Will Kjeer Trio

Overview

NYC-based pianist and composer Will Kjeer stands out as one of the most versatile jazz artists of his generation. A recent graduate of the Juilliard School’s M.M. program, Will’s expansive and nuanced approach to creative music has earned him recognition from living legends of the jazz vanguard and contemporary pioneers alike. Guitarist Russell Malone called Will “a pianist of exceptional heart”, and drummer Dave King (of The Bad Plus) was so impressed with Will’s intentionality that he offered to produce and perform on Will’s 2025 debut album. Will has won numerous awards as a performer/composer, including being selected by American composing genius Billy Childs as a winner of Ravinia’s Bridges Composition Competition. He is also a winner of the Yamaha Young Performing Artist Competition, the Angel City Jazz Festival Young Artist Competition, and the Jazz Fest Bonn International JazzBeet Competition. He is an alumni of Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead and the Steans Music Institute, and has performed for Herbie Hancock as a finalist for admission to the prestigious Thelonious Monk Institute. Will is currently a member of the BMI Composer’s Workshop in New York, and has performed his original music across America at venues including the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, The Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Ravinia’s Bennett Gordon Hall in Chicago, and Dizzy’s at Lincoln Center in New York City.

Will grew up performing in his hometown of Saint Paul, MN, and pursued jazz and classical music at Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan before earning a B.F.A. at the California Institute of the Arts in 2019. He enjoyed a burgeoning career in Los Angeles before returning to MN to weather the pandemic. In 2022 he moved to New York, having been the only pianist admitted to the Juilliard Jazz program that year. His current initiatives include the Will Kjeer Trio, which has performed his “whimsical, lyrical, and heartfelt” compositions across the country for eight years, the Will Kjeer Quintet, and a jazz/classical chamber ensemble featuring string quartet. He has collaborated for the past three years with folk legend Larry Long, often referred to as “The Pete Seeger of Minnesota”. Will is an active music educator and has been a clinician at Lincoln Center, California State University Fullerton, The Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists, and Shell Lake Arts Center, in addition to his private studio.