The actual Kenny Werner Trio consists of bassist Johannes Weidenmuller and drummer Ari Hoenig. The pianist met the two young musicians when he made the CD Beauty Secrets, an album featuring various artists, including Joe Lovano and Broadway star Betty Buckley. According to Werner it’s such a joy to communicate musically with ‘rhythm tandem’ Weidenmuller and Hoenig that the trio, which produced their first (live) album in 2000, even socializes after work. Apparently the pianist, who has played often in duet form with his good friend Toots Thielemans, also loves to play in trio form. For instance, a very long period of time, fourteen years, he was part of the highly acclaimed trio with bassist Ratzo Harris and drummer Tom Rainey. His recording days in the studio however are over. Werner: “It just doesn’t tell the story of the kind of great things that happen spontaneously on the bandstand when we have the resonance of people listening and watching.”
