DavidHazeltine

Even in the crowded, competitive New York scene, it is obvious to me that the hip-without-fanfare Hazeltine is a standout"
- Ira Gitler

David Hazeltine is for sure the brightest star on the jazz piano horizon.
His style has a deep-seated commitment to jazz history while communicating a wealth of 'today' ideas."
- Cedar Walton

There is a lot to like in Mr. Hazeltine's playing...he likes the middle ground, he has worked on varying the intensity of his swing, and there is nothing obviously erratic about his improvising. The mainstream and its concerns with balance and poise are all-important to him. But those concerns are what makes his improvising worth listening to; he has absorbed the mainstream's concern with narrative, with the intellectual, clear telling of a tale."
- New York Times

Hazeltine has built an inner rhythm which Ira Gitler calls "interior time" - he always swings at whatever tempo, a quality which all the best jazzers, regardless of instrument or era have possessed. Very, very impressive stuff." (Classic Trio Vol. II)
- Pat Hawes, The Jazz Journal

A player and writer with great respect for the melody, Hazeltine can be surprisingly inventive with the harmonic and rhythmic possibilities in a tune. Unobtrusive yet frequently exciting, Hazeltine always sounds as if he is digging what he's playing, and his approach makes well-known tunes sound fresh...."
- Aaron Steinberg, Jazz Times

Proving that you can never have too much of a good thing, this second Sharp Nine session for Messieurs Hazeltine, Washington, and Hayes presents another hour's worth of some of the best piano jazz to be heard."
- Chris Hovan, All About Jazz

First and foremost, Hazeltine is an excellent jazz pianist. ...his improvisations abound with well-developed ideas."
- David Orthmann, All About Jazz

As a composer, Hazeltine invents melodically interesting, modern tunes, often tucked with moments of harmonic surprise and twists of tempo, and constructed on looser-feeling themes that allow everyone to stretch out a little more. The Classic Trio is a supremely listenable session, warm and comfortable as your favorite pair of slippers.
- Nancy Ann Lee