FLORIAN ROSS NEVER expected to become a jazz musician. As a child, he disliked his father's amateur banjo playing. And although he took piano lessons - mostly to please his parents - he drew the line at taking an interest in jazz.
'Then, when I was 17, I went for a high school year in the US as a foreign exchange student,' says German-born Ross. 'I was a little bit unlucky because I spent the year in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. It was just as dull as it sounds. The only thing that was a little bit interesting was the college radio station - and they played jazz.'
Ten years later, Ross was a full-time jazz pianist and a well-respected composer and arranger. When his fourth CD, Blinds and Shades, was released earlier this year, the great jazz guitarist John Scofield acknowledged him as a peer.
The Florian Ross Trio, which perform tonight at One Bar + Grill in Exchange Square, sport a different line-up from the one that appeared on that recording, but Ross is confident fans of the album will enjoy the concert.
Bassist Remi Vignolo and drummer John Hollenbeck had commitments that prevented them travelling to Hong Kong. They're being replaced by long-time Ross associates Dietmar Fuhr on bass and Hans Dekker on drums.
Making the album with Vignolo and Hollenbeck was an exploration of unfamiliar territory, Ross says. 'I was a little bit worried, but it turned out nicely,' he says. 'These guys I've known for a long time and I'm definitely not worried - which enables me to maybe do things that are a little bit more risky.'