Gehenot’s first appearances were at jam sessions at the mythical JP’s club as part of the Metropolitan Quartet. His skill was already more than assured with a surprisingly anchored feeling. He was already a pianist that – through reinvented standards and his own well-balanced compositions – had the precocious art of making things gel.
This recordings reveals a world that is more romantic than punchy, more impressionistic than turbulent. “Nuit d’hiver” and “Green Valley” inevitably remind one of Brad Mehldau or Jef Neve, but also pianists of the ECM school. His lyricism is deliberately airy without ever becoming vapid, providing a pleasant contrast to the snappier compositions.

Since the trio’s birth, Sam Gertsmans has been providing the rhythmic solidity and harmonic transparence of the Gehenot groove. The surprise is the newcomer, Teun Verbruggen, a long-time sparring partner of Jef Neve. A highly inventive drummer, he brings a new dimension to the trio in terms of sound colours and timbre. He also brings majesty and stature to the combo’s polyrhythms.

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