Results for "Jazz piano"

Vadim Bessarab Trio

Born: September 4, 1978

Jazz trio from Odessa, led by Vadim Bessarab. The trio’s sound combines jazz traditions and academic expressiveness, ethnic moods and contemplation characteristic of the modern European jazz language

Bob Boguslaw and The Way

The Way has been performing together in one form or another since 1995. The group has received critical acclaim from Jazz Times, All About Jazz and Beyond Coltrane for their Summit Records CDs, The Way and Gabrielle’s Hand. They have performed numerous times at the Kennedy Center, the Corcoran Gallery of Art and at Blues Alley. Musically, the group combines elements of Latin jazz, contemporary jazz, and some aspects of classical structure with lots of original compositions, as well as some re-workings of standards and pop tunes. The group consists of Bob Boguslaw (piano), Frank Russo (drums), Pete Barenbregge (saxophones), Aaron Clay (acoustic bass), and Chris Rose (percussion)

Felix Biller

Born: June 15, 1993

Felix Biller is an award-nominated pianist, composer, music educator and music manager. Born in Rosenheim, Bavaria (Germany), he started his musical education at the age of four. Throughout the years he tackled many instruments, such as guitar and saxophone, but the piano always remained his instrument of choice and mastery. His classical training gave him an excellent technique; his eagerness to experiment and think outside the box makes him search for new inspirations and opportunities for artistic development.

Biller is both an involved learner and dedicated teacher. He graduated from musicology and music management, furthermore in keyboard instruments popular music with a focus on pedagogy at the University of Music and Performing Arts in the Austrian capital Vienna, where he lives and works. As a passionate educator he enjoys working with people of different ages and backgrounds, which is made possible through his teaching activities, among others in private settings. He has previously taught music at a Vienna high school as well as piano at various music schools.

Andrew Nixon

Born: October 1, 1983

As a child, Andrew began classical piano lessons with the late Suzanne Chapin, which he eventually quit, explaining to his parents that he did not like being told what to play. He spent the remainder of his childhood teaching himself, improvising, copying the classical music that he heard his sisters learning, and playing the trombone in various grade school ensembles.  

After several years playing keyboards in rock and blues bands around Buffalo and Rochester NY, he discovered jazz in 2006 and began studying with pianist/composer Paul Hofmann (Eastman School of Music). Now fully devoted to music, he went on to earn a master’s degree in music theory in 2012 from the University of Buffalo, where he also studied classical piano and composition.  After performing countless times in festivals and clubs in and around western New York, he began shifting his focus to composition in 2020.  

Mike LeDonne

Born: October 26, 1956

Pianist Mike LeDonne started playing piano at the age of 5 and was raised in his parent’s music store. By the age of 10 his father, a jazz guitarist, began booking him on gigs. He is now an internationally renowned pianist and organist with the unique experience of having played with a wide spectrum of jazz masters from Benny Goodman to Milt Jackson and Sonny Rollins. He has won praise not only from critics but from master musicians: Oscar Peterson picked him as one of his favorite pianists of today. At age 21, Mike graduated from New England Conservatory in 1979 and moved to New York City with the Widespread Jazz Orchestra

Will Bonness

Born: October 1, 1985

JUNO-winning pianist Will Bonness has been active on the Winnipeg, Canadian and international jazz scenes for two decades. At 17, Will joined Maynard Ferguson’s Big Bop Nouveau Band for a world tour, which included performances in Europe, Thailand, and the Caribbean. He has performed at many of the major jazz festivals in Canada and the United States, as well as in the world’s most prestigious venues, with such luminaries as Jon Gordon, Avishai Cohen, Quincy Davis, Jimmy Greene, and Derrick Gardner. Locally, he can often be seen performing with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, and the Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra. Will’s performance career has led him to spend substantial time in New York City, where he has played at the Blue Note, Smalls, and Dizzy’s. Aside from his performances, he maintains a full-time teaching position at the University of Manitoba, where he has taught music for the past 12 years. Will has four releases to his credit: "Subtle Fire" (2009), "Halcyon" (2016), "Change of Plans" (2020), and "Is This a Dream?" (2023).

Jaco Parmentier

Born: July 15, 1961

Jaco's universe is sewn together with limpid sources, subtle tastes, cinematographic landscapes, serenity and pure energy. A pianist who expresses himself with the spontaneity and freedom that is the essence of jazz, Jaco has always been influenced by many musical cultures (pop, progressive rock, classical and world music) as well as by the visual arts. (he regularly collaborates with artists coming from all walks of the performing arts and the cinema). He is an inspired composer developing a very personal style through his melodies and his rich harmonic, rhythmic climates.

Francesco Crosara

Born: September 13, 1960

Francesco Crosara is a Seattle based Italian jazz pianist, composer and educator, typically performing in a range of formats, from solo, duet, trio, quartet, or more.  Originally from Milan, Italy, Crosara’s music melds an impressive mix of jazz improvisation, a romantic vein from his classical training, along with Latin influences.  His major piano influences are Chick Corea, Bill Evans, Keith Jarrett, and Herbie Hancock.

Crosara stands among the European-bred jazz greats, performing over the years with the likes of Lionel Hampton, Freddie Hubbard, Roy Hargrove, Richie Cole, Von Freeman, Bobby Shew, Ira Sullivan, Bruce Forman, Barbara Morrison, Don Menza,  Lilian Terry, and more. His recordings have featured a multicultural and international array of musicians.

Olivier Collette

Born: August 31, 1973

Olivier was born in 1973. Primarily student of Diederik Wissels, he graduated from the Jazz section of the Brussels conservatory in 1996. His teacher was Eric Legnini. Then, he studied 3 months in New-York with Kenny Werner and Fred Hersch. He played in many clubs and festivals in Europe and the Middle-East (« Jazz à Liège », « Jazz à Sète », « Dubai Jazz festival », « Abu Dhabi Jazz festival »,…) with musicians like Philip Catherine, Bert Joris, Steve Houben, Bruno Castellucci, Philippe Aerts, Jean-Louis Rassinfosse, Olivier ker Ourio, Phil Abraham, Fabien Degryse, Peter Hertmans… In 2004, he received the SABAM award for the best Jazz composition

Claire Cope

Born: April 27, 1989

Claire Cope is an award winning British composer, pianist and bandleader whose work spans both contemporary classical, and jazz and improvised music. Concerned primarily with emotional connectivity and story-telling, Claire’s music is often inspired by literature, with a strong sense of narrative and ‘journeying’. Her music has been performed in Europe and the United States, and she has performed at the Manchester Jazz Festival, the London Jazz Festival and as part of the BBC Proms Plus Series, broadcast on BBC Radio 3.

In 2022 Claire won a Marvin Hamlisch International Music Award, and in 2023 a UK Arts Council DYCP grant to compose new music for her 11 piece contemporary jazz ensemble, Ensemble C. Following their successful debut album ‘Small World’ in 2020, their latest album ‘Every Journey’ was recently released on the New York based Adhyâropa label to widespread critical acclaim, with Ron Schepper of Textura describing it as ‘a tremendous realization of her vision’.