Keith Jarrett Classical Music Discography

1973; short pieces for solo piano, strings, and various chamber ensembles, including a string quartet, a brass quintet, and a piece for cellos and trombones. This collection demonstrates a young composer's affinity for a variety of classical styles, with varying degrees of success.

1974

1975; Luminessence (1974) and Arbour Zena (1975) both combine composed pieces for strings with improvising jazz musicians, including Jan Garbarek and Charlie Haden. The strings here have a moody, contemplative feel that is characteristic of the "ECM sound" of the 1970s, and is also particularly well-suited to Garbarek's keening saxophone improvisations. From an academic standpoint, these compositions are dismissed by many classical music aficionados as lightweight, but Jarrett appeared to be working more towards a synthesis between composed and improvised music at this time, rather than the production of formal classical works. From this point on, however, his classical work would adhere to more conventional disciplines.

1977; a composed solo piano piece somewhat reminiscent of Jarrett's own solo piano recordings

1980; a piece for orchestra, percussion, and piano that Jarrett performed and recorded with the Syracuse Symphony under Christopher Keene. This piece is the largest and longest of Jarrett's efforts as a classical composer.

1980

1984; performer, ECM New Series: Arvo Pärt, Fratres on Tabula Rasa with Gidon Kremer

1987; performer, ECM New Series: Johann Sebastian Bach, Das wohltemperierte Klavier, Book 1

1988; New World Records released the CD Lou Harrison Piano Concerto & Suite for Violin, Piano and small orchestra, featuring Jarrett on piano with Naoto Otomo conducting the piano concerto with the New Japan Philharmonic. Robert Hughes conducted the Suite for Violin, Piano and Small Orchestra.

1989; performer, ECM New Series: Johann Sebastian Bach, Goldberg Variations

1990; performer, ECM New Series: Johann Sebastian Bach, Das wohltemperierte Klavier, Book 2

1990; performer, ECM New Series: Georg Friedrich Händel, Six Sonatas for Recorder and Harpsichord with Michala Petri

1991; performer, ECM New Series: Dmitri Shostakovich, 24 Preludes and Fugues

1991; performer, ECM New Series: Johann Sebastian Bach, 3 Sonaten für Viola da Gamba und Cembalo

1991; performer, ECM New Series: Johann Sebastian Bach, The French Suites

1992; Jarrett's performance of Peggy Granville-Hicks Etruscan Concerto with Dennis Russell Davies conducting The Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra. This was released on Music Masters Classics with pieces by Lou Harrison and Terry Riley.

1993; the last recording of classical compositions to appear under Jarrett's name. The album contains three pieces written for a soloist with orchestra, and one for violin and piano. The pieces date from 1984 and 1990.

1994; performer, ECM New Series: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Piano Concertos, Masonic Funeral Music and Symphony in G Minor

1995; the record label Music Masters Jazz released a CD on which one track featured Jarrett performing the exquisite solo piano part in Lousadzak, a 17-minute piano concerto by American composer Alan Hovhaness. The conductor was Dennis Russell Davies.

1995; performer, ECM New Series: Georg Friedrich Händel, Suites for Keyboard

1996; performer, ECM New Series: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Piano Concertos and Adagio and Fugue