Laura Caviani is a nut for the music of Thelonious Monk, which hardly sets her apart from countless other Monk devotees.  What does set her apart is that Laura is a pianist with the skill and imagination required to keep the Monk flame burning hot.  Laura’s tribute to her musical hero is always a highly anticipated event.  Born October 10, 1917, Monk’s singular style was not immediately accepted – one of those geniuses with his own sound that took the rest of the world a while to catch up to.  The rest of the world did, of course, and his brilliant compositions (“’Round Midnight”, “Well, You Needn’t”, “Rhythm-A-Ning”, et al) and angular, irresistible style made him one of the most revered names in jazz.  Monk passed away in 1982, but his music lives on through recordings and interpreters like Laura Caviani.  This Twin Cities-based pianist, who has toured and recorded with national stars like Karrin Allyson, enjoyed several weeks on the JazzWeek radio charts with her latest outstanding CD, Going There. Laura will be joined by Gordy Johnson on bass and Dave Schmalenberger on drum.

Check out this video of Laura Caviani performing Monk's "Epistrophy": www.youtube.com/watch?v=N38zZjg51cI