Taylor Eigsti/Julian Lage Duo
Taylor Eigsti, piano; Julian Lage, guitar

Sunday, July 27 | 7:30 pm | Dinkelspiel Auditorium
Tickets: $28 general | $14 students

Online:
By phone: 650.725.ARTS (2787); In Person: Stanford Ticket Office
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Program Notes

“A set of duets as electrifying and virtuosic as it was mature.” – The Boston Herald

Pianist Taylor Eigsti and guitarist Julian Lage both began performing to wide acclaim before their tenth birthdays, but to dwell on their precocious early years doesn’t do justice to the mature talent and road-tested musicianship of these two young artists. Now in their early twenties, each has more than a decade of professional playing experience. Both are as emerging as distinctive voices with the potential to make a lasting contribution to the art of jazz, although neither has let success go to his head. Both are involved in a variety of musical projects and pursuits (Julian composes and records with Gary Burton’s Generations band), but when the two perform together it’s always special: Eigsti’s album "Lucky to Be Me," on which Lage played guitar, was nominated for two Grammy awards in 2007. The collaboration continues on Eigsti’s latest recording, "Let It Come to You," with Taylor and Julian touring Europe this summer before touching down at Stanford. The duo will be joined by various special guests.

Web Sites
Taylor Eigsti
Julian Lage

Music Link

Q&A with Taylor Eigsti and Julian Lage

What is the first recording you remember hearing as a child?
TE: A recording of Bill Cosby doing stand-up comedy. And an album by an instrumental pop group called “Fattburger.”
JL: Antonio Carlos Jobim - Passarim

Who is your favorite jazz musician under the age of 30?
TE: Julian Lage.
JL: My favorite musician under 30 is Taylor.

What job would you have if you weren¹t a jazz musician?
TE: Football coach.
JL: An Alexander Technique teacher.

What¹s the strangest experience you¹ve ever had on the bandstand?
TE: Playing with Yosvany Terry at SJW a few years ago; he came out in the second set and looked puzzled, checked his pockets for like 2 or 3 minutes, and said “One second.” He then went backstage and got his saxophone and chekere. I love that guy!
JL: I fell off the stage once, right as I was introduced. Made for an exciting entrance. I guess that is the strangest experience off the bandstand though!

What¹s your favorite food?
TE: Really, really, really good Indian food.

What¹s the most exotic place you¹ve traveled to as a musician?
TE: Maybe Anguilla, or Ouro Preto. Or I guess Japan seemed fairly exotic to me....
JL: Brazil.

What¹s the last book you¹ve read?
TE: Haha, no comment....
JL: “Body Awareness” by Frank Pierce Jones.

If you could play with any other musician, living or dead (with whom you have not played), who would it be and why?
TE: John Coltrane or Björk or Wayne Shorter. Because they are three of the biggest genius innovators of music I have ever heard in my life.
JL: Too many to answer.

What¹s your favorite tune?
TE: Can’t narrow it down. Maybe “The Masquerade is Over”
JL: It’s hard to pick just one.

What¹s your favorite thing about being a Stanford Jazz Workshop faculty member?
TE: Running into an exponentially growing network of people that have been positively and permanently affected by SJW, everywhere in the world.
JL: I get to be around amazing and inspiring musicians of all ages and the best part is that it all happens in a really healthy and lively environment.

What¹s your favorite jazz venue?
TE: The Jazz Standard, NY – or Marian’s Jazz Room in Bern, Switzerland.
JL: The Jazz Standard.

Who is your greatest musical influence?
TE: At the moment, maybe Eric Harland.

If you were stranded on a desert island and could only have three recordings with you, what would they be?
TE: Nancy Wilson/Cannonball Adderly; any album by master drummer Doudou N’Diaye Rose; and Bjork “Homogenic Live.”
JL: Jim Hall and Bill Evans “Undercurrent;” Bjork “Vespertine;” and something by Shostakovich.

How much do you practice each week?
TE: 7-10 Hours. But I have a very broad definition of what it means to practice...
JL: At my best, at least a few hours a day.

What hobbies do you have?
TE: Art, Basketball, Football, making R&B / Hip-Hop Tracks.

If you could be any other type of artist other than a jazz musician, what would you be and why?
TE: Rock Artist – they have so much fun when they play...

When did you become interested in music, and what circumstances or events led to your becoming a professional musician?
TE: I was mainly inspired by my sister, who played jazz and rock piano. I was also exposed to a lot of great music early on in life.

If you were to describe your music as a color, what color would it be and why?
TE: Every color - I am a nut about having an equal representation of all different colors around me - I feel so affected by that!