Event Info

Pianist Gerald Clayton and his trio comes to Princeton in a performance featuring Jazz at Princeton University students.

About the Artist:

Four-time GRAMMY nominated pianist/composer Gerald Clayton formally began his musical journey at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, where he received the 2002 Presidential Scholar of the Arts Award. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Piano Performance at USC’s Thornton School of Music under the instruction of piano icon Billy Childs, after a year of intensive study with NEA Jazz Master Kenny Barron at The Manhattan School of Music. Clayton won second place in the 2006 Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Piano Competition. He has performed and recorded with such artists as Diana Krall, Roy Hargrove, Dianne Reeves, Ambrose Akinmusire, Dayna Stephens, Kendrick Scott, Terri Lyne Carrington, Avishai Cohen, and the Clayton Brothers Quintet. Since 2013, Clayton has toured and recorded with saxophone legend Charles Lloyd. 2016 marks his second year as Musical Director of the Monterey Jazz Festival On Tour, a project that has featured his trio along with Ravi Coltrane, Nicholas Payton, Terence Blanchard and Raul Midón. Clayton’s discography as a leader includes his debut recording, Two Shade (ArtistShare), nominated for a 2010 GRAMMY Award. Clayton also received nominations in 2011, 2012, and 2013. His latest recording is the acclaimed 2016 Combinations. The son of beloved bass player and composer John Clayton, Gerald enjoyed a familial apprenticeship from an early age. He honors the legacy of his father and all his musical ancestors through a commitment to artistic exploration, innovation, and reinvention.