Jazz

NCSA School of Arts

Jazz is our great folk-art in music native to the United States. Archie Shepp hates the word and won’t use it, preferring "black classical music" But Bill Evans, when asked said , he was "proud to be a Jazz musician". Go figure. Only about 100 years old, it has a well documented history and contains many styles and subheadings etc. Many genres of music include improvisation, from Bluegrass/Country to Klezmer, from Rock to Blues and , of course, improvisation goes way back in western musical history. It was common in the Baroque period and Beethoven was said to be a great exptemporizer. (He would improvise the cadenzas to his piano concertos) To me, the influence of the African-American musical rhythms and vocal inflections. And the origin of the Blues and later, the traditional Gospel and Spirtuals of the Black church has been the "key" to "Jazz’s" personality.

I began piano lessons at 6, learning standard repertoire, but later had a teacher who let me learn some "boogie-woogie’ and Jerry Lee Lewis made a big impression on me too. Anyway this all led to a love of Jazz piano (around 11). I used to try and imitate and learn "licks" from Oscar Peterson, Errol Garner, Ahmad Jamal and Dave Brubeck records, among many others. Also 6 books of piano arrangements of standards by George Shearing were very important to me. The harmonies were so cool and sophisticated! I started playing gigs at 16 and by 18 had joined the Chicago Union are was playing a rented Hammond B-3 organ with a twist revue around the Chicago Area. (Twist-o-rama USA) Also weddings, bar mitzvahs, restaurants and some Jazz clubs.

I studied music ,after high school in Chicago before "Jazz Studies" became widely available. The only schools for jazz, that I knew of, were North Texas State and Berklee in Boston. Later Indiana Universtiy-all inaccessible to me at the time. I wonder sometimes where I be if I’d had the opportunity for Study Jazz formally-not that I regret the way things happened.

I’d like to say a few things about my career at the North Carolina School of the Arts. (The unique and original residential high school and college for the Performing Arts in the USA) I started there in the school of Drama, basically doing what I’d done in Nuremberg, accompanying the Acting students in classes and songs for Plays and Musicals, and composing incidental music for many productions-from Shakespeare to Brecht, Miller to Williams. Then last 10 years as a Dance Accompanist for the School of Dance. Dancers are truly special people. Atheletes with a healthy dose of eros and artistic sensitivity. Their whole body is their instrument. I have been priveledged to work with the great faculty there. The late great Melissa Hayden and so many others. All dedicated and wonderful artist-teachers of this form of Art. My days consist of playing Delibes, Stravinsky, Glazonov, Chopin, Tchaikovsky etc, and innumerable salon and character pieces (and even some jazz too) for the Ballet classes, and then, the next hour the same day some free improv, pop themes or Stevie Wonder for the contemporary classes. All this and sometimes a gig that night 2 hours away, sometimes with an electronic keyboard and amp. (so you wanted to be a piano player, huh?)

I hope this website will be a pleasure to all, and give access to my recordings and serve as a useful tool. There will be many additions and corrections over the coming years. Thanks for coming, see you again soon I hope!