Biography
Tardo Hammer, a skilled New York pianist drawn to intricate post-bop, came into the world in Queens in 1958. He first touched the piano near age five, though he also explored clarinet and guitar before committing fully to the keyboard in his teens. Relocating to Manhattan’s Chelsea district in 1977, he launched his local performing career while absorbing influences from jazz masters including Barry Harris, Cedar Walton, and Tommy Flanagan. Throughout the 1980s he frequently appeared as a sideman alongside Lou Donaldson, Art Farmer, Lionel Hampton, and Johnny Griffin. The following decade found him advancing as a bandleader, guiding his own trio through engagements in Europe and Japan while also accompanying Abbey Lincoln, Conte Candoli, Annie Ross, and additional artists. Hammer’s debut recording under his own name, Bopera House, arrived in 1988 and was followed by Hammer Time in 1999. After returning to New York, his release schedule intensified on the Sharp Nine imprint with Somethin’ Special in 2001, Tardo’s Tempo in 2004, and Look Stop and Listen: The Music of Tadd Dameron in 2007. He issued Simple Pleasure on Cellar Live in 2013 and, two years afterward, joined cornetist Warren Vaché’s quintet for the album Remembers Benny Carter.
Albums
