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| Pat Philips Presents Three Jazz Pianists at Birdland Bill Mays, Craig Davis, Vana Gierig I've always loved Jazz Piano ever since I was a young girl growing up in a home where music was around us every day. My Dad played Piano by ear and accompanied himself as he was also a formidable singer who recorded for Columbia in the early days, wrote some songs for the company as well, and had his own Radio show, The Milt Coleman Hour. When his fingers were not on the keyboard, he was listening to recordings of Art Tatum, Erroll Garner, Ella, and many others including big Bands. He was a great fan of 'that kid" Sinatra who he said was going places! Dad had great taste and a good ear and love for music, some of which might have passed on to me, certainly his love of music. I highly recommend coming out to enjoy the taste and talent of these three very interesting Pianists. October 19th: BILL MAYS 8:30pm - Birdland Theatre (doors at 7pm) Bill Mays is a talented Pianist, Composer, Arranger who's had a prestigious career associated with too many musical giants to name. But to name a few, early on he found it a thrill to play for Sarah Vaughan as well as Barry Manilow, Anita O'Day, and Sinatra. Along the pathway, he joined with greats Ron Carter, Gerry Mulligan, Toots Thielemans, Clark Terry, Phil Woods, and The Maria Schneider Orchestra. His talent has been admired on stages such as Birdland, Dizzy's, and Carnegie Hall. Along with his Trio of Ron Vincent and Dean Johnson, Mays will play some music from his new album, "Autumn Serenade". April 11th: CRAIG DAVIS 8:30pm – Birdland Theatre ( doors at 7pm) Craig Davis is on a mission to raise Michael "Dodo" Mamarosa's profile in the Jazz consciousness, partly stemming from both being natives of Pittsburgh. Davis has spent most of his career as an active and in-demand member of the steel city Jazz scene. He recognizes parallels to his own approach to the piano in Mamarosa's. Both blend classical influences with a taste for progressive Jazz and a spirited lyricism in the 40's. Mamarosa worked in bands led by major swing-era bandleaders like Tommy Dorsey, Gene Krupa, and Artie Shaw, recorded with Charlie Parker and worked with greats like Lester Young. Davis is eager to pay tribute to Mamarosa who he so admired. May 23th: VANA GIERIG 6:00pm & 8:30pm – Birdland Theatre (doors at 5pm) Vana Gierig (known as "Vana"), called "a Piano phenomenon by Keyboard Magazine, created his own unique sound as much through his writing as through his style of piano playing and improvisation. At the core is always his piano trio originating from when, as child, his parents took him to see The Oscar Peterson Trio which he went on to dream about. At times, his trio includes Brazilian percussion, violin, cello, saxophone, and more, whereas he toured with multi-Grammy winner Paquito D'Rivera. Vana continuously tours the world, often playing with orchestra. One of his great recording projects was with Regina Carter (who he played with for years), "Paganini: After A Dream" for which he was Musical Director and Co-Producer with Ettore Stratta and Pat Philips. The album went on to be #1 on the Billboard charts and to a sold-out concert at Alice Tully Hall, also produced by Stratta-Philips. As Composer/Arranger, Vana arranged the music for the hit series "Missing' on TV, one of many other prestigious commissions. Vana's trio includes Matthew Parrish (bass) and Alvester Garnett (drums). write your comments about the article :: © 2023 Jazz News :: home page |