Believing in the shapeshifting, boundless possibilities of jazz, Vijay Iyer – born October 26, 1971, in Albany, New York - is a highly acclaimed pianist who melds bebop grooves with Eastern folk melodies. He has also explored electronic sounds, prog rock ideas, and African rhythms. Born to Indian immigrants on October 26, 1971,in Albany, New York, he began playing classical violin at just three-years-old. When his sister started taking piano lessons a few years later, Vijay Iyer began playing along with her, learning the instrument by ear. The pop genius of Michael Jackson and Prince and 1980s hip-hop heroes Run-DMC and Public Enemy were the soundtrack to his youth. However, after joining a high school jazz ensemble he discovered Herbie Hancock, Wynton Marsalis ,and Thelonious Monk. He was on his way to an academic career after studying physics and mathematics at Yale University when he moved to California to attend Berkeley. In the mid-1990s, Vijay Iyer began playing in groups with saxophonist Steve Coleman and trombonist George E. Lewis. His work with Rudresh Mahanthappa on albums Panoptic Modes (2000) and Blood Sutra (2003) built on John Coltrane's globe-trotting improvisations. Vijay Iyer cared little for genre snobbery and musical boundaries as he teamed up with hip-hop producer Mike Ladd, composed for orchestras and string quartets, and played keyboards with Greg Tate's sprawling fusion outfit Burnt Sugar. He crossed over to a wider audience in 2009 when his album Historicity featured an eclectic range of covers including a Leonard Bernstein show tune, an electro-rap banger by M.I.A. and a soul-pop Stevie Wonder classic. His lonesome piano album Solo (2010), elegant, rumbling R&B record Accelerando (2011), and electro-jazz experiment Mutations (2013) were also well-received by critics. In 2013, he was awarded the prestigious MacArthur Fellows Grant of $625,000. Vijay Iyer has also worked on film scores, became a Professor of Arts at the Harvard University Department of Music, and was named Downbeat Magazine Artist of the Year three times, before releasing Far from Over with his sextet in 2017. The following year, he issued The Transitory Poems, a collaboration with pianist Craig Taborn. In April 2021, he released Uneasy, a trio album featuring Linda May Han Oh on double bass and Tyshawn Sorey on drums. In 2023, he issued the album Love in Exile, which featured Pakistani singers Arooj Aftab and Shahzad Ismaily. In 2024, Vijay Iyer released the album Compassion, which found him collaborating once again with Linda May Han Oh and Tyshawn Sorey.
