Luis Perdomo

There are moments in music when an artist illuminates the scene with imagination, virtuosity and above all, an undying dedication to swing.

Pianist/composer/bandleader Luis Perdomo is that moment!

Ever since he came to New York in 1993 from Venezuela, Perdomo has emerged as one of the most in-demand sidemen – as evidenced by his celebrated work with a wide array of jazz and Latin stars – from Ravi Coltrane to Ray Barretto, and by his six critically- acclaimed recordings as a leader. The release of his magnificent new, Hot Tone label debut CD, 22, features bassist Mimi Jones’ supple, deep basslines and drummer Rudy Royston’s quicksilver rhythms, in a trio he christened The Controlling Ear Unit. “I wanted to create an environment where a sensitive player could make his own musical choices, without fear of the consequences,” Perdomo says. “The word ‘unit’ is appropriate because although the current group is a trio, it doesn’t really have to be restrained to that. It could have a different format, depending on what the music calls for.”

On 22, save for his elegant rendition of the Bees Gees’ classic ballad “How Deep is Your Love,” Perdomo delivers a stunning set of original compositions, mostly inspired by his adopted and native hometowns, and that mysterious number.

“2015 marks my twenty-second year living in New York City, and I left my hometown when I was twenty-two years old,” he says. “I remembered the exact moment when I moved, and the feelings I had had at the time...especially during the last two days in Caracas and the first two days in New York City. There again, I saw the two and two formula, and realized that there was a little recurring theme there. So I began scoring all of those memories and trying to convey them through music: translating some dates that were very significant to me into notes.”

Perdomo’s lyrical and logical pianism embodies Bud Powell’s bop-at-the-speed-of- swing, Oscar Peterson’s technical brilliance, and Ahmad Jamal’s melodic genius. And his numbers-into-notes compositional technique, which he learned from Richard DeRosa, an instructor from his Alma Mater, the Manhattan School of Music, forms the basis of two songs: “Cota Mil” a funky, labyrinthine, Patanemo-grooved number named after a prominent highway north of Caracas, which derives its compositional motifs from the dates of the Venezuelan Battle of Independence in 1821 and the Batalla de la Juventud/Battle of the Youth in 1814. The martial, “Days Gone Days Ahead,” was inspired by the day Perdomo got his US Student Visa on 8/13/93.

The rest of the CD’s tracks showcase the infinite variety of Perdomo’s musicality. “Love Tone Poem” is a wistful, 5/4-metered ballad dedicated to Jones, and “Two Sides of a Goodbye” is a funereal, avant-garde work that conjures up Perdomo’s melancholy when he left his family at the airport in Venezuela. In contrast, “Old City” is an uptempo sound portrait of an the un-gentrified Manhattan of the early nineties, where jazz clubs like Bradley’s, The Village Gate, Fat Tuesday’s and Sweet Basil’s reigned supreme. Perdomo’s evocative sound on the Fender Rhodes is also featured on the bouncy backbeat of “A Different Kind of Reality,” the contrapuntal “Light Slips In,” “Brand New Grays,” and the funkified “Looking Through You.”

Two tracks, “Weilheim (to Gerry Weil)” a reverent mid-tempo piece dedicated to Perdomo’s first teacher, the Austrian-born jazz pianist/educator Gerry Weil, and “Aaychdee (to Harold Danko)” – named after jazz Danko’s publishing company,” are Perdomo’s sonic shout-outs to his former piano teachers. “The biggest lesson I received from Gerry Weil in Venezuela, was to keep my mind open to all types of music,” he says. “With Harold (who was his instructor at MSM), that was the first time I actually heard jazz from an American point-of-view. That was a total revelation to me.”

Born in 1971 in Caracas, Perdomo, from the age of 12, was playing on Venezuelan TV and radio stations, but he eventually realized that he would have to travel to New York City to fulfill his musical destiny. “Being in a more competitive and challenging environment was a big change that I welcomed,” he says.

In 1993, Perdomo relocated to New York and enrolled with a full scholarship to the Manhattan School of Music, where he studied with Harold Danko and classical pianist Martha Pestalozzi, and earned his earned his BA Degree in 1997. Perdomo later studied with pianist extraordinaire, Sir Roland Hanna at Queens College, and received his Masters Degree in 2000. "Studying with Sir Roland Hanna ...“I began to look at jazz and classical music in a new and more in-depth way and my playing evolved accordingly,” he says. Perdomo has appeared on over two hundred records, and has become a first-class sideman to artists like Dave Douglas, David Sanchez, Tom Harrell, Steve Turre, Ben Wolfe, Ray Barretto, Brian Lynch, David Gilmore, Conrad Herwig, Ignacio Berroa, Ralph Irizarry and Timbalaye and other great musicians. He was a member of Ravi Coltrane’s Quartet for ten years, and is a founding member of the Miguel Zenon Quartet. Perdomo recorded on three Grammy-nominated CD’s: Coltrane’s Influx, and Zenon’s Esta Plena, and Alma Adentro: The Puerto Rican Songbook.

Perdomo’s recordings as a leader include: Focus Point (2005), Awareness (2006), Pathways (2008), the critically-acclaimed Universal Mind (2012), with Jack DeJohnnette and Drew Gress, The Infancia Project (2012) and Links (2013).

Which brings us to 22: an amazing recording that shows how far Luis Perdomo has come and forecasts where he is going.

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by Katchie Cartwright
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Reading Marge Piercy's poem “To Be of Use" (track two onWhat Times Are These), Jamie Baum could be speaking of herself, one of those “who jump into work head first without dallying in the shadows, who swim off with sure strokes," knowing that “the thing worth doing has a shape that satisfies, clean and evident." What Times Are These is a satisfying form of this sort. Confined to her New York apartment during the Covid-19 lockdown, Baum responded ...

Radio & Podcasts

Luis Perdomo: El Arte Del Grammy

by David Bixler
April 2, 2024

This month we join in congratulating pianist Luis Perdomo for his recent GRAMMY award for El Arte del Bolero vol 2 in the category of best Latin jazz album. In this episode of LINER NOTES, Luis recounts the musical journey from his native Venezuela and then coming to New York initially to study before transitioning into one of the most in demand pianists on the scene, gracing the bandstand with musicians such as of Ravi Coltrane, Tom Harrell, and his ...

Album Review

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Read "The Pan American Nutcracker Suite" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
February 5, 2023

Yes, Peter Tchaikovsky's timeless Nutcracker Suite is basically holiday music; and, yes, the 2022 holiday season is squarely in everyone's rear-view mirror. Even so, there is always room for a fresh approach to the annual festive staple, which is what drummer Joe McCarthy's New York Afro Bop Alliance Big Band brings to The Pan American Nutcracker Suite. The Nutcracker has been rhythmically amended before, but never quite like this, as McCarthy and the band use the strong ...

Album Review

Joe McCarthy's Afro Bop Alliance Big Band: The Pan American Nutcracker Suite

Read "The Pan American Nutcracker Suite" reviewed by Richard J Salvucci

by Richard J Salvucci
September 29, 2022

"The Nutcracker" is a holiday staple and, as many musical and dance companies around the United States and Europe will tell you, thank Heaven for it. The musicians and performers may eventually lose their sanity from repeat performances, but the ballet is a money-maker as sure as holiday sales generate commercial profits for retailers. Besides, someone is inevitably hearing it for the first time, and children—even some adults—seem to enjoy it. This year, the season starts early with ...

Album Review

Miguel Zenon: Musica De Las Americas

Read "Musica De Las Americas" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan

by Dan McClenaghan
August 18, 2022

Alto saxophonist Miguel Zenon has made a career out of exploring his Puerto Rican roots, with albums like Alma Adentro: The Puerto Rican Songbook (Marsalis Music, 2011), Tipico (Miel Music, 2017) and Yo Soy La Tradicion (Miel Music, 2018). With Musica De Las Americas he broadens his vision to celebrate the history of the American continents, north and south, as well as the multiplicity of America's Atlantic Ocean islands, to delve into the history of this expanse of lands--before and ...

Album Review

Greg Germann: Tales of Time

Read "Tales of Time" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
June 5, 2021

Tales of Time is the sort of album musicians are most apt to dissect and appreciate. New York-based drummer Greg Germann uses various time signatures to subdivide eleven of his original compositions, building a strong rhythmic platform from which to launch his assorted themes. Germann supervises a quartet whose other members are tenor saxophonist Donny McCaslin, pianist Luis Perdomo and bassist Yasushi Nakamura (singer Chelsea Forgenie is front and center on the ballad “Time to Move On"). ...

Album Review

Miguel Zenon, Luis Perdomo: El Arte Del Bolero

Read "El Arte Del Bolero" reviewed by Angelo Leonardi

by Angelo Leonardi
January 11, 2021

Dopo l'avvincente Sonero dedicato al songbook di Ismael Rivera--il grande cantante portoricano noto come El Sonero Mayor e amato in tutta l'America latina--il sassofonista Miguel Zenon sceglie una dimensione più intima, continuando però a scavare nelle memorie dell'infanzia. Il progetto è infatti dedicato a celebri bolero della tradizione, resi famosi da Benny Moré,Ray Barretto, Arsenio Rodriguez, Cheo Feliciano e dalla seducente cantante cubana Victoria Yolí Raymond, meglio nota come “La Lupe." «Queste non sono canzoni qualsiasi—ha commentato ...

Recording

Hot Tone Music To Release New CDs By Bassist Mimi Jones & Pianist Luis Perdomo, May 13

Source: Terri Hinte Publicity
April 27, 2016

Hot Tone Music, the artist-run label founded by bassist /composer Mimi Jones in 2009, announces the simultaneous release on May 13 of new CDs by Jones (Feet in the Mud) and pianist/composer Luis Perdomo (Montage). Perdomo’s Montage is his eighth album as a leader but the first solo piano recording in his distinguished career. After he’d begun playing solo concerts three years ago, this ever-evolving artist reached out to his pianist friend Fred Hersch “to fine-tune some aspects of my ...
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Recording

Guitarist/Composer David Gilmore Releases "Numerology" "Live at the Ja77 Standard" Featuring David Gilmore with Claudia Acua A, Miguel Zenon, Luis Perdomo, Christian McBride, Jeff "Tain" Watts and Mino Cinelu

Source: Two for the Show Media
October 11, 2012

Numerology Suite is musical exploration into the mystical, divine, and spiritual meaning of numbers, which reflect the creation of the Universe and the underlying structure upon which the material world is built. Music is the language of the Universe, and the elements of music - harmony, melody and rhythm, are all expressions of number. Pythagoras, the father of mathematics, taught that the numbers one through nine represent the universal principles and progressive cycles in life. Here David Gilmore invites the ...
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Recording

Pianist/Composer Luis Perdomo Releases New CD "Universal Mind" from RKM Music on February 14th, 2012

Source: Two for the Show Media
January 5, 2012

Universal Mind is the perfect title for the newest release from Luis Perdomo. The three-way connection between the extraordinary jazz pianist and composer and his world-class collaborators, bassist Drew Gress and the legendary Jack DeJohnette on drums, is apparent from the first moments of this exhilarating new release from RKM Records. The Village Voice called Perdomo “a rather amazing improviser" and added, “The pianist is making a name for himself by feverishly assaulting the progressive edge of mainstream jazz." With ...
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142

Interview

Pianist Luis Perdomo Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
June 11, 2007

How do you get from Caracas, Venezuela to Carnegie Hall? Well, first you come to the States on vacation, win a full scholarship to a conservatory, study with legends like Roland Hanna, then ... well, you get the idea.

That's the journey undertaken by pianist and composer Luis Perdomo. It's a trip that has taken him from Latin powerhouses like Timbalaye and Ray Barretto's band to more mainstream jazz groups led by folks like Ravi Coltrane and Brian Lynch. Perdomo ...
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Technology

The Jazz Session: Luis Perdomo

Source: All About Jazz
March 2, 2007

On the new episode of The Jazz Session, Jason Crane interviews pianist Luis Perdomo. Since coming to New York from his native Venezuela, Perdomo has blossomed as a player. As a student at the Manhattan School of Music and at Queens College, he studied with pianists Harold Danko and Sir Roland Hanna. As a professional musician, he's played with Ray Baretto, Ravi Coltrane, Miguel Zenon, Dafnis Prieto, and Timbalaye, to name a few. Perdomo's adventurous new record is Awareness (RKM ...
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Performance / Tour

Luis Perdomo Trio at Sculler's Thursday April 28th

Source: All About Jazz
April 4, 2005

April 4, 2005 To: Listings/Critics/Features From: JAZZ PROMO SERVICES Press Contact: JIM EIGO, [email protected] Hi folks... To all my friends in the Boston area, I'm very excited to inform you that I will be performing at Sculler's with my own trio, featuring bassist Hans Glawischnig and drummer Eric McPherson on Thursday April 28th... I'll be playing music from my recently release debut CD “Focus Point" on the RKM Music label, as well as some new music from my upcoming project... ...
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116

Performance / Tour

Luis Perdomo Trio @ The Jazz Gallery/Friday, March 25 Performing Music from his debut CD "Focus Point"

Source: All About Jazz
March 17, 2005

March 17, 2005 To: Listings/Critics/Features From: JAZZ PROMO SERVICES Press Contact: JIM EIGO, [email protected] Luis Perdomo Trio @ The Jazz Gallery, Friday March 25 Performing Music from his debut CD “Focus Point" (RKM) Luis Perdomo, piano Drew Gress, bass Eric McPherson, drums The Jazz Gallery 290 Hudson (at Spring) Cover: $15 Set Times: 9:00pm and 10:30pm Reservations Recommended: 212.242.1063 www.jazzgallery.org Luis Perdomo's maiden voyage as a leader is as impressive a debut disc as any released by a young musician ...
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Performance / Tour

Luis Perdomo Quintet Friday, June 21st at the The Jazz Gallery

Source: All About Jazz

290 Hudson Street (below Spring) 212-242-1063 www.jazzgallery.org Sets at 9:00 & 10:30 $12 featuring Luis Perdomo - piano Sam Newsome - soprano sax Miguel Zenon - alto sax Essiet Okon Essiet - bass Ralph Peterson - drums Born in Caracas - Venezuela ( February 19th - 1971), Luis Perdomo started on piano at age ...
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“A rather amazing improviser, the pianist is making a name for himself by feverishly assaulting the progressive edge of mainstream jazz.” — Village Voice

“Mr. Perdomo plays with deep sonority, rhythmic aplomb and an ear for useful dissonance.” – New York Times