Cast
Chick Corea — Pianist
Program notes
When the world lost Chick Corea in early 2021, it lost perhaps its most inventive living jazz pianist. To see why viewers need look no further than this magnificent 1982 solo concert he gave at the Munich Summer Piano Festival. Chick didn't give many solo performances, and when he did he was able to really spread his wings and pick his horizons, like a migratory bird carving out new routes to half-known destinations.
He begins in homage to the great Thelonious Monk, though his rendition of "Round Midnight" is more than a tribute – his playing style constantly adds new emotion, teasing out feelings that were all his own. For the remainder of the concert he dazzles on three variations that blend his well-known Latin influences with his jazz roots. By the end, the audience has been taken on a journey halfway round the world, sensing and experiencing their surroundings by virtue of the split-second choices the master makes.