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"Hal Schaefer is one of the
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| "World class!" —Matt Schudel, Sun-Sentinel |
". . . a romantic with a rhythmic soul." —John S. Wilson, New York Times |
| "Innovative, resonant, deeply
felt, commercially viable and absolutely phenomenal." —David Pulizzi, Jazziz |
"Lean, unpredictable and gently dissonant." —Harvey Pekar |
| " . . . a traditional jazz
pianist with great maturity and imagination . . . to a great extent, he's unmatchable.
He's unique. He has his own style, and it's very swinging and creative." —Dick King |
" . . . an uncanny knack for zeroing
in on the mood of a song that quickly moves beyond the melody into the spirit it suggests
to him." —JazzTimes |
| Click here to read August 7, 2011 New York Times article. | |
HAL SCHAEFER/Brilliant: Schaefer has always run in lofty circles but has never had that bit of daylight that would allow the jazz piano man to be mentioned in the same breath as Dave McKenna or Hank Jones. Props to Michael Feinstein for taking the time to lobby for Schaefer getting Jazz Master recognition two years back. This solo piano set celebrates that event. While he deserves recognition for more than being the last man standing at 85 years old, this is a grand set of whorehouse/saloon solo piano on the classic tunes of that era and vibe. Playing with the dexterity and snap of a young lion on the prowl, if you miss McKenna or Jones or simply want to hear jazz piano played right and righteously, this is a must to check out. The cat still has it all on the ball. —MIDWEST RECORD, Chris Spector, Editor and Publisher
Schaefer's eclectic career as jazz pianist, composer and arranger
varies from playing with big bands led by Benny Carter, Harry James,
Boyd Raeburn and Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey to writing movie scores for
20th Century Fox and dance arrangements for Broadway shows such as A
Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and Foxy.
