Michael Kocour - East of the Sun (2019)

Pianist Michael Kocour brings many gifts to this solo piano recording of gems from the Great American Songbook: melodic creativity, harmonic acuity, swinging rhythmic gait, supple technique, an elegant touch, and bell-like tone, ebullient spirit and refined taste. But lording over all these qualities is this meta truth: Kocour is a compelling storyteller whose playing reaches across the footlights, pulling listeners inside the music where magic happens on the fly. Each improvisation here reveals the cohesive scaffolding and clarity of a tightly constructed short story - while the natural flow of Kocour's phrasing contains myriad unexpected details that suggest subtle plot twists. Blink and you'll miss them.