Conversations

Released in 2007 on the New Artists label, Conversations features a spontaneous series of improvisational piano duets between Connie Crothers and Bill Payne. The album emerged from the creative circle centered around Lennie Tristano’s influence, as Crothers was a primary torchbearer of the cool jazz lineage, and Payne shared her commitment to the rigorous pursuit of free improvisation. The recording represents a singular meeting of two distinct approaches to the keyboard, capturing a dialogue that emphasizes deep listening and structural fluidity.

The album reflects the austere, uncompromising aesthetic of the New Artists label, which Crothers founded to ensure the preservation of her own work and that of her contemporaries. The design is characteristic of the label's no-frills, music-first approach, prioritizing the sonic content over commercial packaging. Critics and aficionados of the avant-garde jazz scene received the work as an essential document of the interplay between the two artists, noting the high level of technical mastery and the intuitive, telepathic connection present throughout the performances.