Indonesian Pianist, 12, Wows Jazz World

Indonesian Pianist, 12, Wows Jazz World

People who listen to Joey Alexander play the piano say they are listening to the future of jazz.

And Joey is only 12 years old.

But musicians who work with the 12-year-old are the first to say that age does not matter.

The music industry seems to agree. The young pianist earned two Grammy nominations² this year, one for “Best Improvised³ Jazz Solo” and one for “Best Jazz Instrumental Album.”

He is one of the youngest musicians ever to earn a Grammy nomination¹.

Jason Olaine produced Joey's debut⁴ album titled My Favorite Things. To anyone who doubts young Joey’s abilities, Olaine says,“Just close your eyes, and listen to Joey."

The road from Bali to New York City

Joey Alexander was born Josiah Alexander Sila in Bali, Indonesia. At age 6, he learned to play jazz by ear. Playing music by ear means to learn a piece of music just by listening to it, not by reading notes.

Joey’s parents are not musicians. They ran a travel business. His father played a little piano and guitar, but not professionally. However, Joey says when he saw his father play, he wanted to try.

"Well, my dad played a little piano and guitar, but not that professionally. And then I saw him play and then he make me like, I want to play, I want to try this instrument.”

Watching his father play music influenced the young boy. So did his father’s record collection. He learned jazz by listening to these records. He says he listened to jazz greats like Duke Ellington and Bill Strayhorn, among others.

“Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk⁵ and Miles Davis, Coltrane and Bill Evans. I hear all these amazing musicians."

New York City comes calling

Joey’s family moved from Bali to Jakarta. There Joey played with some of Indonesia's best jazz artists. Joey's parents then decided⁶ to give up their travel business and move the family to New Jersey⁷, close to New York City.

By the time Joey was 10, the Lincoln Center in New York City invited him to play at Jazz at Lincoln Center.

Olaine, who produced Joey’s first album, is also the director of programming at Jazz at Lincoln Center. Olaine remembers the reactions of musicians who were there for a rehearsal⁸ when Joey performed a Thelonius Monk tune⁹. The expression he uses is "everybody's jaws¹¹ dropped."

"Joey plays a version of "Round Midnight," and everybody's jaws dropped, like looking at Joey and looking at each other… and they're laughing, like 'This can't possibly be what we're hearing.' He took another take afterwards, it was a completely different arrangement. And again, everyone (laughs) ... you kind of shrug¹² your shoulders, look at each other, scratch your head, and just go 'Okay, all right, I've never seen this before.' "

One of the musicians on Joey's debut album had a similar reaction. Drummer Ulysses Owens Jr. is 32 years old. But, he says their 20-year age difference means nothing. He and Joey connected through music right from the start.

Owens remembers watching the young pianist play "Giant Steps." “Giant Steps” is a song that could win Joey a Grammy in February for Best Improvised Jazz Solo.

"I think it was the intro. Every time we did 'Giant Steps,' Joey always loved to do an intro, without the band … And one of the second or third intros, he went to this whole other place, musically. And I watched him, I watched him close his eyes, and I watched his head kinda of just bobbing to the side, he has this thing that he does when he's really going somewhere… and I was like 'This is freakin' amazing,'"

Owens describes Joey’s harmonic and melodic¹³ adventures as hip¹⁴ and in the next stratosphere. In other words Joey’s piano playing is simply out of this world!

"Watching this little kid, he's going on all these harmonic adventures, and melodic adventures, and doing some really hip stuff, and he's just gone, he's just completely in this next stratosphere, I'm like, that is a gift, man, and when I open my eyes and look at him, that's what I saw, man, this kid is literally¹⁵ from another planet. And it's so beautiful to watch."

Just a normal kid

Joey is home-schooled. And when he is not performing and blowing the minds of jazz greats, he says he is just a normal kid. He likes the music of Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin and the Beatles. He also likes playing with toys, playing sports and watching movies.

"You know, I'm still me as a kid .. playing toys. I play sports, like I play a little bit of tennis, swimming … you know, like a normal kid, I watch movies."

Joey says he is grateful for all the support he has received during his musical journey. He says that he is excited to be part of the New York jazz scene. And now, Joey can follow his dream -- playing jazz for people to bring them joy and hope.

"I hope that they will feel the joy because this music is so joyful¹⁶ and it touches people's hearts. When I play I always hope people will be joyful in their lives and to have hope."

Words in This Story

debut – n. the first time an actor, musician, athlete, etc., does something in public or for the public

play by ear – idiomatic¹⁷ expression : to play a song or a piece of music by ear is to play it after hearing it without looking at written music.

amazing – adj. causing great surprise or wonder

rehearsal – n. an event at which a person or group practices an activity (such as singing, dancing, or acting) in order to prepare for a public performance

jaws dropped – idiomatic expression :  If your jaw¹⁰ drops, you open your mouth in a way that shows you are very surprised or shocked.

take – n. a song that is recorded a scene that is filmed or at one time without stopping

intro – n. a short introduction to something (such as a performance or a musical work)

bob – v. to move up and down quickly or repeatedly

harmonic – adj. technical : of or relating to musical harmony rather than melody or rhythm

adventure – n. an exciting experience

melodic – adj. of or relating to melody

hip – adj. knowing about and following the newest styles, fashions, etc.

stratosphere – n.  the upper layer of the Earth's atmosphere that begins about 7 miles (11 kilometers) above the Earth's surface and ends about 30 miles (50 kilometers) above the Earth's surface : a very high position, level, or amount

1 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

2 nominations   

n.提名，任命( nomination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Nominations are invited for the post of party chairman. 为党主席职位征集候选人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Much coverage surrounded his abortive bids for the 1960,1964, and 1968 Republican Presidential nominations. 许多消息报道都围绕着1960年、1964年和1968年他为争取提名为共和党总统候选人所做努力的失败。 来自辞典例句

3 improvised   

a.即席而作的,即兴的

参考例句：

• He improvised a song about the football team's victory. 他即席创作了一首足球队胜利之歌。
• We improvised a tent out of two blankets and some long poles. 我们用两条毛毯和几根长竿搭成一个临时帐蓬。

4 debut   

n.首次演出，初次露面

参考例句：

• That same year he made his Broadway debut, playing a suave radio journalist.在那同一年里，他初次在百老汇登台，扮演一个温文而雅的电台记者。
• The actress made her debut in the new comedy.这位演员在那出新喜剧中首次登台演出。

5 monk   

n.和尚，僧侣，修道士

参考例句：

• The man was a monk from Emei Mountain.那人是峨眉山下来的和尚。
• Buddhist monk sat with folded palms.和尚合掌打坐。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

8 rehearsal   

n.排练，排演；练习

参考例句：

• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。
• You can sharpen your skills with rehearsal.排练可以让技巧更加纯熟。

9 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

10 jaw   

n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训

参考例句：

• He delivered a right hook to his opponent's jaw.他给了对方下巴一记右钩拳。
• A strong square jaw is a sign of firm character.强健的方下巴是刚毅性格的标志。

11 jaws   

n.口部；嘴

参考例句：

• The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。
• The scored jaws of a vise help it bite the work. 台钳上有刻痕的虎钳牙帮助它紧咬住工件。

12 shrug   

v.耸肩(表示怀疑、冷漠、不知等)

参考例句：

• With a shrug,he went out of the room.他耸一下肩，走出了房间。
• I admire the way she is able to shrug off unfair criticism.我很佩服她能对错误的批评意见不予理会。

13 melodic   

adj.有旋律的，调子美妙的

参考例句：

• His voice had a rich melodic quality.他的音色浑厚而优美。
• He spoke with a soft husky voice in a melodic accent.他微微沙哑的声音带着一种悠扬的口音。

14 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

15 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

16 joyful   

adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的

参考例句：

• She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。
• They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

17 idiomatic   

adj.成语的，符合语言习惯的

参考例句：

• In our reading we should always be alert for idiomatic expressions.我们在阅读过程中应经常注意惯用法。
• In his lecture,he bore down on the importance of idiomatic usage in a language.他在演讲中着重强调了语言中习惯用法的重要性。