Blog Posts - ben rosenblum music

ben rosenblum music

Upcoming Album!

8/31/2016

With Billy Hart outside Studio G.

Hey everyone!

During the last week of June this summer, I went into Studio G in Willaimsburg to record the tracks for what is going to be my debut CD release as a leader. This has been an incredibly exciting process for me, and it has been particularly special because I had the opportunity to record with two of my all-time heroes: Curtis Lundy on bass, who has been a mentor to me for many years now, and Billy Hart on drums, who is a legendary performer and perhaps my favorite drummer on the jazz scene today. Working with them has been a dream come true for me.

Currently, I am mixing the record with my amazing brother Dev Avidon at Avidon Audio Labs, and it should be pressed and ready to be released in early 2017. Definitely stay tuned for more info about the record, and for information about an upcoming CD release event to promote the album!

Graduated from Columbia University!

6/10/2016

Hi everyone! After a grueling final semester, I am happy to say that I have now completed my undergraduate degree participating in the exchange program between Columbia University and Juilliard School of Music. A huge thank you goes to everyone who has supported me along the way.

This past four years has been an incredible journey. While at Columbia, I have met and played with some of my favorite musicians, and I have befriended some of the most incredible people I have ever encountered. It has been a true pleasure to attend both Columbia and Juilliard, and I will miss many of the people I used to see there on a regular basis. At the same time, it feels wonderful to be able to commit myself full-time to music now, and I am very excited to grow further as a musician and to continue to develop musical relationships with the amazing musicians in New York City. I have a number of projects in the works currently -- including a debut album -- and I can't wait to share the results with everyone. Stay tuned for further updates, and as always, check the schedule tab for a list of upcoming appearances.

Columbia Jazz House featured in New York Times

12/28/2015

Hi everyone! Happy holidays, and I hope all is well.

Many of you know that I run a small jazz advocacy group at Columbia University called Jazz House. There are nine of us jazz musicians living together in a dorm called River Hall, and we put on many concerts and jam sessions, and support efforts to promote jazz on Columbia's campus and in the surrounding area. Tomorrow, Jazz House is going to be featured in the New York Times, in an article in the Metro section written by the wonderful Mr. Corey Kilgannon (a huge thanks to Mr. Kilgannon for taking the time to get to know us and write about us). For those of you who want to read the article online, here is the link. Otherwise, pick up a copy of the paper tomorrow and read about our lives and daily activities!

If you want to learn more about the Columbia Jazz House, you can also visit our website at http://www.columbiajazzhouse.com. Here, you can find information about the people who live in Jazz House, as well as our planned concerts and events.

Update on Progress

10/28/2015

Hi everyone! It's been a while since I have posted, so I just wanted to write an update about what has been happening in the past couple of months.

First, up until very recently, I have been playing every week with the incredible Curtis Lundy. For those of you who don't know Curtis, you can learn more about him on his website here. He is an amazing bass player who has played with so many jazz legends, and he has also been an extremely important mentor to me in my musical development. It has been so much fun being able to play with him on such a regular basis. I am not sure if the gig we have been playing together is going to continue in the future, but definitely check back in for further developments on my gigs with him.

Back in NYC

6/29/2015

Hi everyone! After an amazing trip to California performing in Monique Witt's play, Split/screen, I'm back in New York City. We received some great feedback on the play while we were out there, and we were very excited to have been picked as one of the "Pick of the Fringe" plays, as well as one of laist.com's "Four interesting plays to check out at the Fringe Festival" (link). Here's hoping that we will get the opportunity to put on the play again sometime in the near future!

June: Performing at the HollyWood Fringe Festival!

5/6/2015

Hi everyone!

This June, I will be performing for ten performances of Monique Witt's Split/Screen at the 2015 Hollywood Fringe Festival in Los Angeles, California! The music that I will be performing will be all my own original compositions and arrangements, and I am extremely excited to be premiering this work at such a great festival, and for such a beautiful play. The play is about a young man named Kit who suffers a debilitating accident in Jaipur, and focuses on the people he interacts with in the ER after his legs have been paralyzed. It is amazingly well-written, and I am very much looking forward to being part of the production.

For more information, you can visit the Hollywood Fringe Festival's website, or you can visit the play's website at http://www.splitscreentheplay.com/. To see the dates and time of the performances and to order tickets, click here.

Spectrum: An Elegy for Piano Kickstarter!

3/16/2015

Recently, I have been working on composing the music for a new video game project called Spectrum: An Elegy for Piano. Spectrum is a puzzle adventure game based around the concept of synesthesia, and because of this, there will be a huge focus on music and art. The main character, Timothy, meets a variety of musicians on his journey, and solves puzzles by using music and color to his advantage. It should be a beautiful game, and I am very excited to be working on it, alongside fellow Columbia students Rienzi Gokea (lead programmer and producer) and Kimberly Hou (fellow music composer).

Update on the last six months

3/5/2015

Hi everyone!

It's been a while since I posted anything, so I just wanted to fill everyone in on what's been happening. I've been super busy with a whole bunch of musical projects. Last semester was my first semester at Juilliard, and I've been having a blast playing with the amazing musicians there, and studying with Frank Kimbrough. Last semester we played a concert of mostly bebop music, and this semester we are putting on a show featuring the music of Jelly Roll Morton, which is very exciting for me. That show will be on April 13th at Paul Hall, and tickets are free, so definitely get tickets now if you want to come!

Feature for One trick dog Label

7/31/2014

Recently, a group called the People Project decided to interview my mom, who runs a small music and film production label called One Trick Dog. It's a very interesting read, as my mom has had a number of twists and turns in her career, and is very insightful into the way the music and film industries are progressing today. You can read the entire interview as the link below. In addition, the music file featured on the site is a solo piano version of an original composition I wrote and performed entitled "Lilian." Take a listen while you're reading.

http://thepeopleproject.com/music-people/category/things-we-like/one-trick-dog

Working with Eliot Zigmund

7/29/2014

Starting last winter, and continuing into this summer, I've had the pleasure of playing on a regular basis with drummer Eliot Zigmund. Eliot has toured with some of my all-time heroes, including Bill Evans, Jim Hall and Stan Getz, and it has been such a learning experience interacting with him and becoming more familiar with his drumming. Eliot has a feel that is so open and spacious, yet so supportive at the same time. It makes improvising effortless, because there is a steady stream of fresh ideas coming at me, and because the groove always feel amazing.

Upcoming Shows

(For a complete list of upcoming gigs, click here. To sign up for my mailing list, click here).

January 5th-13th: Ben Rosenblum Trio Bay Area Tour !!

   Saturday, January 5th, 7:00pm: Soper Reese Theatre (Lakeport, CA). More info and tickets.
   Sunday, January 6th, 5:00pm: East Village (Monterey, CA). More info.
   Tuesday, January 8th, 7:00pm: Divino (Sausalito, CA). More info.
   Wednesday, January 9th, 7:00pm: Mr. Tipple's (San Francisco, CA). More info.
   Thursday, January 10th, 7:00pm: Barmel (Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA). More info.
   Friday, January 11th, 8:00pm: California Jazz Conservatory (Berkeley, CA). More info and tickets.
   Saturday, January 12th, 7:30pm: San Luis Obispo Jazz Society (San Luis Obispo, CA). More info/tickets.
   Sunday, January 13th, 8:00pm: Jeffrey's Jazz Coffeehouse at the Rockfire Grill (Isla Vista, CA). More info.

* Sunday, January 20th at 2:00pm *
Ben Rosenblum Solo Piano at the Cultural Center of Cape Cod (Cape Cod, MA). More info and tickets.
Sunday, January 20th at 1:00am-4:00am (Sunday night/Monday morning)
Ben Zweig After Hours Jam at Smalls (Manhattan: West Village)
Monday, January 21st at 8:00pm-11:00pm
Iris Ornig Jam Session at Kitano (Manhattan: Midtown East)
Friday, January 25th at 8:00pm-11:00pm
Christine Correa at Kitano (Manhattan: Midtown East)
Sunday, January 27th at 1:00am-4:00am (Sunday night/Monday morning)
Ben Zweig After Hours Jam at Smalls (Manhattan: West Village)

Sunday, February 3rd at 6:30pm-9:30pm
Pat Bartley's Video Game Jam Session at Black Cat LES (Manhattan: Lower East Side)
Sunday, February 3rd at 1:00am-4:00am (Sunday night/Monday morning)
Ben Zweig After Hours Jam at Smalls (Manhattan: West Village)

February 7th-February 23rd: Ben Rosenblum Trio Southeast Tour !!
(More shows to be announced soon!)

   Thursday, February 7th: An Die Musik (Baltimore, MD)
   Saturday, February 9th: Rudy's Jazz Room (Nashville, TN)
   Sunday, February 10th: Atlanta Lovers of Music Association (ALOMA) Concert Series (Atanta, GA)
   Monday, February 11th: University of Tampa (Tampa, FL)
   Tuesday, February 12th: Moorings Park (Naples, FL)
   Wednesday, February 13th: Lagniappe House (Miami, FL)
   Thursday, February 14th: The Studios Key West (Key West, FL)
   Friday, February 15th: Le Chat Noir (Miami, FL)
   Saturday, February 16th: Blue Bamboo Center for the Arts (Orlando, FL)
   Sunday, February 17th: Coastal Jazz Association (Savannah, GA)
   Tuesday, February 19th: Fort Frederica Presbyterian Church (St. Simon's Island, GA)
   Friday, February 22nd: Durham Jazz Workshop (Durham, NC)
   Saturday, February 23rd: Stoltz Listening Room (Easton, MD)

Sunday, February 24th at 1:00am-4:00am (Sunday night/Monday morning)
Ben Zweig After Hours Jam at Smalls (Manhattan: West Village)

Sunday, March 3rd at 6:30pm-9:30pm
Pat Bartley's Video Game Jam Session at Black Cat LES (Manhattan: Lower East Side)

March 15th-28th: Trip to Japan !!

May 23rd-26th: Ben Rosenblum Trio Northeast Tour !!
(More shows to be announced soon!)

   Friday, May 24th: Bay Chamber Concerts (Rockport, ME)
   Saturday, May 25th: Portland Conservatory of Music (Portland, ME)

Friday, May 31st at 7:30pm
Gabriela Martina at Malden Community Center (Malden, MA)
Saturday, June 1st (Time TBA)
Gabriela Martina at Theory Wine Bar (Andover, MA)

Sunday, June 9th-27th: Ben Rosenblum Trio West Coast Tour !!
(More shows to be announced soon!)

   Sunday, June 9th: Marine View Presbyterian Church (Tacoma, WA)
   Thursday, June 13th: KALA Space (Astoria, OR)
   Friday, June 14th: Hoffman Center (Manzanita, OR)
   Saturday, June 15th: Lincoln City Cultural Center (Lincoln City, OR)
   Monday, June 17th: Crib Concerts (Arcata, CA)
   Monday, June 24th: Fresno Public Library (Fresno, CA)
   Thursday, June 27th: Jazz at the Merc (Temecula, CA)

ben Rosenblum

Described as an "impressive talent" by All About Jazz, Ben Rosenblum is a jazz pianist, accordionist and composer based in New York City, and a recent graduate of the joint program between Columbia University and Juilliard School of Music. His work has garnered numerous awards, including the ASCAP Young Jazz Composers Award and two Downbeat Student Music Awards for composition and arrangement. Ben was a finalist at the 2015 American Jazz Pianist Competition in Melbourne, Florida, and at the 2016 Jacksonville Jazz Piano Competition in Jacksonville, Florida. He has played with the Bachiana Brasileira Orchestra at Lincoln Center (conducted by Joao Carlos Martins and featuring Dave Brubeck), as well as in Delhi, India, and at the Masten Jazz Festival (Buffalo), Richmond Jazz Festival (Richmond), Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival (Maryland) and Lincoln Center Out of Doors Festival (Manhattan). He has also performed at Carnegie Hall, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, the Allen Room at Lincoln Center, Ryles Jazz Club, Webster Hall, Symphony Space, The Blue Note and a host of other locations throughout the northeast. Ben has worked extensively with such jazz luminaries as Curtis Lundy, Neal Smith, Winard Harper, Wayne Escoffery and Deborah Davis, and he has shared the stage with Houston Person, Dave Stryker, Steve Nelson, TS Monk and many others. Ben is currently celebrating the release of his debut album, entitled Instead. The album has been released to critical acclaim, including 4 stars from Downbeat Magazine.

Visit the About tab for more info about Ben and his music.