Pittsburgh's Own Regional Notables of Jazz
AFRO-AMERICAN MUSIC INSTITUTE CELEBRATES 36 YEARS
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PITTSBURGH JAZZ
From Blakey to Brown, Como to Costa, Eckstine to Eldridge, Galbraith to Garner, Harris to Hines, Horne to Hyman, Jamal to Jefferson, Kelly to Klook; Mancini to Marmarosa, May to Mitchell, Negri to Nestico, Parlan to Ponder, Reed to Ruther, Strayhorn to Sullivan, Turk to Turrentine, Wade to Williams… the forthcoming publication Treasury of Pittsburgh Jazz Connections by Dr. Nelson Harrison and Dr. Ralph Proctor, Jr. will document the legacy of one of the world’s greatest jazz capitals.
Do you want to know who Dizzy Gillespie idolized? Did you ever wonder who inspired Kenny Clarke and Art Blakey? Who was the pianist that mentored Monk, Bud Powell, Tad Dameron, Elmo Hope, Sarah Vaughan and Mel Torme? Who was Art Tatum’s idol and Nat Cole’s mentor? What musical quartet pioneered the concept adopted later by the Modern Jazz Quartet? Were you ever curious to know who taught saxophone to Stanley Turrentine or who taught piano to Ahmad Jamal? What community music school trained Robert McFerrin, Sr. for his history-making debut with the Metropolitan Opera? What virtually unknown pianist was a significant influence on young John Coltrane, Shirley Scott, McCoy Tyner, Bobby Timmons and Ray Bryant when he moved to Philadelphia from Pittsburgh in the 1940s? Would you be surprised to know that Erroll Garner attended classes at the Julliard School of Music in New York and was at the top of his class in writing and arranging proficiency?
Some answers can be gleaned from the postings on the Pittsburgh Jazz Network.
For almost 100 years the Pittsburgh region has been a metacenter of jazz originality that is second to no other in the history of jazz. One of the best kept secrets in jazz folklore, the Pittsburgh Jazz Legacy has heretofore remained mythical. We have dubbed it “the greatest story never told” since it has not been represented in writing before now in such a way as to be accessible to anyone seeking to know more about it. When it was happening, little did we know how priceless the memories would become when the times were gone.
Today jazz is still king in Pittsburgh, with events, performances and activities happening all the time. The Pittsburgh Jazz Network is dedicated to celebrating and showcasing the places, artists and fans that carry on the legacy of Pittsburgh's jazz heritage.
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Duke Ellington is first African-American and the first musician to solo on U.S. circulating coin
MARY LOU WILLIAMS
INTERVIEW
Brad Mehldau piano
Part of the Wigmore Hall Jazz Series
Friday 4 June 2010 - 7:30 PM
Jazz pianist Brad Mehldau is one of the most exciting musicians in his field today. A regular performer both as a solo artist and with his Brad Mehldau Trio, he has toured and recorded extensively with great success. He now launches a prestigious series of concerts during the next two seasons at Wigmore Hall, having been appointed as curator of Wigmore Hall’s Jazz Series by John Gilhooly.
Brad Mehldau’s musical personality forms a dichotomy. First and foremost an improviser, he cherishes the surprise and wonder that can arise from a spontaneous musical idea. But he also has a deep fascination for the formal architecture of music and it informs everything he plays, the musical thought serving as an expressive device. Mehldau enjoys juxtaposing extremes, often following a complex improvisation with a stripped-down, emotionally direct ballad.
Jazz isn’t the only string to Mehldau’s bow. In 2005, soprano Renée Fleming premièred The Blue Estuaries and The Book of Hours: Love Poems to God, works for voice and piano commissioned by Carnegie Hall, New York, and later recorded to much acclaim. Two years later he premièred his piano concerto The Brady Bunch Variations at the Châtelet in Paris.
Wigmore Hall
36 Wigmore Street
London W1U 2BP
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