Bob Albanese

Albanese, a perpetual student, was granted a scholarship in 2002 to complete a B.M. and M.M. at the prestigious Manhattan School of Music in Jazz Composition. He met the challenge head on and while under the M.S.M. umbrella composed a number of new works including a Jazz Philharmonic piece entitled “Samba Esperança” that was performed by the Cincinnati Conservatory Philharmonic in April of 2006. He completed his formal degrees, BM and MM in May 2006 graduating with honors, receiving the William C. Borden award [for outstanding achievement in the field of Jazz].

Equally at home in jazz, Latin, pop, and theatrical musical settings, Jazz Pianist Bob Albanese has worked with a wide stylistic cross section of artists, many of considerable fame. Some of the notables he has performed, arranged and/or recorded with include Anita O’Day, Buddy Rich, Warne Marsh, Rita Moreno, Herb Ohta, Datevik Hovanesian, Leslie Uggums, Daphne Rubin Vega, Bill Watrous and a host of other Jazz artists ranging from Cab Calloway to Freddie Hubbard to Branford Marsalis.

He has been based in New York since 1980, but has also spent a fair amount of time on the road performing all over the continental U.S. and Hawaii (where he stayed for 2 years in the mid 90’s), Europe, Japan, Russia, South America, Mexico and the Caribbean.

While in Hawaii he acted as pianist for the Honolulu Symphony Pops and did numerous recordings and live performances with local and national artists including Phil Woods and James Ingram.

Tags

Bob Albanese piano

Album Review

Time Remembered by Dan Bilawsky
Time Remembered by Mark Corroto

Take Five With...

Take Five With Bob Albanese

Album Review

One Way/Detour by John Patten
One Way/Detour by John Barron
One Way / Detour by Warren Allen

March 27, 2009

Bob Albanese Trio with Ira Sullivan Releases One Way/Detour on Zoho...

”Bob Albanese is a rhymer, a poetic soul whether he is thinking and talking or composing and playing. He has all the requisites-harmonic acumen, melodicism and swing. With all that he has nuance, that certain something that gives him distinction. He’s not radical, or fanatical but artistically he’s never on sabbatical.” --Ira Gitler (Jan. 2009), jazz historian and journalist, former New York editor of Down Beat magazine. He was given the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Jazz Journalists Association.

“Bob is a wonderfully creative pianist and his CD -One Way/Detour- proves it

Primary Instrument

Piano

Willing to teach

Beginner to advanced

Credentials/Background

1) Where do you/ did you teach?

New York University, Mannes College The New School, Manhattan School of Music (ensembles), Five Towns College, Master classes throughout former Yugoslavia i.e. the Balkans: Albania, The Republic of Kosovo, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro, Bulgaria. I also teach privately and I do video conference lessons through Skype.

2) What do you/ did you teach?

Jazz improvisation, composition, harmonic, melodic and rhythmic development, clavé, 'the language of music' especially as it evolves through, of and into the essential Jazz Canon, the blues. the latin tinge. modes, compositional devices, constant note value improvisation, interpreting standards, jazz tunes: a vehicle for improvisation vs. set composition, ear training, arranging, musical story telling.

3) What do you like to teach during the masterclass?

I do a variety of things. A good set up would be to have at least 2 pianos and a chalk board, preferably with musical staffs but adequate if not. Drums, amps and music stands would be helpful for instrumentalists other than pianists. All instruments welcome. Knowledge of treble and bass clef, note values, chords, chord symbols, are recommended.

4) Some of the activities would be (not necessarily in this order):

a) discussion of everyones needs as pertains to improvisation, especially relating to the jazz tradition, BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE JAZZ TRADITION.

b) trading solo choruses back and forth.

c) chalk board explanations of the devices to be used in the actual playing demonstrations and group exercises.

d) the conflux of opposites as it relates to intervals relationships, consonance and dissonance in chord building and melodic (linear) development.