Marc Copland's "String Theory" : Creating a Transformative Musical Experience

 

Marc Copland- String Theory-InnerVoice Jazz

In traditional physics, particles such as protons, neutrons, electrons, bosons, and photons are considered the basic building blocks of matter and energy. They are often modeled theoretically as point-like entities. In string theory, however, particles are understood less as points than as strands of energy. Each strand vibrates at a distinct frequency, and those differences in vibration determine how a particle is perceived or experienced by an observer.

On Marc Copland’s latest album, String Theory, the accomplished pianist explores the idea that, under the right conditions, a pianist and a violinist can vibrate in sympathy, sparking inspiration and producing a transformative musical experience. Copland and the superb violinist Mark Feldman are supported by two different rhythm sections. Together on this album they reach a level of creativity  that lends credibility to the artist’s own concept of string theory.

I have followed much of Marc Copland’s work over the last two and a half decades. I have always been intrigued by how he originally played saxophone, came to find that instrument too limiting for his expanding harmonic imagination, and in 1973 chose to focus on piano. He  spent nearly a decade in relative obscurity, refining his piano technique in the Washington, D.C., and Baltimore areas before returning to New York City in the early 1980s. His debut album as a pianist, My Foolish Heart from 1988, included his longtime collaborator, guitarist John Abercrombie, bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Jeff Hirshfield. The prolific Copland has released over forty albums as a leader and another forty plus albums as a sideman.  During that time Copland has had the envious and deserved chance to collaborate and perform with the crème de la crème of the genre, too many to enumerate.

Marc Copland (photo credit unknown)

Copland and Feldman have both been bandmates of the late guitarist John Abercrombie, but they had never played together until they performed as a duo at a memorial concert for the guitarist in Manhattan. The experience originally unnerved Copland. The pianist was unsure that these two string-based instruments could find common ground. The experience was transformative. It became a noteworthy performance at the memorial, and Copland realized that another collaboration with the violinist could have additional musical possibilities that he wanted to explore.

Fast forward and Copland and Feldman are back together on String Theory, released by Inner Voice Jazz on June 19, 2026. The album offers eight songs, three offerings recorded with bassist Drew Gress and drummer Anthony Pinciotti. The remaining five tracks were recorded with two accomplished Europeans, bassist Felix Henkelhausen and the drummer Jonas Burgwinkel. The music was recorded in two sessions back in 2022 and 2023 and predates Pinciotti’s untimely passing in 2024, so the album is warmly dedicated to the NY drummer’s memory.

Copland is a very sensitive and harmonically expansive pianist. He is one of the premier pianists of his generation. It sometimes surprises me that given the quality of his body of work, the noteworthy collaborations that he has maintained, and the  esteemed place he is held by his peers, his excellence seems less widely appreciated by the general public than he deserves. 

On String Theory, Copland has found a fellow exploratory traveler of merit in Mark Feldman. The music features the traditional folk song “Greensleeves” which is beautifully rendered and is used by Copland to bookend the album. On the opener, Copland and Feldman play in unison, a precise duo at the intro. Henkelhausen’s resonant bass features his fleet, sonorous fretwork. Feldman’s violin is emotively expanding the implied melody and deftly bows out his own path through this folk ballad. Copland takes the lead deciding that the music requires even more expansion. His touch can be Evans-like, delicate and sensitive, but there is also more abstraction to his playing. He introduces gentle twists and turns to the path he follows through the melody before he beautifully cascades the music back to where he and Feldman return playing in unison and into the coda.

Mongo Santamaria’s “Afro Blue” has and continues to inspire many reimaginations to this vibrant Afro-Cuban classic. The music is driven by a pulse as established by drummer Burgwinkel’s clever employment of subtle, deft percussive sounds. Copland’s piano, Henkelhausen’s bass and Feldman’s violin spell out the theme in unison. The pulse remains important on this take but does not overwhelm. Rather it creates a motif, a thematic element, on which the musicians can express their most adventurous ideas. The melody is stated by Copland and repeated by Feldman and Henkelhausen in a call and response pattern, before Feldman is given the first solo. The violinist is always melodic, but his approach includes unique bowing accents, tonal distortions and rhythmic changes, that are interesting and surprising. Copland’s piano is resplendent with slightly outside harmonic ideas, cleverly utilizing unpredictable changes to his pace, attack and tone. Henkelhausen and Burgwinkel are wonderful together, providing a tonal and rhythmic feast of variation. It is unlikely that you have ever heard such a unique reimagination of this one.

“Vesper” is a Drew Gress composition heard on the saxophonist Robin Verhyen’s album titled When the Birds Leave from 2018. Feldman and Copland initially play the melody in unison before they each go into solo mode. Feldman’s violin explores the depths of this moving ballad, sometimes soaring, sometimes pulling the heartstrings with his poignancy.  Copland’s piano solo is tasteful and always inventive. Henkelhausen has a plucky bass solo that is beautifully realized. Feldman’s violin comes back with challenging, pungent lines that stir the pot as the rhythm section percolates beneath him.

The classic Schwartz/Deitz standard “Alone Together’ can always be fertile grounds for jazz inspiration. Opening with a Pinciotti drum roll and a swinging bass entre by Gress, Mark Feldman lays out the melody with authority and joy. Copland’s tactile piano work probes the possibilities. Pinciotti’s lively drum work adds to the excitement. Feldman digs into this one with vigor and inventiveness. His playing has a Stuff Smith feel, free and just swinging. Gress’s double bass work is dynamic. He adds a distinct sense of power, fluidity and depth that shines. Pinciotti drum solo boils over with exuberance that brings a smile to your face. Hard to stop your feet from jumping to the swing these guys create.

The album continues with Copland’s pensive “The Sun at The Zenith,” a tune first heard on his 2017 album Zenith. Feldman’s silky violin sometimes adds  well-placed string plucks almost as punctuation. Pinciotti's shimmering cymbal work  adds to the overall feel. Copland and Feldman play the wandering lines in unison before the pianist quizzically searches through the eerie landscape like at hiker searching for the zenith of trail. Feldman returns offering additional violin expressions that add some gravity. Gress’s spirited double bass solo is inspirational.

Miles Davis’ s classic “Nardis” reprises the talented rhythm section of Henkelhausen and Burgwinkel. Copland’s reimagination of this one is quite compelling. The pianist is very skilled at staying within the music’s form but forever expanding it. Feldman is inspired by the freedom Copland establishes, and he consequently shows the depth of his own imagination in his playing. The band just perks with controlled kineticism and intuitive originality.

Gress's “Like It Never Was”  was explored back in 2009 on Copland’s Night Whispers/Ny Trio Vol 3. The bassist has a long and symbiotic relationship with Copland. Feldman’s violin adds another previously unexplored color to add to this music’s palette. Piniciotti’s varied trap work is expressive and energized. Gress’s bass and Feldman’s plucked violin trace each other’s line in a way that adds another dimension. Feldman’s violin radiates with warmth and sincerity, and Gress’s double bass is buoyant and impactful. Copland is just a master, always playing on the precipices. He has deft awareness of where the imaginary limits of a composition are and he often surprises you where he takes it.

“Greensleeves” is reprised as the final cut of this wonderful album. Copland and Feldman return to this folk classic for one more pass. These two bring out the best in each other’s playing. It’s String Theory, two strands of energy that somehow stimulate and excite each other’s inherent inventiveness. It’s magic. Like in nature, when these two come into each other’s orbit, the energy increases exponentially. The whole is greater than the parts and we are the happy beneficiaries of their experiment!