Bill Charlap Trio

Bill Charlap is a consummate jazz pianist who has performed and recorded with many of the foremost artists of our day, including jazzmen Wynton Marsalis and Phil Woods and singers Tony Bennett and Barbra Streisand.

In 1997, Charlap (pronounced Shar-lap) formed his trio with bassist Peter Washington and drummer Kenny Washington. Today, the Bill Charlap Trio, thrice nominated for a Grammy Award, is lauded as one of the best ensembles in jazz.

After releasing albums on Blue Note Records for a decade, the trio made its debut on the Impulse! Label with 2016’s Notes from New York. The DownBeat five-star review of the album calls it “a masterclass in class.” Its 2017 follow-up, Uptown, Downtown, is Grammy nominated for Best Jazz Instrumental Album.

In 2015, Charlap teamed with Bennett on The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern, which earned a Grammy for Best Traditional Pop Album.

“Bill Charlap approaches a song the way a lover approaches his beloved …,” writes a journalist for Time. “No matter how imaginative or surprising his take on a song is, he invariably zeroes in on its essence.”

Charlap has been the artistic director of New York City’s Jazz in July Festival for thirteen seasons. He’s also produced concerts for JVC Jazz Festival, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and the Hollywood Bowl. Charlap, who also performs in a duo setting with his wife, pianist and composer Renee Rosnes, is director of jazz studies at William Paterson University in Wayne, New Jersey.