BY DEREK SVENNUNGSEN

Emmet Cohen, a jazz pianist performing Friday night at The Argyros, is playing the works of Miles Davis and John Coltrane, both born a hundred years ago in 1926.

Perhaps you’re thinking, “What’s a 35-year-old doing interpreting music by two of the undisputed titans of jazz music?”

Admittedly, this is no casual endeavor. But then, Emmet Cohen has proven himself to be a ferociously innovative and brave pianist, fully capable of such an effort, since he arrived on the scene in the 2010s.

Cohen’s status in the modern jazz world is well-established. He has been named “Best Pianist” by numerous platforms, including by the venerable DownBeat Magazine in 2025. He works tirelessly to bring jazz to larger audiences, best evidenced by his popular “Live from Emmet’s Place” broadcast, where he brings in guests galore for a two-hour show nearly every week.

Check out any of the 177 (and counting!) concerts on his YouTube channel, and you’ll get a clear, instant and swinging idea of the energy and talent and FUN that Cohen brings to his music.

“Fun” isn’t often a word associated with Davis and Coltrane, who both spent their careers searching for spiritual transcendence through their horns. But have every confidence that Cohen will weave joy into the selections--creating spiritually uplifting music has been his mission as a pianist and band leader.

If you like jazz music at all, you should do what you can to attend this show. Emmet Cohen and band are going to dazzle and inspire and remind people that jazz music, perhaps the United State’s very greatest export, is as alive and important as it has ever been.

This is one birthday party you don’t want to miss.

IF YOU GO:

Pianist Emmet Cohen will perform a tribute to Miles and Coltrane with saxophonist Tivon Pennicott and Trumpeter Jeremy Pelt at 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 13, at The Argyros in Ketchum.

Tickets are $28 and $43, available at https://ci.ovationtix.com/35937/production/1258054?performanceId=11724125.