Whether working in solo, trio or ensemble settings, Jean-Michel Pilc has earned a reputation as a master pianist, a brilliant interpreter of standards, and a forward-looking composer. Pilc’s fourth album for Dreyfus, Live at Iridium, New York, signals yet another turn in his creative evolution: it is the first recording with his new working trio, featuring bassist Thomas Bramerie and drummer Mark Mondesir. This is also Pilc’s first live album for Dreyfus Jazz, and his first live recording since the highly acclaimed two-volume series Together: Live at Sweet Basil (Challenge, 2000-2001). Pilc has described the piano trio as a "three-headed, six-handed creature," and his new lineup with Bramerie and Mondesir lives up to that colorful billing, from the first bristling choruses of "No Print" (his oblique variation on Wayne Shorter’s "Footprints"). "Playing with Thomas and Mark is a very special experience for me," says Pilc. "We first performed together back in 1993, and happily reunited 10 years later for an extensive series of concerts." In a recent interview for Jazz Improv magazine, Pilc added: "Playing great music with these guys, you forget everything, including who you are, and become part of this big wave of sound, of music, of emotions."