Impressionists Improvised: an interview with composer and jazz pianist Chris Gall
Jazz. Tango. Film scores. Orchestral scores. Classical music. Chris Gall creates, composes, and performs across musical styles and genres. Furthermore, he does so with a deep understanding and respect of what makes each musical tradition magical.
Nowhere is this more evident than in his latest jazz piano solo album, Impressionists Improvised. Whether creating a Gershwin-esque take on a Satie Gnossienne or a daring syncopated rendition of Ravel’s bravura “Le tombeau de Couperin”, Gall honors the beauty of the original music while reimagining it through his own unique musical lens. His sensitive, sparkling playing offers a fresh perspective to fans of classical piano music who know the music of Satie, Debussy, and Ravel well, and it is a warm introduction to this timeless music for jazz lovers who may not know a few of these pieces. I’m honored to feature Chris Gall and Impressionists Improvised on No Dead Guys.
At what age did you begin playing the piano and what drew you to the instrument?
I started early, at about 5 or 6 years old. We had a piano and my mother played from time to time. At such a young age, it was like a little game for me, nothing serious, but somehow exciting.
When did you discover jazz and who or what introduced you to it?
I had only studied classical music until I was about 15. At school there was suddenly a small jazz combo, and from that moment on I wanted to play nothing but jazz!
From jazz to modern classical to tango to film and orchestral scores, your career as a pianist and a composer knows few boundaries. Why do you feel you’re drawn to create across all styles of music?
I am simply curious and have a great desire to try out different things. Apart from that, I believe that even if you decide on a direction, influences from outside the genre and experience are hugely important for further development!
One of the many things that interests me about your career is your longstanding collaboration with Quadro Nuevo, which includes the award-winning album Tango! How challenging was it to shift from a jazz and classical background to the unique time feel of tango music?
Tango is really quite different. In Argentine tango there is no fixed “time”, you constantly speed up and slow down... that's why there are usually no drums or percussion in this music. If, like me, you are used to always playing with a rhythm section, it's a big challenge!
I understand that in 2021, you made your debut as a soloist with the Salzburg Philharmonic playing a jazz interpretation of Beethoven’s 1st Piano Concerto. What can you tell me about how you interpreted Beethoven’s music through a jazz lens? Also, did you change just the piano part or did you reimagine the orchestral score as well?
When I received the request for this project, the prerequisite was that the orchestral part remained original. “You can do whatever you want, until the orchestra remains untouched”, they told me. That was definitely even more exciting, to create something new that fits the original text, is modern and yet harmonizes!
Congratulations on your latest piano solo release, Impressionists Improvised. Why did you feel Impressionistic music would work so well with jazz and how did you choose the pieces you included on this album?
I noticed this over the last 1-2 years when I started to improvise free interludes between pieces in concerts. I was subconsciously inspired by impressionistic timbres and realized how well that can work.
One of the many things I enjoy about Impressionists Improvised is how much respect you give the original material, and how seamlessly you blend it with your own notes. What can you tell me about the challenges inherent in altering well-loved classics such as “Clair de lune"?
I didn't have to change that much with “Clair de lune”. At the beginning I played almost the original voicings and only changed the rhythmic feel to a 4/4 jazz ballad. It's fascinating what a big change such small changes can bring about.
Tell me about your decision to create a stunning jazz rendition of the “Toccata” from Ravel’s Le tombeau de Couperin—a piece that intimidates even the best classical pianists. How challenging was it to improvise on Ravel at this breakneck speed?
The “Toccata” is indeed a real finger-breaker. I have only selected a few passages in which I improvise melodically. Most of the improvisation in this piece consists of varying the strong rhythmic accents of the toccata. Adding a few syncopations here makes it sound much more modern!
I enjoyed every track of this album, but in addition to the “Toccata,” I was particularly impressed with your effervescent jazz take on Debussy’s “Rêverie”. What inspired you to reimagine this dreamy material in such a syncopated way?
This piece was difficult for me for a long time. I really wanted to record it because I like the melody so much. I tried a lot and discarded many ideas. Until I found this ostinato in the left hand in 7/8 time. From then on, the arrangement almost went by itself.
Your rendition of Satie’s “Gymnopédie No. 1” was particularly elegant in how well you improvised within Satie’s musical language. How challenging was it to add your own notes without altering the simplicity of the original piece?
Satie always has something simple and unpretentious, introverted. I certainly didn't want to lose this sound character. Actually, I only changed the accompanying voice in the left hand in the Gymnopédie to even lighter voicings and an ostinato loop, which was inspired by a synth loop from Thom York's Band "The Smile". At first, I didn't even want to record this piece with the piano but with an analog synth, but on the last studio day, I actually decided to use the piano after all!
Tell me about another of my favorite tracks on this album—your Gershwin-esque take on Satie’s “Gnossienne No. 2.” What elements of this piece sparked you to reimagine it in this way?
I think Satie had a great influence on the composers of the Great American Songbook without realizing it. And so it was easy for me to move his piece a little closer to this era.
What current and future plans are you most excited about?
In June I will present my album at the Deutsches Theater in Munich. It's a huge hall and will be really exciting. I'm also currently playing with my trio PREPARED, which is very minimal music-heavy and includes a lot of prepared piano. That's something completely different for me and a lot of fun.
What advice can you offer young pianists and composers seeking to create music careers for themselves?
I think you can only take up this profession if there is virtually no alternative for you personally. You have to be convinced that you really don't want to do anything other than practice, play and compose. Then you have a chance to take the path and go through thick and thin.
Chris Gall is one of the most outstanding German pianists of his generation, and in recent years, he has consistently and originally expanded the boundaries of jazz. As a graduate in Jazz Piano from the renowned Berklee College of Music in Boston (1998), he first made a name for himself with his trio albums “Climbing Up” (2008) and “Hello Stranger” (2010) on the ACT label. Since then, Gall has thrilled audiences at major festivals, from Montreux to JazzBaltica.
In 2015, Chris Gall traveled to Buenos Aires with the multiple ECHO Award winners Quadro Nuevo and was awarded the Platinum Jazz Award by the German Phonographic Industry for their joint album “Tango!”. Since then, he has accompanied Quadro Nuevo on hundreds of live performances.
In 2018, he released his third trio album, “Cosmic Playground”, which was named one of the “10 of the hottest new jazz albums” by the American JAZZIZ Magazine. Gall has also composed and arranged for renowned orchestras, including the album “Volkslied reloaded” (Sony Classics), a collaboration between Quadro Nuevo and the Munich Radio Orchestra. Gall made his debut as a soloist in 2021 with his jazz interpretation of Beethoven’s 1st Piano Concerto with the Salzburg Philharmonic at the Grosses Festspielhaus in Salzburg. A full recording of this concert is available on YouTube.
After earning his Master’s degree in Film Composition at the Berklee College of Music in 2022, Gall debuted in October 2023 with the orchestral soundtrack for the film “Checker Tobi and the Journey to the Flying Rivers”. The film won the Bavarian Film Award in 2024 and was nominated for the German Film Award, becoming one of the most successful German family films of the year, with over 1 million viewers.
After concert tours and album recordings, including in Rio de Janeiro in 2023 for Quadro Nuevo’s album “Happy Deluxe” and in 2024 for a tour in China, Gall will release his debut album “Module” with his new chamber music acoustic trio “Prepared” on Compost Records, a world-renowned label for electronic music, in January 2025.