Photo by Jean-Marc Lubrano

And this week, it hurts a lot. One of my very favorite jazz ensembles, the Lynne Arriale Trio, will be on stage (January 26-29) in the unassuming upstairs club at 59 W. Grand Av, just north of the Loop. Not only does this trio produce some of the most elegantly accessible yet sophisticated music of any jazz trio working today, you will never hear—or feel—the same music twice. You might hear the same melody, even more or less the same arrangement if you attend consecutive nights. But you will always hear a new nuance or change of tempo; you will always feel something new. Once you feel Arriale's piano tugging at your soul, you will have to return for more; she is addictive.

With 10 stellar recordings and a strong following in Europe, Lynne Arriale is arguably the poet laureate pianist of her generation. Her recent club and festival performances and most recent release (Come Together, Motema, 2004) significantly testify to her evolution as a composer of hauntingly lyrical melodies and a "decomposer" of familiar standards and traditional tunes. And together with long-time partner Steve Davis on drums and new bassist Thompson Knewland, the Lynne Arriale Trio presents a master class in musical collaboration.

The Trio's 2003 performance at the Dakota in Minneapolis was highlighted by two renditions of "The Nearness of You," a popular standard that in less artful hands could easily be mundane or cloying. A standout track on her 2001 TCB release, Inspiration, her performance on the first night was indeed inspired, more slowly paced than on the recording and truly "singing" without need for vocalization. Yet the same tune on the second night went even further, stretching every note as if it was the last on Earth. Part of me never wants to hear that tune again so that I forever hold onto that last note. But no less remarkable and inspiring was her two-night stand (again at the Dakota) last spring, reflecting a growing emphasis on Arriale's compositions.

Adopted as an infant, Lynne Arriale grew up in Milwaukee. She discovered the keyboard at age 3 when given a plastic toy piano, and "never stopped." Earning a masters' degree in classical music from the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music, she was well into her 20s before turning to jazz. Later she learned that her biological mother was a jazz vocalist—and perhaps there is something to heredity here as Arriale is as songful a pianist as one could imagine.

Photo by Howard A. Gitelson
The Lynne Arriale Trio is the artist's singular emphasis. Only a handful of pianists have exploited this format as successfully and fewer with comparable longevity (think of Oscar Peterson, Keith Jarrett, and, more similarly, Bill Evans). One ingredient to her success has been Arriale's focus on the melody regardless of where spontaneous improvisation takes her; in fact she titled a mid-90s release on TCB as simply Melody. "I want the music in a vocal range....and the most important thing is to have a melody that stands alone without harmony attached... improvisations should be extensions of the melody." Listening to Arriale's compositions, you can almost hear vocal accompaniment, and in fact she reports that she does sing as she composes. "Teachers used to tell me: 'You have to sing this line.'...It took me years to teach my fingers how to sing."

Yet don't confuse Arriale's emphasis on melodic line with conservatism—she can deconstruct time and rhythm as creatively as any modern improviser, be it transforming Bernstein's "America" into calypso or Monk's "Bemsha Swing" into abstract funk. I made the mistake once of asking her if she would be playing her "own" compositions in an upcoming set. Kindly, she noted that "I like to think that anything I play is ‘my' composition, meaning that whatever I play, I turn it into my own." And indeed, she does.

In comparison to some of her contemporaries, Arriale's style is pared down to the essentials. "The idea is that each note should hold its own weight and not to waste any notes..." This economy of line may make her music more accessible and more immediate, yet the music emanates a complexity created not by multiple layers of notes, but by multiple layers of emotion.

Watching this trio is like watching a modern ballet, their interplay like fine choreography yet ever spontaneous. Their teamwork requires no verbal or visual cues—they are simply in sync. An evening—or preferably, several evenings—with the Lynne Arriale Trio will massage but never lull you into complacency, for despite the exquisite lines of melody, there's always a potential firestorm roiling underneath. Ready or not, when Lynne Arriale takes Monk beyond Monk, when her original compositions leave you breathless, and when "The Nearness of You" is so near it is you, this trio will jump up and grab your heart and soul. And you'll just have to do it again.

Is there any way I can get to Chicago this weekend? Beam me up, Scotty!

The Lynne Arriale Trio appears at the Jazz Showcase in downtown Chicago, 59 W. Grand Av, January 26-29, two shows each night plus Sunday matinee. Information at www.jazzshowcase.com. Additional information about Lynne Arriale is available at www.lynnearriale.com