Rob Clearfield

Pianist and guitarist Rob Clearfield makes atmospheric music that touches upon jazz, classical, post-rock, and avant-garde improvisation; a cross-pollinated blend influenced by artists like Marilyn Crispell and Kurt Rosenwinkel, Johannes Brahms, and progressive bands like Radiohead and Kneebody. A regular presence on the Chicago jazz and creative-music scene since the 2000s, he has issued his own albums, like 2009's A Thousand Words and 2016's Islands. A native of the Chicago suburb of Oak Park, Clearfield grew up in a musical family with a mother who worked as a church music director and music teacher. He started on piano at a young age and by his teens was playing gigs. After high school, he honed his skills as Chicago's Roosevelt University where he studied under Jim Trompeter. He has played with a bevy of noted Chicago player including Matt Ulery, Fareed Haque, Marquis Hill, and Greg Ward, as well as on projects with the forward-thinking rock outfit District 97. As a leader, he made his debut in 2009 with the introspective A Thousand Words, followed a year later by Beauty That We Live In with his wife vocalist Bethany Hamilton Clearfield. In 2013, he issued the ambitious quintet date The Long and Short of It. Islands arrived in 2016 and featured contributions by bassist Curt Bley and drummer Quin Kirchner. In 2019, Clearfield and his wife relocated to Paris, France. That same year, he paired with Brooklyn saxophonist Caroline Davis for the album Anthems.
© Matt Collar /TiVo