Certain psychological camps claim that personality is a product of environment, but English piano maestro Jon Cleary is a damn strong argument that individual soul emerges from genetics. While growing up surrounded by rolling hills and livestock in his native Kent, Cleary's family instilled in him two undeniable passions: a love for wandering, and a burning desire for New Orleans Music.

“My whole family were musicians or travelers,” Cleary recalled over a Guinness (“vitamin G”) and tea at ...