Jazz Pianist Breaks New Ground--With Swagger

Maverick jazz pianist and composer James Carney, who appears with his trio Tuesday at the Skirball Cultural Center, is a veteran at creating a rhythmic palette of sounds influenced by classical, Middle Eastern, country and rock music, among other genres.

“It’s all there,” he said, adding that these are good times for the modern jazz artist because of the wide availability of music from all over the globe.

“All this music gives both improvisers and composers the opportunity to break new ground in the jazz tradition without leaving the tradition behind,” said Carney, 37, winner of the 1999 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Composers Competition and a California Arts Council fellowship.

Listen to Carney live or check out his latest CD, 1997’s “Offset Rhapsody,” and you will hear pieces in which rollicking, undulating rock beats support patches of free and structured improvisation. His melodies set up beguiling solos that have a distinctive swagger.

“I always want my music to be grounded, so that it is accessible to both the sophisticated jazz listener and the newcomer,” he said. “I don’t think my music sounds like it was pulled out of a hat.”

Originally from upstate New York, Carney was a classical player who later investigated rock. It was through bands such as Steely Dan that he was led to jazz, and rock remains pivotal to his art.

“Some of my pieces meld rock rhythmic approaches with jazz harmonies and incorporate voicings that haven’t been used before,” he said.

Carney attended CalArts, graduating in 1990. There, a whole new world opened up for him.

“I realized for the first time that all the music that had been important to me, but which I had compartmentalized, was now fair game to incorporate into one style, my style.”

In Brief: Brad Mehldau, like Carney, is a man for whom jazz is a very big world. The work of this critically acclaimed pianist encompasses both originals of a diverse nature and classic standards, which are treated in anything but a run-of-the-mill fashion.

Making an infrequent appearance in Southern California, Mehldau performs with longtime trio mates Larry Grenadier on bass and Jorge Rossy on drums, Saturday at 8 p.m. at Cal State Northridge’s Performing Arts Center, 18111 Nordhoff St. Tickets are $9-$15. Call (818) 677-2488.

BE THERE

James Carney plays Tuesday at 8 p.m. in Magnin Auditorium, Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles. $8-$15. Call (310) 440-4500.

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Zan Stewart writes about jazz for the Valley Edition. He can be reached at Zansky@aol.com.