Jeff Ballard
From Santa Cruz
Popularity
Jeff Ballard has one upcoming show in the Netherlands: on December 6, 2026 at BIMHUIS, Amsterdam.
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About
Jeff Ballard is one of those drummers who can hold down a Ray Charles big band and then turn around and bring a completely different kind of sensitivity to a Brad Mehldau trio set. The Santa Cruz native spent time on the road with Charles through the late 1980s before relocating to New York, where he built a reputation collaborating with Kurt Rosenwinkel, Mark Turner, Ben Monder, and Chick Corea, among others. That New York period also gave rise to Fly, the collective trio he co leads with Mark Turner and Larry Grenadier. Ballard joined the Brad Mehldau Trio in 2005 and has been a cornerstone of that group ever since. His debut as a leader came with Time's Tales in 2014, a record with Lionel Loueke and Miguel Zenón that won Best Debut Album in the NPR Music Jazz Critics Poll. His follow up, Fairgrounds from 2019, brought in Kevin Hays and Reid Anderson alongside guest spots from Mark Turner and Chris Cheek.
