HOME
BIOGRAPHY
CURRENT PROJECTS / RECENT VIDEOS AND MP3 FILES
NEWS
REVIEWS/INTERVIEWS
QUOTES
TOURING - UPCOMING PERFORMANCES -
DISCOGRAPHY
CATALOGUE OF RECORDED ORIGINAL COMPOSITIONS
EDUCATION – RESIDENCIES – WORKSHOPS - CONFERENCES
LISTEN TO MP3s
VIDEOS FROM THE ARCHIVES (HISTORICAL FOOTAGE FROM THE PAST)
DOWNLOAD LEAD SHEETS
PHOTOS
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION
ORDER CDs
LINKS
GUESTBOOK
|
QUOTES"Stevens is a sensitive pianist who ekes out droplets of sparkling gems or volumes of rushing waves having a lyrical foundation and a complex consistency; he constructs vivid imagery by getting into the core of each piece and expounding intuitively with his reconstructions."
Cadence Jazz Magazine, September, 2005. By Frank Rubolino
"In over 30 minutes, Michael Jefry Stevens sends us through five stages of complexity. Minds of such intelligence gravitate to expanse, and this qualifies. The suite is three-dimensional. One crawls inside it. This music is as uncommon as what lies beneath the naked image."
Jazz Improv Magazine (2005). By Gregory J. Robb
"Pianist Michael Jefry Stevens blends a pliable rhythmic and melodic sense with a mercurial technique that serves him well."
Jazz Times Magazine, August 2005. By Chris Kelsey
"The Title track is an atmospheric ballad, buoyed by Stevens' lush harmonic choices and sonorous exploitation of the entire keyboard's compass."
Signal to Noise Magazine, Summer 2005. By Christian Carey
"Stevens is in top form, particularly on the aforementioned "As I was Saying", where his crystalline chord structures shimmer in conjunction with a ruminating pulse."
Signal to Noise Magazine. By Jay Collins
"Stevens's playing remains ever-versatile, alternating between comp-ing changes and fistfuls of chromatic clusters."
Christian Carey, Splendid Reviews
"Michael Jefry Stevens let's his piano stamp the harmonic line that gradually powers in intensity, an urgent essaying of the melodic landscape..."
Jerry D'Souza, All About Jazz
"Stevens' major virtue is his ability to write fresh, attractive melodies, but he's also a provocative composer."
Harvey Pekar, Jazz Times Magazine
"Throughout the record, the pianist demonstrates a command of his instrument, not only in a technical sense, but also for the warmth and feeling he coaxes from this stringed, wooden box. His classical notions are explored in particular depth on the floating waves of 'Cloud Drift' and the captivating 'Whispering Wind', the latter of which bursts with a rich splendor that drives right to the core of Stevens' sense of emotion."
Jay Collins, One Final Note
"Michael Jefry Stevens is influenced on one side by Coltrane, Bill Evans, Cecil Taylor and Thelonious Monk but, on the other, by Mahler, Bartok, Debussy and Ravel. The free jazz environment allows Stevens the luxury of painting his music with a palette containing blues, rock, classical, jazz and funk. The resulting improvisations cannot be pigeonholed."
Richard Bourcier, Jazz Review
"Michael Jefry Stevens is a fluid player who finds his comfort level not only on the cool side but also through free jazz and instant improvisation. His touch is both delicate and hard hitting, stopping short of bombast when he ventures into the latter. His phrasing has an elegance, and while he does take a line at a tangent he does not let this alter his focus. Stevens suspends time and harmony; his lines arch and curve and fall in a splash of color. He unleashes bolts of thunder with his left hand and clasps melody in scintillating runs."
Jerry D'Souza, All About Jazz
|