Herbie Hancock: the youthful old age of a jazz master

Seeing Herbie Hancock on stage in 2022, in enviable form at the age of 82, is exciting for several reasons.

The pianist and composer has long been more than a venerable musician: he is a true institution regardless of the music he makes today.

As with the greatest exponents of a creative form, it is impossible to ignore his enormous legacy, of what Hancock represents in popular music of the 20th century, and particularly in jazz.

The future of this music cannot be explained or understood without his contributions.

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His status as the last man standing rounds out this status even further: the forced retirement of Keith Jarrett and the deaths of McCoy Tyner and Chick Corea in the last two years has left Hancock at the forefront of modern jazz piano heritage, further elevating plus his status as a living legend.

Seeing him appear on stage at the Kursaal Auditorium during the closing day of this year's Donostiako Jazzaldia, wearing a black mask that he took off just before greeting, served to remind us that, although we have quickly become accustomed to life without restrictions, the years precedents have been devastating.

Behind his strength and his charisma on stage, Hancock is a very old man who continues to act, we suppose, out of sheer pleasure, and perhaps because of the courage to keep going until the end,

to carry his responsibility as an ambassador of jazz as conspicuous as possible.

In the record field, he hasn't offered anything relevant for a long time, but listening to him live is always an opportunity to come face to face with the history of the genre.

Like watching the Rolling Stones, but in jazz.

The staging of the quintet. Lolo Vasco

The pianist is touring with a first-class quintet made up of musicians from different generations, beginning with the extraordinary trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard;

regular Hancock sidemen such as guitarist Lionel Loueke and bassist James Genus;

and a young addition to the universe of the pianist: the portentous Justin Tyson, regular drummer for artists like Robert Glasper or Esperanza Spalding, among others.

Together they cover the music of Hancock, who is the absolute leader live, without at any time subtracting prominence from his musicians when he intervenes.

Everyone has space to express themselves —although Blanchard's presence seems little used—, but the enormous presence of the pianist marks everything that happens and, although there is an evident spontaneity in the interpretations,

it gives the impression that everything is relatively measured.

Hancock is very aware of his position and his trajectory, and everything is in service of both in every aspect of his concert.

With all these elements at his disposal —his mere presence, his background, the sublime group that accompanies him and his own musical capacity, still superlative despite his age— the truth is that at times a little more freshness was lacking at his concert in San Sebastian.

"Every night is different!" Hancock asserted on a couple of occasions, alluding to the quintet tour, and there is no doubt that in the solo passages it is like that, but in general everything in the

gave the feeling of being well tied.

This is not bad in itself: at this point in the game, a guy like Hancock does not need to brag, and it is evident that he knows how to manage an audience to have it in his pocket from minute one, as he demonstrated in his long – too long, perhaps—parliaments between topic and topic.

Herbie Hancock in one of the moments of the concert. Lolo Vasco

The repertoire, also measured and similar to those he has been performing on his latest tours, did the rest: from the opening theme in which different milestones of the leader's work were amalgamated, to the legendary

by Wayne Shorter arranged by Blanchard, or the inescapable

, which provided some of the best moments of the show, and

, a vehicle for Hancock to expand on the

, as he pioneered almost 45 years ago in

, the album that included the original version of the song.

At the time it was very modern and groundbreaking music, like everything Hancock did for many years, but today it is a tribute, a memory of the leader's overwhelming career, which permeates the entire concert.

Everything in San Sebastian was a celebration of his figure.

Three of the musicians who accompany Herbie Hancock during his tour. Lolo Vasco

And then there's Hancock the performer, the soloist.

His were the most interesting instrumental flights of the concert, both in his brilliant accompaniments and in his solos, which showed us a pianist who maintains an eloquent and dynamic speech.

Whether it's not what it used to be is not the point, because Hancock, one of the most influential pianists of the 20th century, continues to deliver chilling moments at the keyboard, which is more than you'd expect at his age.

Live he seems uncombustible and remains in amazing shape, and despite all the buts we can put to his concerts, as long as we have him on stage we will continue to feel that the golden age of jazz is not so far away, after all.

And the same thing happens with the San Sebastian Jazz Festival itself, which with Hancock said goodbye to its 57th edition, no less:

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