PRJC Jazz Talk: Barrelhouse & Boogie Woogie Piano with Tom Roberts (April 27, 2026)

Описание: A guided listening adventure from rare original 78s featuring Barrelhouse & Boogie Woogie piano. It's like a concert in your own home.

Barrelhouse piano is a high-energy, blues-based style that originated in the early 20th-century, characterized by a driving left-hand rhythm, syncopated melodies, and a raw, dance-focused sound often played in "juke joints". It bridged ragtime and boogie-woogie, featuring techniques like chromatic bass rolls and call-and-response, heavily influencing early jazz. BoogieWoogie is an early form of jazz with wild, improvised piano, and an accented two-beat rhythm.

Join Tom Roberts and The Hot Club of Pittsburgh for a guided listening adventure of these musical styles. You'll hear early recordings directly from rare original 78s, including recently acquired mint condition Paramount records, with narrative by Tom about the performers and the music. Live-streamed over Zoom, it will be like Tom is in your own home giving a private show, but you won’t need to check your jewelry or feed him!

You’ll hear Will Ezell, Charlie Spand, Blind Leroy Garnett, Cripple Clarence Lofton, Cow Cow Davenport, Little Brother Montgomery and many more rarities in this listening oriented zoom presentation!

The Hot Club of Pittsburgh was formed during the pandemic at the insistence of record producer, radio personality, and curator of Jazz at Lincoln Center: Phil Schaap who inspired me to create a listening option to counteract the abysmal local radio scene.

Tom Roberts is acknowledged as one of the premiere exponents of early jazz piano and has performed across the globe including performances at The International Stride Summit in Zurich Switzerland and multiple appearances at the prestigious “Jazz in July” at Manhattan’s 92nd St Y with Dick Hyman.