Ethan Iverson

A gifted pianist whose style touches upon sophisticated post-bop, classical, and indie rock, Ethan Iverson distinguished himself first as a solo artist and then as a co-founding member of the trio <a href="spotify:artist:5qOfTfMzTj2dvvpWKzIFk6">the Bad Plus</a>. Emerging in the early '90s, Iverson released a handful of solo albums, including 1993's School Work, before joining <a href="spotify:artist:5qOfTfMzTj2dvvpWKzIFk6">the Bad Plus</a> with bassist <a href="spotify:artist:5Bj6U1x2ex6wcZccSxdzBB">Reid Anderson</a> and drummer <a href="spotify:artist:5JwtU1Ej21E3BxSkYg5r0i">Dave King</a>. Together they issued a steady stream of lauded albums like 2003's These Are the Vistas and 2008's For All I Care, applying their jazz chops to adventurous originals alongside songs by <a href="spotify:artist:6olE6TJLqED3rqDCT0FyPh">Nirvana</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:16eRpMNXSQ15wuJoeqguaB">the Flaming Lips</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:2Hkut4rAAyrQxRdof7FVJq">Rush</a>, and others. In 2015, they earned a Grammy nomination for The Bad Plus Joshua Redman, their live collaboration with the acclaimed saxophonist. Iverson, who left <a href="spotify:artist:5qOfTfMzTj2dvvpWKzIFk6">the Bad Plus</a> in 2017, has maintained a fertile solo career, publishing a well-known music blog and releasing albums like 2016's trio date The Purity of Turf and 2021's large-ensemble recording Bud Powell in the 21st Century. He made his <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Blue+Note%22">Blue Note</a> debut with 2022's Every Note Is True, followed by 2023's Technically Acceptable. Iverson is also a regular member of drummer <a href="spotify:artist:5DFipPOMNcZT3XMGx59s5I">Billy Hart</a>'s quartet, having appeared on all of the group's albums, including 2025's Just.

Born in Menomonie, Wisconsin, in 1973, Iverson became interested in music at a young age and attended the Stanford Jazz Workshop before relocating to New York in the early '90s. During this period, he studied privately with <a href="spotify:artist:7w7DFqQNjVMW5NRvjM8JPx">Fred Hersch</a> and Sophia Rosoff. He made his recorded debut in 1993 at age 20 with School Work, playing alongside tenor saxophone giant <a href="spotify:artist:3GHsUE2VmzMaweAB3RjX4m">Dewey Redman</a>, bassist Johannes Weidenmuller, and drummer Falk Willis. In 1998, Iverson's trio released Construction Zone (Originals) and Deconstruction Zone (Standards) in tandem. A 1999 follow-up, The Minor Passions, featured the famous drummer <a href="spotify:artist:5DFipPOMNcZT3XMGx59s5I">Billy Hart</a>. The concert album Live at Smalls, with saxophonist <a href="spotify:artist:1ZSjkZgcJbKs97Porpnhry">Bill McHenry</a> and bassist <a href="spotify:artist:5Bj6U1x2ex6wcZccSxdzBB">Anderson</a>, arrived in 2000.

In 2001, Iverson issued The Bad Plus, the debut eponymous album featuring his trio with longtime friends, bassist <a href="spotify:artist:5Bj6U1x2ex6wcZccSxdzBB">Reid Anderson</a> and drummer <a href="spotify:artist:5JwtU1Ej21E3BxSkYg5r0i">Dave King</a>. The pianist had initially met Minnesota natives <a href="spotify:artist:5Bj6U1x2ex6wcZccSxdzBB">Anderson</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:5JwtU1Ej21E3BxSkYg5r0i">King</a> in the late '80s and the trio performed on and off for over a decade. However, they didn't officially solidify as a trio until 2000. Together, they each brought a separate array of influences to the band, culminating in <a href="spotify:artist:5qOfTfMzTj2dvvpWKzIFk6">the Bad Plus</a>' iconoclastic approach to jazz. Over the next 15 years, the trio would tour and record, issuing a handful of critically acclaimed albums like 2003's These Are the Vistas, 2004's Give, and 2008's For All I Care, which found them rethinking the jazz standards paradigm by covering contemporary popular songs by artists like <a href="spotify:artist:6olE6TJLqED3rqDCT0FyPh">Nirvana</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0k17h0D3J5VfsdmQ1iZtE9">Pink Floyd</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5M52tdBnJaKSvOpJGz8mfZ">Black Sabbath</a>, and others alongside lesser-known jazz compositions and classical pieces. There were also similarly inventive albums of original compositions like 2005's Suspicious Activity? and 2010's Never Stop.

Away from <a href="spotify:artist:5qOfTfMzTj2dvvpWKzIFk6">the Bad Plus</a>, Iverson continued to stay active, working on projects with saxophonist <a href="spotify:artist:0UNmTLmOIClt5YDeEkZuk1">Chris Cheek</a>, guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:253GMpCNwx1TJtASNAeDoP">Kurt Rosenwinkel</a>, singer/pianist <a href="spotify:artist:3XxxEq6BREC57nCWXbQZ7o">Jamie Cullum</a>, and more. In 2006, he joined drummer Billy Hart's quartet with saxophonist <a href="spotify:artist:36kfddkWcVc6XrzNN9BsTP">Mark Turner</a> and bassist <a href="spotify:artist:649VhpjHo5aMtz2RlIlUSR">Ben Street</a>, debuting on Quartet. He was also with the group for 2012's All Our Reasons on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22ECM%22">ECM</a>. A year later, he issued the <a href="spotify:artist:6VoQTYD2vUVvm1H031lp3e">Lennie Tristano</a>-inspired Costumes Are Mandatory with veteran saxophonist <a href="spotify:artist:4YNvbaOaqp5pzC5US5t48k">Lee Konitz</a>, bassist <a href="spotify:artist:4HGsz6HI7mw7t14Fb2irLV">Larry Grenadier</a>, and drummer <a href="spotify:artist:0bUTRhTTU18M19hpsAPSrE">Jorge Rossy</a>. Also in 2013, he paired with drummer <a href="spotify:artist:53yX28INJxLAZYpUbANw3K">Albert "Tootie" Heath</a> and bassist <a href="spotify:artist:649VhpjHo5aMtz2RlIlUSR">Ben Street</a> for Tootie's Tempo. The following year, he was back with <a href="spotify:artist:5DFipPOMNcZT3XMGx59s5I">Hart</a>'s quartet for One Is the Other.

In 2012, <a href="spotify:artist:5qOfTfMzTj2dvvpWKzIFk6">the Bad Plus</a> joined saxophonist <a href="spotify:artist:3uaHfXYx9Fh4HjqMbrWn5S">Joshua Redman</a> for a week-long stint of recorded shows at New York's Blue Note jazz club. The resulting album, 2015's The Bad Plus Joshua Redman, earned a Grammy nomination for Best Improvised Jazz Solo for <a href="spotify:artist:3uaHfXYx9Fh4HjqMbrWn5S">Redman</a>'s performance on "Friend or Foe." Iverson then released the 2016 trio session The Purity of Turf with veteran bassist <a href="spotify:artist:4wnzivx3OQ3vjrySAdTdJP">Ron Carter</a> and drummer <a href="spotify:artist:5fhkjcgOAjl6gQGsQOcP46">Nasheet Waits</a>. At the end of 2017, Iverson left <a href="spotify:artist:5qOfTfMzTj2dvvpWKzIFk6">the Bad Plus</a>, with all three members essentially citing creative differences as the reason behind the change; following his departure, he was replaced by pianist <a href="spotify:artist:1E4jlqY2HEXKLT0YkNy3HL">Orrin Evans</a>.

Iverson then paired with saxophonist <a href="spotify:artist:36kfddkWcVc6XrzNN9BsTP">Mark Turner</a> for the duo <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22ECM%22">ECM</a> record Temporary Kings. A live album recorded with trumpeter <a href="spotify:artist:3YO63Be7QxrxqBQtgKc4Oc">Tom Harrell</a>, Common Practice, arrived in 2019. Teaming up with the Umbria Jazz Orchestra, the pianist took on the music of the legendary <a href="spotify:artist:570vCzcespB48HIQyTbDO6">Bud Powell</a> on 2021's Bud Powell in the 21st Century.

In February 2022, Iverson made his <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Blue+Note%22">Blue Note</a> debut with Every Note Is True, a nuanced trio date featuring esteemed veterans <a href="spotify:artist:4HGsz6HI7mw7t14Fb2irLV">Larry Grenadier</a> on bass and <a href="spotify:artist:7rDjbKTLlpNYJRWMm7QVxU">Jack DeJohnette</a> on drums. A second <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Blue+Note%22">Blue Note</a> album, Technically Acceptable, arrived in 2024 and found the pianist leading two distinct trio formations: one with <a href="spotify:artist:6txzCcsy6ZKKKQLHmE3Y9L">Thomas Morgan</a> and Kush Abadey, and one with Simón Willson and <a href="spotify:artist:5I14OjsLXyrSzkQfUyCCup">Vinnie Sperrazza</a>. In 2025, Iverson again joined <a href="spotify:artist:5DFipPOMNcZT3XMGx59s5I">Billy Hart</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:36kfddkWcVc6XrzNN9BsTP">Mark Turner</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:649VhpjHo5aMtz2RlIlUSR">Ben Street</a> for their fourth <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22ECM%22">ECM</a> album, Just. ~ Matt Collar, Rovi