Hal Galper - Invitation To Openness: Live At Big Twig (CD)

Pianist Hal Galper disbanded his Ahmad Jamal-inspired trio in 2000 after a productive decade of steady touring and recording. Returning to 'the shed' for several years to work on concepts, teach and write, he came to realize that a rubato approach to time and movement-a concept he was first exposed to with Sam Rivers in the early '60s-was where he was being led. With bassist Tony Moreno & drummer Billy Mintz, Galper found able & willing partners to explore new territories in 2005, recording "Agents of Change" in 2006. The trio was the first stone cast in that direction for the eclectic pianist, a remarkable late career modernization that ushered in one of the most significant innovations in the art of the trio since Bill Evans' conception of equal partnership in the early '60s. This trio was a foray into a more melodic and beauty focused approach to rubato, before the more explosive and wide-roaming version portrayed by Galper's last touring trio of 2007-2019, with bassist Jeff Johnson and drummer John Bishop. "Invitation to Openness" was a brief return to the original rubato trio with Moreno & Mintz, recorded in 2008, live in upstate New York. This indomitable period of innovation, that so remarkably occurred a half century into his career, was enabled by his trio association with Marino and Mintz, so beautifully portrayed by the tracks contained within.