Four years ago last May, the jury of the American Jazz Piano Competition chose Adam Birnbaum, holder of a freshly minted artist's diploma in jazz from Juilliard (in the school's inaugural class) as its Cole Porter Fellow. "Travels" is his new CD, recorded last June in New York, with bassist Joe Sanders and drummer Rodney Green. This is what Ethan Iverson of the Bad Plus would call a "piano-centric trio," but thoroughly in a three-way partnership vein. Birnbaum stands out but never lords it over his bandmates. (Saxophonist Sharel Cassity also makes a cameo appearance.) Most of the tunes are Birnbaum originals. He can take an old chestnut like Ray Noble's "The Very Thought of You" and stretch out on it with such an elegant command of the singing line that his interpretation never palls, even at 7 1/2 minutes. Of all the good young jazz pianists coming up, Birnbaum's unhackneyed lyricism, keyed to a pure right-hand tone and legato touch, helps him stand out. And his compositions -- especially "Jackhammer" "Kate the Great" and the title song -- are both quirky and inviting. "Travels" is part of the increasingly distinguished Smalls Records catalogue produced by Luke Kaven.