lee Lewis, and Warren Zevon. He also
served as musical director for Nancy Wilson.

In the summer of 2015, a grueling four-year battle with a rare form of
blood cancer had the pianist-composer on the ropes and flat on his back.
He fell into a coma in the lobby of a New York hospital, where the prognosis quickly moved from doubtful to death’s door. At one point, the doctor asked his wife, award-winning actress, director, and writer Polly Draper, if she’d signed a Do Not Resuscitate order. Through the haze of drugs and debilitating illness, Wolff lifted his head up and growled: “Resuscitate me!”
His sons Nat and Alex, in the midst of their ascent as two of the most talented actors of their generation, returned home to be with their father to comfort him. They played guitars and sang at his bedside, tapping into the sweet, winsome gifts that had made the Wolffs a famous musical family nearly a decade earlier, via the hit Nickelodeon TV series The Naked Brothers Band. “When I got sick, it was tough on the whole family,” Wolff says. “My wife really had to take care of me, and it was hard on everybody.
“I guess it just wasn’t my time,” he laughs today, “So now everybody’s flying
free, which is great.”
Michael Wolff documents these highs, lows, and ultimately triumphs
in his memoir, On That Note: a Memoir of Jazz, Tics, and Survival.

Nominated by the Jazz Journalist Association in 2023 for “Book of the Year:
Biography/Autobiography”, the bestseller details not only his rich musical
career but also his journey as an outsider growing up with Tourette Syndrome to near-death and triumph over cancer. Wolff often recites and riffs on sections from his powerful, adventurous, and humor-filled memoir in both his solo and trio performances. His experiences also inspired him to write and record material for his latest record “MEMOIR”, to be released on Sunnyside Records in the spring of 2024. Before “MEMOIR”, he released 14 albums to both critical and popular acclaim.

Wolff is a recipient of the BMI Music Award, the winner of the Gold
Disc Award in Japan (“Jumpstart” recorded with Tony Williams and
Christian McBride), and the recipient of the Hamptons International Film
Festival’s award for best film score for The Tic Code. In addition to The Tic
Code, he has composed the scores for many other film and television projects, such as Made Up, Dark Angel, Who’s the Man, and The Naked Brothers Band. Most recently Michael wrote the score for the new Polly Draper film, Stella’s Last Weekend.

In addition to working as a clinician, Wolff currently serves on the faculty at New York University’s Jazz Studies program, where he teaches both ensembles and private students. He is a Yamaha/Bosendorf artist.

Photo by Chris Drukker

“While I have begun to feel less possessed by my music, and the accomplishments of being a musician, I have become more attuned to my inner voice – my inner ear, my spirituality, and my true musical self. I've almost lost the need to be hip, different, or consciously interesting, and instead, have been letting the music that feels right comes out.”

– Michael Wolff