Listen To “The IT Department” From Rising Pianist Isaiah J. Thompson’s Debut Album

Jazz pianist, bandleader and composer Isaiah J. Thompson has dropped his new lead single “The IT Department” from his upcoming debut album.

Hailed as “a young musician and composer with a mature touch and rare combination of talent, creativity, humility and honesty” by NPR, pianist Isaiah J. Thompson is an emerging generational talent. This March 17th, his first live album—The Power of the Spirit—will be released digitally and as a CD on Jazz at Lincoln Center’s in-house record label, Blue Engine.

The lead single “The IT Department” is a play on his initials, but also a tribute to Isaiah’s father.

I don’t come from a particularly musical family, but they have always supported me. When someone would ask my parents if they had been involved in my musical education, my father would respond by saying, ‘music is his department’.

Isaiah J. Thompson

The mission of Jazz at Lincoln Center is to entertain, enrich, and expand a global community for jazz through performance, education, and advocacy. Captured in front of a rapturous audience at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Dizzy’s Club, The Power of the Spirit finds Thompson’s seasoned quartet delivering a locked-in performance of their repertoire. On full display are the pianist’s stunning dexterity and soulful original material; combining crisp technicality with a gospel-inflected sound, Thompson nods to forebears like Bobby Timmons, Phineas Newborn Jr., and Cedar Walton while blazing a trail of his own.

Thompson has played with legends including Wynton Marsalis, Christian McBride, Steve Turre, John Pizzarelli, and Buster Williams. He’s had his own NPR Tiny Desk concert, been a part of Jazz Night in America’s Youngblood series, and been a special guest on the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra’s Handful of Keys

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