Roland Hanna
Roland Hanna | |
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Hanna in 2001 | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Roland Pembroke Hanna |
Born | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | February 10, 1932
Died | November 13, 2002 Hackensack, New Jersey | (aged 70)
Genres | Jazz, avant-garde, jazz fusion |
Occupation(s) | Musician, composer, bandleader |
Instrument(s) | Piano, electric piano, cello |
Roland Pembroke Hanna (February 10, 1932 – November 13, 2002) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and teacher.[1]
Biography
[edit]Hanna studied classical piano from the age of 11, but was strongly interested in jazz, having been introduced to it by his friend, pianist Tommy Flanagan.[2] This interest increased after his time in military service (1950–1952). He studied briefly at the Eastman School of Music in 1953 and then enrolled at the Juilliard School when he moved to New York City two years later.[2] He worked with several big names in the 1950s, including Benny Goodman and Charles Mingus, and graduated in 1960.[2] Between 1963 and 1966, Hanna led his own trio, then from 1966 to 1974 he was a regular member of The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra.[2] Hanna also toured the Soviet Union with the orchestra in 1972.[3] During the 1970s, he was a member of the New York Jazz Quartet.
Roland Hanna was in semi-retirement for most of the 1980s, though he played piano and wrote the song "Seasons" for Sarah Vaughan's 1982 album Crazy and Mixed Up, and returned to music later in the decade. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Hanna was a member of the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra.[2] Around this time, he also began composing chamber and orchestral music; a ballet he wrote has also been performed.[3]
In 1970, Hanna was given an honorary knighthood by President William Tubman of Liberia in recognition of concerts he played in the country to raise money for education.[2][4] Thereafter, Hanna was often known as "Sir Roland Hanna." Hanna was a professor of jazz at the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College in Flushing, New York, and taught at several other music schools.[2] He was a resident of Teaneck, New Jersey.[5]
He died in Hackensack, New Jersey, of a viral infection of the heart, on November 13, 2002.[2]
Discography
[edit]As leader/co-leader
[edit]Year recorded | Title | Label | Year released | Personnel/Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1959 | Destry Rides Again | ATCO | 1959 | Trio/quartet, with George Duvivier, Roy Burns, Kenny Burrell[6] |
1959 | Easy to Love | ATCO | 1960 | Trio, with Ben Tucker, Roy Burns[6] |
1971 | Child of Gemini | MPS | 1971 | Trio, with Dave Holland, Daniel Humair[7] |
1973 | The New Heritage Keyboard Quartet | Blue Note | 1973 | As The New Heritage Keyboard Quartet, with Mickey Tucker, Richard Davis, Eddie Gladden |
1973 | Sir Elf: | Choice | 1973 | Solo piano[8] |
1974 | Let It Happen | RCA | 1974 | As The Jazz Piano Quartet, with Dick Hyman, Hank Jones, Marian McPartland |
1973–1974 | Walkin' | Jazz Hour | 1990 | Some tracks trio, with George Mraz, Mel Lewis; some tracks quartet, with Stéphane Grappelli added |
1974 | Perugia | Freedom | 1975 | Solo piano; in concert[9] |
1974 | Informal Solo | Hi-Fly | 1974 | Solo piano. Reissued as Solo Piano (Storyville, 2005)[10] |
1974 | 1 X 1 | Toho (Japan) | 1974 | Duo, with George Mraz |
1975 | Roland Hanna Trio | Salvation (Japan) | 1975 | Trio, with Ron Carter, Ben Riley |
1976 | Porgy & Bess | Trio (Japan) | 1976 | Duo, with George Mraz |
1976 | 24 Preludes Book 1 | Salvation (Japan) | 1976 | Some tracks solo piano; some tracks duo, with George Mraz |
1977 | At Home With Friends | Progressive | 1977 | Trio, with George Mraz, Richard Pratt; also released as Time for the Dancers (1980) |
1977 | Sir Elf Plus 1 | Choice | 1978 | Some tracks solo piano; some tracks duo, with George Mraz[8] |
1977 | Glove | Trio (Japan) | 1977 | Trio, with George Mraz, Motohiko Hino[11] |
1977 | 24 Preludes Book 2 | Salvation (Japan) | 1978 | Some tracks solo piano; some tracks duo, with George Mraz |
1978 | Roland Hanna Plays the Music of Alec Wilder | Trio (Japan) | 1978 | Solo piano |
1978 | This Must Be Love | Progressive | 1978 | Trio, with George Mraz, Ben Riley[12] |
1978 | Rolandscape | Progressive | 1978 | Trio, with George Mraz, Ben Riley |
1978 | 'Bird Watching | Progressive | 1978 | Solo piano[13] |
1978 | Roland Hanna and George Mraz Play for Monk | Musical Heritage Society | 1978 | Duo, with George Mraz[14] |
1978 | A Gift from the Magi | West 54 | 1979 | Solo piano[15] |
1979 | Swing Me No Waltzes | Storyville | 1980 | Solo piano. Additional tracks from 1973 included in 2000 reissue.[16] |
1979 | Trinity | L+R | 1979 | Trio, with Hans Koller, Attila Zoller |
1979 | Piano Soliloquy | L+R | 1980 | Solo piano[11] |
1979 | Impressions | Black & Blue | 1979 | Trio, with Major Holley, Alan Dawson.[9] also released as Lover Come Back to Me (Norma, 1979). |
1979 | Och Jungfrun Gick Åt Killan... | Sonet | 1979 | Solo piano |
1979 | Sunrise, Sunset | Lob (Japan) | 1979 | Duo, with George Mraz. Reissued as When You Wish Upon a Star (AMJ, 2002) |
1982 | Romanesque | Trio (Japan) | 1982 | Duo, with George Mraz[11] |
1982 | Gershwin Carmichael Cats | CTI | 1982 | Duo/trio/quartet/quintet/sextet/dectet[17] |
1987? | Manhattan Christmas | Fun House | 1987 | Solo piano |
1987 | Round Midnight | Town Crier Recordings | 1987 | Solo piano[6] |
1987 | This Time It's Real - Live At Slukefter-Tivoli Gardens | Storyville | 1988 | Quartet, with Jesper Thilo, Mads Winding, Aage Tanggaard; in concert[9] |
1987 | Persia My Dear | DIW | 1987 | Trio, with Richard Davis, Freddie Waits[9] |
1987? | The Bar | Fun House | 1988 | Trio, with Clint Houston, Lewis Nash |
1990 | Duke Ellington Piano Solos | MusicMasters | 1991 | Solo piano[9] |
1990 | Memoir | Century (Japan) | 1990 | Duo, with Eiji Nakayama |
1993 | Sir Roland Hanna Quartet Plays Gershwin | LRC/Laserlight[6] | 1993 | Quartet, with Bill Easley, Jon Burr, Ronnie Burrage |
1993 | Maybeck Recital Hall Series, Volume Thirty-Two | Concord | 1994 | Solo piano; in concert[9] |
1994? | Jazz Sonatas | Angel | 1994 | Some tracks duo, with Dick Hyman; some tracks quartet, with chamber trio |
1995 | Ancestral Light | Red Earth Jazz | 1999 | Duo, with George Mraz |
1996 | 3 for All | Cei Cymekob | 1996 | Trio, with Bucky Pizzarelli, Jon Burr |
1996 | Hush A Bye | What'sNew (Japan) | 1997 | Trio, with Eiji Nakayama, Seiji Komatsu |
1997 | The Three Black Kings | Jazz Friends Productions | 1997 | Trio, with Richard Davis, Andrew Cyrille |
1997 | I Love Be-Bop | Rahanna Music | 1998 | Trio, with Yoshio Aomori, Cris Roselli. Self-released. |
1998? | Family & Friends | Prestige Elite | 1998 | With Michael Hanna |
1998 | Royal Essence: An Evening of Ellington | Jazzmont | 1999 | Duo, with Davey Yarborough; in concert |
2001 | Dream | Venus | 2001 | Trio, with Paul West, Eddie Locke (drums)[18][19] |
2002 | Milano, Paris, New York: Finding John Lewis | Venus | 2002 | Trio, with George Mraz, Lewis Nash |
2002 | Everything I Love | IPO | 2002 | Solo piano[6] |
2002 | I've Got a Right to Sing the Blues | IPO | 2002 | Duo, with Carrie Smith[6] |
2002 | Tributaries: Reflections on Tommy Flanagan | IPO | 2003 | Solo piano[6] |
2002 | Après Un Rêve | Venus | 2003 | Trio, with Ron Carter, Grady Tate[20] |
2002 | Last Concert | What's New (Japan) | 2003 | Some tracks duo, with Eiji Nakayama and Mihoko Hazama (separately); some tracks trio, with Nakayama and Hazama; in concert |
Posthumous compilations
- Memoir One For Eiji with Eiji Nakayama (What's New, 2004)
- Colors from a Giant's Kit (IPO, 2011)
As group
[edit]- In Concert in Japan with Ron Carter, Ben Riley, Frank Wess (Salvation, 1975) – live
- Surge with George Mraz, Richard Pratt, Frank Wess, (Enja, 1977)
- Song of the Black Knight with George Mraz, Richard Pratt, Frank Wess (Sonet, 1978)
- Blues for Sarka with George Mraz, Grady Tate, Frank Wess (Enja, 1978) – live
- Oasis with George Mraz, Ben Riley, Frank Wess (Enja, 1981)
- The New York Jazz Quartet in Chicago with George Mraz, Ben Riley, Frank Wess (Bee Hive, 1981)
- Live At Montreux (Atlantic, 1981) – live
- Reincarnation (Soul Note, 1982)
- Mingus' Sounds Of Love (Soul Note, 1988)
- Live At The Village Vanguard (Storyville, 1989) – live
- Epitaph (Charles Mingus composition) (Columbia, 1990) – live recorded in 1989
As sideman
[edit]
With Pepper Adams
With Kenny Burrell
With Ron Carter
With Richard Davis
With Elvin Jones
With Jimmy Knepper
With Red Rodney
With Sonny Stitt
|
With others
|
References
[edit]- ^ "Roland Hanna | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved February 17, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Keepnews, Peter (November 15, 2002) "Roland Hanna, a Jazz Pianist and Composer, Dies at 70". New York Times
- ^ a b Feather, Leonard & Gitler, Ira (2007) The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz, p. 292, Oxford University Press
- ^ Stryker, Mark (2019-07-08). Jazz from Detroit. University of Michigan Press. ISBN 978-0-472-12591-3.
- ^ Wilson, John S. "Jazz Pianist Sees the Stardom at End of Tunnel", The New York Times, June 1, 1975. Accessed June 28, 2019. "Then last June, the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Band, which plays every Monday night at the Village Vanguard in New York, suddenly lost its pianist, Roland Hanna of Teaneck, who left to form his own group."
- ^ a b c d e f g Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 647. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
- ^ Dryden, Ken. "Roland Hanna: Child of Gemini". AllMusic. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
- ^ a b Yanow, Scott. "Roland Hanna: Sir Elf (1977)". AllMusic. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (1996). The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD (3rd ed.). Penguin. pp. 577–578. ISBN 978-0-14-051368-4.
- ^ Dryden, Ken. "Solo Piano: Roland Hanna". AllMusic. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
- ^ a b c Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (1992). The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, LP & Cassette (1st ed.). Penguin. p. 477. ISBN 978-0-14-015364-4.
- ^ Yanow, Scott. "Roland Hanna: This Must Be Love". AllMusic. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
- ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2004). The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD (7th ed.). Penguin. pp. 717–718. ISBN 978-0-14-101416-6.
- ^ Yanow, Scott. "Roland Hanna: Play for Monk". AllMusic. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
- ^ Dryden, Ken. "Roland Hanna: A Gift from the Magi". AllMusic. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
- ^ Yanow, Scott. "Swing Me No Waltzes: Roland Hanna". AllMusic. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
- ^ Yanow, Scott. "Roland Hanna: Gershwin Carmichael Cats". AllMusic. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
- ^ Dryden, Ken. "Roland Hanna: Dream". AllMusic. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
- ^ "VHCD-2054". Venusrecord.com. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
- ^ "VHCD-2031". Venusrecord.com. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
External links
[edit]- American jazz pianists
- American male jazz pianists
- Cool jazz pianists
- Hard bop pianists
- Mainstream jazz pianists
- Post-bop pianists
- 1932 births
- 2002 deaths
- New York Jazz Quartet members
- Jazz musicians from New Jersey
- Jazz musicians from New York (state)
- Musicians from Detroit
- Musicians from Teaneck, New Jersey
- Freedom Records artists
- Enja Records artists
- MPS Records artists
- Venus Records artists
- 20th-century American pianists
- Jazz musicians from Michigan
- 20th-century American male musicians
- Mingus Dynasty (band) members
- The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra members
- Black & Blue Records artists
- Black Lion Records artists
- CTI Records artists
- Atco Records artists