The likeness is remarkable. Jaden Evans is the grandson of pianist Bill Evans, and what I noticed immediately in photos was the straight-line mouth, full eyebrows and piercing eyes of his grandfather. Jaden is 16 and a remarkable pianist. Courageous, determined and hard-working, he has just released Evans on Evans (Shamus), an album of nine songs composed by Bill. [Photo above of Jaden Evans]
His new album is superb. While Jaden's renditions smartly don't try to mimic Bill's playing, he still carries with him his grandfather's emotional lyricism. He also has Bill's romantic keyboard taste and his technique. On the new album, he's accompanied by Vicente Archer on bass and Marcus Gilmore on drums.
Bill Evans met Nenette Zazzara in 1973 while she was waiting tables at Howard Rumsey's Concerts by the Sea club in Redondo Beach, Ca. According to an interview with Nenette by Bruce Guthrie for All About Jazz in 2019, Evans fell in love with the sound of her voice and would leave amorous notes under her car's windshield wiper. They married later that year. [Photo above of Bill Evans]
In September 1975, Bill and Nenette had a son, Evan, who would turn 5 two days before Bill Evans's death on Sept. 15, 1980. Evan would, in turn, marry Michele Rene in May 1999. Their child, Jaden, is now just emerging after years of playing and absorbing the music of his grandfather. [Photo above of Bill and Nenette Evans]
Jaden was recently chosen as one of the "Amazon Artists to Watch in 2025" and is one of the 2025 winners of the YoungArts competition.
A few weeks ago, Jaden and I corresponded for an e-interview:
JazzWax: Who are you named for?
Jaden Evans: My mom, Michele, just liked the name Jaden and went with it. Today, I live with my mom and stepdad in North Carolina. Growing up, I lived with my mother in Calabasas, Ca., for a year after my parents divorced and then lived with my father, Evan, in Mexico and Honduras for a year. This annual switch continued for four years before I wound up remaining with my mom in California, and my dad lived nearby. When I was 14, my mom and I moved to North Carolina after she remarried.
JW: When did you start taking piano lessons?
JE: My mom was my first teacher when I was 6. She’s a classical pianist and composer, and she taught me the notes and basic music theory. At first, I struggled to become proficient and almost quit. She said I couldn't. Thinking about it now, I don't believe I would have quit because I was always drawn to playing piano somehow. Today, I appreciate my mom’s resilience.
JW: Was it the nuts and bolts of music that was frustrating?
JE: I think so. I was a normal, impatient kid who resisted studying theory, scales and anything that was hard and not much fun. I just wanted to play the classical pieces, even if I played them poorly. At 13, I was finally receptive to the importance of practicing. That year, my mother got me a teacher. She was aware that I needed better guidance. I think she also was tired of the struggle. Now there's no option to be anything but a musician. It chose me, like it chooses a lot of people.
JW: Who did you study with?
JE: I studied first with Michael Preddy in California when I was in 8th grade. That was on and off for about a year. My mom found him. Micheal urged me to buy a book of Bill Evans transcriptions—before he even knew he was my grandfather. For classical music, he picked a repertoire that was difficult for me. I didn't even think I could play those pieces, but he knew what to do to help me improve. I think continuing to work with Michael would have been beneficial, but my mom moved us to North Carolina.
JW: Did you listen to music growing up?
JE: Initially, I liked some classical composers such as Chopin, Beethoven and Mozart. But I couldn't really play their pieces well nor did I have the patience or ability to read a lot of them. I would just try my best and enjoy it. I also was moved to dance to the music on my mother’s iPod. Her playlist included songs by the Bee Gees, the Beatles, Michael Jackson and other disco, pop, R&B and funk artists. When I'd visit my dad in Mexico, I’d dance to the music emerging from a speaker outside a local pizza shop. People started giving me money. At home, I wasn't surrounded by jazz albums or parents who were professional musicians. The music I heard was probably equal to what the average kid heard then.
JW: When did you first hear your grandfather’s music?
JE: My mom never played Bill’s records for me at home. She wasn’t related to Bill. My dad was. In terms of playing Bill’s music on the piano, that began after I joined my middle school’s big band in 2022. This happened after online schooling at home, during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021. I was 13 by then and in the 8th grade when I returned to school. In the band, I was given a lead sheet to On Green Dolphin Street. To learn to play it, I went onto YouTube to find a version. The Miles Davis Sextet’s rendition in 1958 with Bill on piano was near the top. I thought the sextet’s track was the most beautiful music I’d heard up until then. Their playing reached a level of beauty that I found missing from classical music. At the time, I didn’t realize that jazz would be the form of music I’d feel most deeply.
JW: In North Carolina, who did you study with?
JE: After my mother and I moved, half-way through 9th grade, I joined a jazz piano discord server—an online way to meet others who share your interests. That’s where I found Charles Chen, who offered me free lessons at first and taught me mostly everything I know now. He also has become a mentor. One of the first things he taught me was a Barry Harris exercise that taught me the fundamentals of jazz harmony.
JW: How did you learn about Bill?
JE: My dad didn’t talk about him much and neither did mom. I basically had the same resources for researching and listening to Bill as everyone else—watching the Time Remembered documentary, reading Peter Pettinger's Bill Evans: How My Heart Sings and reading liner notes, blog posts and articles that you and others have written.
JW: And now?
JE: I'm starting to talk with people who knew him and played with him, people who now know I exist because of my new album, including bassist Chuck Israels and drummer Marty Morell.
JW: When you read about Bill’s addiction, what did you think?
JE: I find it really dark and sad, but I think I understand where he was coming from. The bullying he experienced with Miles Davis during those eight months in 1958 are hard to laugh off. I think it eventually was too much pain for him to handle, given his emotional makeup. His life story is so sad, but his depth and beauty are a byproduct of his struggles. I also think about my lineage and find his drug addiction a tragedy on a personal level.
JW: What motivated you to record an album of his works?
JE: I was contacted by TRO Essex, which owns Bill's music. I agreed to do it primarily to play in a studio with professional musicians to further my development. Being able to play music with them and bring my arrangements and work into a studio setting was quite daunting at first, but I knew the experience would help me in the long run.
JW: Did you have a personal, emotional reaction to the music you were playing?
JE: I did. Bill's music has helped me with life. It has relaxed me. As for memorabilia or unreleased recordings, I have nothing. It’s a real shame. I have seen Bill’s handwritten lead sheets and sheet music at my grandmother Nenette’s house, which provided me with a personal connection that transcended a recording or book. Seeing his handwriting on manuscript paper created an emotional connection.
JW: What I find most interesting about your album is that you didn’t make the mistake of trying to mimic Bill. Instead, you made these songs your own with Bill’s feel. Was that your intent?
JE: Well, I just loved Bill’s sound and touch, and a lot of it is just in my ears. I was being myself but combining all my influences, including Bill, Sonny Clark and Clifford Brown. These are artists whose improvised solos became part of my music education with Charles Chen. But most of all, I was influenced by Bill. I thought sounding a little like him—his spirit and swing—wouldn’t be such a bad thing. But I didn’t let it dominate my own expression.
JW: Do you feel you’re treated differently once people learn who you are?
JE: I think people treat me pretty much the same because to me it’s the music that counts at the end of the day. For example, Marcus Gilmore, Roy Haynes's grandson, is such a good musician in his own right that his connection to Roy doesn’t make you feel one way or the other. His music does. With that said, people who know my connection to Bill bothers me a little only because I’m not as good a musician or pianist as I’d like to be yet. When people who have a high regard for Bill look at me or listen to me play, I sometimes feel less confident and just ordinary.
JW: Was it hard to learn to play these songs with authority?
JE: It was tough at first but the beauty of the tunes drew me in. I made sure to listen repeatedly to the music, which I’ve always loved. I played them for a month or two before the recording session, and I was nervous and insecure about how I sounded. Fortunately, I was encouraged by several mentors and musicians, which helped. Bill is an inspiration as well.
JW: What would you say is one thing most people don’t realize about Bill?
JE: Unfortunately, I can’t say that I know more than anybody else who really loves his music. Bill died when my father, Evan, was only 5, so most things we learn come second hand. I’m not quite sure what Bill might think about my album. I think he’d like it and want to give me pointers. I'm certain he’d be happy that someone in his family shares his passion for jazz. I do wish he were still around to teach me some things.
JW: Like what?
JE: I’d ask him about his harmonic approach, block chords, his touch, how did he learn to solo, did he transcribe and, if so, what specifically. I’d also want to know how he met Sonny Clark and why Sonny touched Bill so deeply and what his Miles experience was like. Stuff like that. For now, his music is an adventure and brings me closer to him.
JazzWax tracks: You'll find Jaden Evans's Evans on Evans here and here, and on major streaming platforms.
JazzWax clips: Here's Very Early...
Very Early
Here's Peri's Scope...
Peri's Scope
