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Mulgrew Miller was born on August 13, 1955 in Greenwood, Mississippi. He started playing piano at age eight, initially in church and with R&B dance bands, but also in classical music lessons. |
In the 1970s, Miller entered Memphis State University where he was asked to stand in occasionally for the Mercer Ellington band's regular pianist. In 1977, the Ellington Orchestra again asked him to play for them, but this time a three-week gig turned into three years and the beginning of a prominent career in jazz.
This pianist, who turned to jazz as a child after seeing Oscar Peterson play on television, has gone on to play with the Betty Carter trio, Woody Shaw's band, Art Blakely's Jazz Messengers, Johnny Griffin and Tony Williams. From his start with the Ellington Orchestra, Miller spent 16 straight years playing in various bands; not until 1985 did he release an album as a leader.
Miller's sensitivity has made him the most in-demand pianist in readers' polls in The New York Times, and he's a soloist who can jazz up standards like "Getting to Know You" as easily he can add stride and swing to the Beatles tune "Fool on the Hill."
Mulgrew Miller is a post-bop pianist rooted in the Delta Blues, who aggressively attacks rhythmic interpretation and routinely leaves his audience in awe at the beauty and nuance of his lyrical and fluid expressions. He's released 10 albums to date, and all of them -- from his early Keys to the City and Work, to the later Hand in Hand and Getting to Know You -- have created a loyal fan base.
This pianist, who turned to jazz as a child after seeing Oscar Peterson play on television, has gone on to play with the Betty Carter trio, Woody Shaw's band, Art Blakely's Jazz Messengers, Johnny Griffin and Tony Williams. From his start with the Ellington Orchestra, Miller spent 16 straight years playing in various bands; not until 1985 did he release an album as a leader.
Miller's sensitivity has made him the most in-demand pianist in readers' polls in The New York Times, and he's a soloist who can jazz up standards like "Getting to Know You" as easily he can add stride and swing to the Beatles tune "Fool on the Hill."
Mulgrew Miller is a post-bop pianist rooted in the Delta Blues, who aggressively attacks rhythmic interpretation and routinely leaves his audience in awe at the beauty and nuance of his lyrical and fluid expressions. He's released 10 albums to date, and all of them -- from his early Keys to the City and Work, to the later Hand in Hand and Getting to Know You -- have created a loyal fan base.