This performance will feel like a coming home to pianist Gerald Clayton. He grew up in Los Angeles, but he was born in the Netherlands. Clayton (1984) is the son of the famous bassist and bandleader John Clayton, and his uncle, saxophonist Jeff Clayton, is also a big name in music. Gerald started studying classical piano at the age of six. After that, he partook in the Jazz Studies Program at the University of Southern California, and finally he rounded off his musical education at the Manhattan School of Music. There, his teachers were Billy Childs and Kenny Barron, among others. He gained further professional experience with Lewis Nash, Al Foster and Clark Terry and he performed duo concerts with greats like Hank Jones, Kenny Barron and Mulgrew Miller; it all formed a rich basis for growth. Since 2006 he has been working intensively with trumpeter Roy Hargrove; in 2008 he started his own trio. A rising star.
