"When George Gershwin's Concerto in F was premiered in 1925, opinion was divided. Was it a classical or jazz work? That ambivalence plays right into the hands of classically trained pianist Matt Herskowitz, who arranged the work for solo piano - the centrepiece of this dramatic recording. Playing a Hamburg Steinway, Herskowitz opens with an arrangement of Rhapsody in Blue, taking enough liberties with the score to transform it into something jazzier than the original. The pianist is at his lyrical best in the concerto's slower, blues-based second movement. He closes with a spirited arrangement of Cuban Overture. While his attack is sometimes over the top, the listener can only admire his ardour and technical prowess. Rating 4"

"L’Amérique en 88 touches

 Je ne manque jamais l’occasion d’écouter un nouvel enregistrement de la Rhapsody In Blue de George Gershwin, qui remonte à 1924, à l’époque où son énergie débridée et jouissive était synonyme d’une Amérique qui se saoulait de sa modernité naissante.

Hormis les versions plus « classiques » (celle de Leonard Bernstein, gravée en 1959, demeure le jalon suprême), la partition a été abordée avec une artillerie légère – un quatuor à cordes remplaçant l’orchestre! - par le Willem Breuker Kollektief, pour ensuite donner lieu à la relecture controversée du pianiste américain Marcus Roberts, dont les écarts vis-à-vis de la partition se justifiaient, selon lui, du fait que Rhapsody In Blue était un hommage symphonique au jazz et que le jazz, au départ, est le langage privilégié de l’improvisation.

Quant à la version pour piano mécanique que Gershwin avait lui même gravée (ou « perforée ») sur piano mécanique en 1925 et dont l’enregistrement numérisé est paru sur le fascinant Gershwin Plays Gershwin – The Piano Rolls, elle nous rappelle la nature profondément pianistique de cette œuvre qui, hormis le célèbre glissando de clarinette initial, ne souffrait pas de se voir ainsi transcrite pour 88 touches.

Sans sacrifier l’enthousiasme ni la vélocité de cette version historique, le pianiste Matt Herskowitz nous en propose une lecture tout aussi fougueuse mais plus plus nuancée sur Matt Herskowitz Plays George Gershwin (Disques Tout Crin/Fusion III). Le défi, pour ce new-yorkais de souche et montréalais d’adoption, était de rester fidèle à l’esprit de la partition, et donc à ses débordements frisant le mauvais goût, tout en rendant compte, dans la mesure du possible, de tous les détails orchestraux, notamment des fréquentes éclaboussures des cuivres et des percussions. Et malgré d’occasionnels manquements à la fluidité de la version orchestrale, Herkowitz réalise ici un exploit de débrouillardise, au point de nous faire – presque – oublier l’absence des 50 autres musiciens.

Mais pour plusieurs, la révélation de cet album sera le travail de transcription sur le Concerto en Fa et la Cuban Overture, deux œuvres un peu moins connues, dont le riche matériau thématique, pétri de contrepoint et de polyrythmie, a permis à Herkowitz de mettre en valeur sa double formation de concertiste et de jazzman. Le fait même que cet album puisse être classé aussi bien rayon jazz qu’au rayon classique témoigne de sa réussite – qui est aussi, a fortiori, celle de Gershwin."

"...In early November, Hallmark plans to issue "In the Swing of Christmas," a jazz-styled album on which Manilow is accompanied by pianist Matt Herskowitz of the Mad Fusion Trio, who he proclaims is "beyond Bill Evans, beyond Fats Waller. You've never heard a young piano player like this.""

"...un immense pianiste."

"This was post-Miles Davis, post-Bill Evans, post-just-about-everyone
stuff. Gershwin's tunes were at the core of the music, even if you had to
listen pretty hard at times, but the style was contemporary. Terrific
fun." (from review of all-Gershwin concert)

"...ce poète du clavier... met son clavier au service de toutes les musiques, pourvu qu'elles partagent son amour de l'aventure. Animé d'un feu intérieur inextinguible, Matt Herskowitz bouscule les conventions et propose un jazz d'une inventivité enthousiasmante."
In English:
"... (he is) a poet at the keyboard, putting his talents to the service of any form of music that shares his passion for exploration. A smoldering inner fire impels Matt Herskowitz to flout musical convention, creating a jazz that's as enthusiastic as it is inventive."

"Pianist Matt Herskowitz made like Keith Emerson with a Chopin-meets-Little Richard solo piano jaunt". (from review of "Les Triplettes de Belleville" show at the 2004 Montreal Jazz Festival)

"Besides playing the inventive, thorny solo in 'Purple Haze', Matt Herskowitz, the group's pianist, offered a stunningly beautiful solo in the Mingus classic 'Goodbye Pork Pie Hat,' and an energetic piece of his own, 'Serial Blues,' in which a remarkably fluid jazz piano line squared off against ensemble contributions couched alternately in classic blues harmonies and a contrapuntal 12-tone setting."

"...the American Matthew Herskowitz convinced the entire hall of his exceptional talent as a pianist and musician."

“In Chopin's "Berceuse" and Ravel's "Gaspard de la Nuit," the fluidity of his scale work was effortless and light and sounded like streams of tinkling bells. His touch was as gentle as a feather. His expert pedaling allowed for technical clarity and his rhythm was precise."

"...Locked in a strange embrace with his piano, tender and aggressive at once, hands first in perfect synchrony, then suddenly abandoning one another into furious autonomy, (his playing) was fluid to the point of bursting.."

"He delivers hard-driving progressive bop, yet excels at soft and sensitive works... improvised lines breathe like brushstrokes on canvas, each note carefully selected and presented."

"The release is completed by an exquisite account of the Glazunov Second Piano Concerto by the young American Matthew Herskowitz, by far the best
performance on CD."

"In this particular hall, pianist Matthew Herskowitz stood out as someone to
watch and listen for as he stands at the threshold of a promising career."

"His pianism is formidably accomplished, with bristling clarity of articulation, a clipped rhythmic energy, commendable architecture and extreme musical directness and intelligence."

"..M. Herskowitz se montra à la fois excellent pianiste et agissante accompagnateur..."
In English:
"...Mr. Herskowitz showed himself to be both an excellent pianist and able accompanist..."
(review of concert with violinist Alexandre Da Costa)

"Higher praise was owing Matthew Herskowitz for his noble, finely burnished
interpretation of Beethoven's Second Concerto... everything in this performance suggested that the Second is more than the 18th - century entertainment it is sometimes presumed to be."

"Matthew Herskowitz, in Ravel's Ondine, produced opaque sounds evocative of the now seldom-heard Erard pianos, thrilling in its quiet intensity."

"Herskowitz has the speed, power and sensitivity of a major artist, and his playing was always solid, balanced and controlled."

..."extraordinary high-octane keyboard virtuosity"

"...his is a much more energetic, driven, and probing style than that of most jazz pianists. In sum, he is a cultivated talent with an undeniably bright future in both musical worlds."