The Modern Day Virtuoso

The music scene today is saturated with many different pop stars, electronic music djs, and indie/folk bands. There is a lot of great music to be heard from them (and a lot of not-so-good music as well). I believe that we as listeners have to dig deeper for bands or artists that excel dramatically at their craft. In other words, virtuosos, or a person of great skill at their instrument, are hard to come by in the mainstream music of today.

In the past, we had stunning guitarists such as Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page and Joe Pass; bombastic drummers such as Buddy Rich and John Bonham; skilled bassists such as John Entwistle and Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen; and phenomenal pianists such as Bill Evans, Keith Emerson and Oscar Peterson. The list goes on and on, but seems to stop around the music of today. Here's a list of a few virtuosic artists and bands that elevate the level of playing in music today:

1. Hiromi: Hailing from Japan, aged 36, Hiromi is a talented jazz pianist. It should be noted that any jazz musician worth their salt is going to be nothing less than great, but Hiromi offers a fresh style of playing with fusion qualities. This combined with her quirky personality and lively performances make her a great candidate on this list.

2. Mehliana: This duo consists of Brad Mehldau and Mark Guiliana, two fantastic jazz musicians. Their recent album Taming The Dragon was nominated for Best Improvised Solo for the 2015 Grammy Awards.

3. Hiatus Kaiyote: While no one musician of this band necessarily stands out as the sole virtuoso, the sum of their parts results in a challenging but beautiful sound. Styling themselves as "future soul" (more accepted as neo-soul) these Australian musicians have filled a very funky and soulful niche.

4. Cory Henry: I can't say I know too much about this guy except that he is a PHENOMENAL gospel organist. Enjoy!