Jazz-Quad
July 24 2011

Armen Donelian’s New Sunnyside CD ‘Leapfrog’

Pianist, composer, bandleader, and educator Armen Donelian has carved
out an enviable career spanning four decades, including seminal stints
with Sonny Rollins, Billy Harper, Chet Baker, and Mongo Santamaria.
His new album “Leapfrog, ” his ninth release for Sunnyside, due for
release September 13, should go a long way in rectifying his
relatively unsung status as an improvising artist of the highest
order.

Working with an exceptional band comprised of Dutch tenor saxophonist
Marc Mommaas, guitarist Mike Moreno, veteran bassist Dean Johnson, and
drummer Tyshawn Sorey, Donelian focuses on his spacious, lyrically
charged compositions.

“The inspiration for this music came from my reflections on where the
world is going these days, ” Donelian says. “There’s so much
regurgitation of older styles in jazz today, I feel the need to carry
the ball a little further. As Diz once said, it’s about keeping one
foot in the tradition, and one in the future.”

Determined to distill each composition to its essentials, Donelian has
honed a group concept that flows from his belief that less is indeed
more. “I like stating an idea and leaving space for listeners to
absorb it, ” Donelian says. “It’s especially important for band
members to be mindful of space, so they can really hear each other.
When there’s too much happening there’s not much listening going on.”

One explanation for the band’s profound affinity for Donelian’s music
is that he shares significant history with these players, and often
helped shape them during their formative years. His collaboration with
Dean Johnson stretches back to the 1980s, when Johnson was
establishing himself as an in-demand accompanist through his work with
Gerry Mulligan. Donelian met Marc Mommaas while teaching at the
Manhattan School of Music shortly after the saxophonist arrived in New
York City from the Netherlands; they’ve developed potent bandstand
chemistry over the past decade.

Donelian first met Mike Moreno while teaching in the New School’s jazz
program about ten years ago, just as Moreno was starting his ascent to
his current status as one of the most esteemed young guitarists in New
York. And he encountered Tyshawn Sorey as a standout high school
student in the mid-1990s, a relationship that continued when the
drummer enrolled in William Paterson University, where Donelian is
also on faculty.

Born in Queens, NY in 1950 to Armenian parents, Armen Donelian grew up
in a multicultural household, surrounded by classical and Armenian
music. His first exposure to jazz came at age 12, and as a Columbia
University undergrad he studied music history, theory, and
composition; but his jazz studies commenced in earnest after his
graduation, when he fell under the sway of pianist Richie Beirach.

During that time Donelian apprenticed with a series of jazz giants,
starting in 1975 with Mongo Santamaria, where he presided over the
piano chair once filled by Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea. “I learned
so much about time, professionalism, and stamina, ” he says of his
time with Santamaria. “It was one of the greatest experiences of my
life, to investigate Latin music from the inside.”

In the midst of his four-year tenure with Billy Harper’s band, he made
his recording debut with 1981’s “Stargazer” (Atlas), a trio date with
Billy Hart and Eddie Gomez featuring his original compositions.
Through the 1980s, Donelian led a series of outstanding bands,
culminating in his quintet with Dick Oatts at the end of the decade,
when he feels that his music really came into its own.

Donelian has consistently explored his Armenian roots in his music,
and recorded for several labels with the Middle Eastern jazz ensemble
Night Ark; he also co-produced (with legendary jazz producer George
Avakian) “Listen to My Heart, ” a collection of jazz interpretations
of Armenian folk songs. Donelian has frequently traveled to Armenia to
perform, and taught at the Yerevan State Conservatory as a 2002
Fulbright Senior Scholar.

An invaluable educator and international clinician, Donelian has
written several authoritative texts, including two volumes of
“Training the Ear” and the forthcoming “Whole Notes, ” a new book
about piano playing. “Over the years I discovered I had a knack for
teaching and later a talent, ” he says, “and beyond that a
responsibility.”

Armen Donelian’s quintet will be performing the music from Leapfrog at
two CD release shows in September: 9/23 Firehouse 12, New Haven, CT,
8:30pm & 10pm; and 9/24 Cornelia Street Cafe, NYC, 9pm & 10:30pm.