Beyond Boundaries | Pianist and Composer, Jason Moran

The show where we uncover the stories, processes, and worldviews behind NYC’s most artful and creative musicians.

 

Today's guest is pianist, composer, and bandleader Jason Moran. A native of Houston, Texas, Jason is a leading artistic figure of the day. He is a MacArthur Fellow who is on faculty at the New England Conservatory in Boston and the Rhythmic Music Conservatory in Copenhagen and also serves as the Musical Advisor and Artistic Director for the Kennedy Center, a position which he has held since 2011. He has recorded with musicians such as Greg Osby, David Murray, Charles Lloyd, Paul Motian, Archie Shepp, and Henry Threadgill and has composed the score for several films such as the heralded documentary 13th, Ta-Nehisi Coates' Between the World and Me, and the movie Selma. His band, "Jason Moran and the Bandwagon"--which features Jason on piano, Tarus Mateen on bass, and Nasheet Waits on drums--has been touring and recording since their debut album in 2000 and has been praised by the New York Times, Jazz Times, and Downbeat Magazine. His inter-disciplinary collaborations with skateboarders, painters, and ballet dancers have distinguished Moran from other musicians and have proven him truly worthy of the title: Artist.