Brad Mehldau: Jazz master is venue's latest star name

When Howard Assembly Rooms first opened, it promised to bring an eclectic range of musicians to Yorkshire. Eighteen months on, says Tina Jackson, the venue's been true to its word.

Imagine being Brad Mehldau. You're an American jazz pianist at the absolute top of your tree. Your 2010 itinerary allows for a trio of venues in the UK. So, where? Wigmore Hall, on London's South Bank. Tick. Manchester's prestigious Royal Northern College of Music. Tick. And…Leeds. Howard Assembly Room.

Mehldau's sold-out appearance there on Saturday night proves that, 18 months after opening, Howard Assembly Room now has the pulling power to attract the very highest calibre artists not just from the classical world, but from an eclectic range of musical art forms. Since its beginnings last year, HAR has consistently delivered some of the most celebrated names working at the cutting edges of contemporary, classical and experimental music and arts, from cabaret noir stars The Tiger Lillies and Mercury-nominated jazz quartet Polar Bear, to Leeds's own anarcho-popsters Chumbawamba. Writers Tariq Ali and Orlando Figes have appeared, and this winter's haunting Forty Part Motet sound installation by Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller drew more than 5,200 visitors. Tenor Mark Padmore; leading light of the Brit folk scene Vashti Bunyan; pianist Joanna Macgregor and the soaring voices of The Tallis Singers, each one outstanding in their field, have performed. Mehldau fits perfectly in the mix.

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"He's such a big name, and he's only doing three dates in Britain," enthuses Richard Ashton, Howard Assembly Rooms' general manager. "And we've been referred to as the Wigmore Hall of the North."

Melhdau's most recent album, Highway Rider, justifies the plaudits that have been heaped on the jazz pianist as "the finest of his generation" and "proof of the relevance of jazz". Cinematic in feel and easy on the ear, Mehldau eschews the abstract, discordant brand of improvisation currently vogueish among avant-garde musicians. Instead, he offers a more melodic approach, which conjures a sense, in Highway Rider, of being taken on a road trip through the America of the imagination. Mehldau's technique is formidable, but rather than draw attention to it for its own sake, much of his appeal lies in the way he uses it to create a polished storytelling ambience.

"He blurs the boundaries between the classical side of things, and his improvisation is quite formidable," says Richard Ashton. One of the Howard Assembly Room's most outstanding assets is its Steinway grand piano – a cool hundred's grand worth – and, although its ivories have been tinkled by some outstanding classical players, Ashton wants it to be played by musicians of that calibre from other genres. "We wanted to get a stunning jazz person to play this stunning piano. Brad's going to be playing acoustic, so it will really be heard at its best."

From teen prodigy to contemporary luminary, Mehldau's musical pedigree is impeccable. The 40-year old Florida-born musician was a teenage jazz enthusiast, shining up his Charlie Parker licks when other lads his age were working on soccer tackles.

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Classically trained, he cut his teeth studying jazz in New York under Fred Hirsch, Junior Mance and Kenny Werner in the late 1980s, then earned his stripes as a sideman to such notable jazzmen as Jimmy Cobb and the Joshua Redman quartet. Since the early 1990s, he's recorded extensively, including soundtracks for films such as Eyes Wide Shut and Million Dollar Hotel.

This very contemporary jazz pianist has also experimented with arrangements of pop and rock musicians ranging from The Beatles and Nick Drake to Radiohead and US rockers Soundgarden. Mehldau's cover of Soundgarden's Black Hole Sun, which singer Chris Cornell confessed to writing "in about 15 minutes", turned it into a 23-minute jazz odyssey. It can be heard on Mehldau's 2006 Live album. On 2004's Live in Tokyo album, he stretched out a live version of Radiohead's Paranoid Android to 20 minutes of wildly inventive improvisation.

Although Highway Rider was recorded with an orchestra, Mehldau's usual framework is with a trio, and that's how he'll be performing on Saturday. He's worked with bassist Larry Grenadier since 1995 and drummer Jeff Ballard since 2005. Saturday night's audience can look forward to the kind of playing that comes when musicians seem able to read each other's minds.

Mehldau is a definite highlight of this season at Howard Assembly Rooms, but they won't be resting on their laurels. A sneak preview of the autumn season reveals that three of the classical world's heavyweights – Angelica Kirchschlager, pianist Paul Lewis and lyric soprano Kate Royal – will be performing. The Wigmore Hall of the North? Perhaps. A jewel in the northern arts scene's crown? Definitely.

Brad Mehldau, June 5, Howard Assembly Rooms, Leeds.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

Ones to watch out for at Howard Assembly Room

September 23

Angelica Kirchschlager

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The acclaimed mezzo-soprano explores the early Romantic period in a programme featuring songs by Mendelssohn and Carl Loewe.

October 21

Kate Royal and Malcome Martineau:

A Lesson in Love. Two of the world's most in-demand recitalists perform a programme including Schubert's Gretchen am Spinnrade, Ravel's Chanson de la marie and Strauss's Hochzeitlich Leid.

November 4

Paul Lewis plays Beethoven and Mozart.

The multi award-winning pianist performs a full programme, including Mozart's Adagio in B minor K540 and Beethoven's Piano Sonata no.21 in C major.

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