You Are There
duo with Hank Jones
2007
From Roberta Liner notes.
"This album is a dream come true. In fact, to be recording with the great Hank Jones is simply every musician’s dream, the highest point in every player’s journey. I was blessed with the opportunity to meet Hank in 2001, when Master Lionel Hampton and Dr. Doc Skinner Invited me to perform at the annual Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival at the University of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho. I was new to the scene then, having moved to the United States from my native Italy merely a couple of years before. The line-up for the Festival was incredible, the place itself a magic one. Students came all over the U.S. and abroad to enjoy the music and learn from the Masters through clinics and workshops in the mornings and afternoon, and evening concerts where the greatest musicians in jazz would interact musically and personally. There was also a stellar ‘house rhythm section” including the wonderful Christian Mc Bride, Jeff Hamilton, Russel Malone.. and the one and only Hank Jones, “simply the Greatest Piano Player in Jazz”.. (I share this opinion with most of the musicians in the world, of course! Just ask Oscar Peterson or Chucho Valdes or Kenny Barron, or many other Giants of their instrument..). Hank was very warm and encouraging, and so I had my first up front and close encounter with the “Jones’ Magic”.
First comes the sound, THAT sound… deep, rich with harmonics yet delicate and immediately recognizable, regardless of the conditions of the particular piano he is sitting in front of, whether it’s a Steinway, a Bosendorfer, a Fazioli or a generic lesser known brand, in whichever city he is in. When Mr. Jones puts his hands on the instrument, the magic starts and you hear that unmistakable Hank Jones sound : a sound so personal, so beautiful and so moving that it makes every fiber of your being want to sing. And then there is the genius, the humour, the never ending flow of ideas, all new, all unexpected, ALL beautiful. Add to this a wicked sense of rhythm, a playful spirit, a humble, ever-searching attitude and a profound spiritual connection, and you will quickly realize why singing with Hank Jones must be what having “died and gone to Heaven” is like. Since that first time in Moscow, Idaho I have had the priceless opportunity to experience the Hank Jones magic again and again while touring the world performing with his trio as well as in duo… and with this recording."
Roberta Gambarini
