Rachel Z

Rachel Z. in Munich (2002)

Rachel Z (actually Rachel Carmel Nicolazzo , also Rachel Z. Hakim ; born December 28, 1962 in Manhattan , New York City ) is an American jazz pianist .

Live and act

Rachel Z., daughter of an opera singer and an artist, grew up with Italian opera music . She received singing lessons at the age of two and began piano lessons at the age of seven. From the age of fourteen she occasionally played jazz, where she was impressed by the music of Miles Davis . In 1979 Rachel Z completed a summer course at Berklee College of Music with Joanne Brackeen and Richie Beirach , after which she studied at the New England Conservatory from 1980 to 1985 . During her studies she often performed with Bob Moses , Miroslav Vitouš and George Garzone and then led her own groups in Boston until 1987.

In 1988 she moved back to New York, where she played for Al Di Meola , before becoming a member of Steps Ahead in 1988 , where she adopted her stage name and initially stayed until 1996. She also worked with musicians such as Larry Coryell , Angela Bofill and Mike Mainieri . In 1995, she played a key role on the album High Life by Wayne Shorter with that with a Grammy Award. In 1999 she took part in a fusion jazz project by Stanley Clarke and Lenny White . In 2010 she founded the formation The Trio of OZ with her husband Omar Hakim , with whom an album was created; 2013-14 Rachel Z was a member of the Omar Hakim Experience . She also played synthesizers for Wayne Escofferey (, Live at Firehouse 12 , 2014). She also toured with Terri Lyne Carrington ( Love and Soul , Concord , 2015). Also in 2015 she performed with Neal Schon in Canada. Rachel Z leads her own jazz trio and the rock band Peacebox . Between 2002 and 2004 she took part in Peter Gabriel's Growing Up Tours .

Discographic notes

• Yin Yang Steps Ahead, 1990
• Trust the Universe , 1993
• Highlife , 1995
• Room of One's Own , 1996
• Love Is the Power , 1998
• Vertu (with Stanley Clarke and Lenny White ) (Sony Music, 1999)
• On the Milkyway Express , 2000
• On The Milkyway Express: A Tribute to Wayne Shorter (Tone Center, 2000)
• Moon at the Window with Patricia Des Lauriers and Bobbie Rae , 2002
• First Time Ever I Saw Your Face , 2003
• Everlasting with Tony Levin and Bobbie Rae , 2004
• Growing Up Live DVD (Realworld) Peter Gabriel 2004
• Grace , 2005
• More Growing Up Live Peter Gabriel 2006
• Mortal ( ArtistShare ) 2006
• Dept of Good and Evil (Savoy Jazz / WEA) 2007
• I Will Possess Your Heart (M&I Stereo Japan) 2009

Lexigraphic entries

• Richard Cook: Richard Cook's Jazz Encyclopedia. Penguin, London 2007, ISBN 978-0-141-02646-6 .
• Martin Kunzler : Jazz Lexicon. Volume 2: M – Z (= rororo-Sachbuch. Vol. 16513). 2nd Edition. Rowohlt, Reinbek bei Hamburg 2004, ISBN 3-499-16513-9 .

Web links

• Homepage of Rachel Z (English)