Home » Jazz Musicians » Gini Wilson

Gini Wilson

Gini Wilson, known as The Duchess, is legendary in the Bay area as a brilliant jazz pianist, entertainer, and composer. In concerts and interviews she is also noted for her irreverent sense of humor . She is the Director and, with reedman Steve Heckman, the co-founder of The San Francisco ChamberJazz Quartet. When not performing at concerts and festivals with the group, Gini performs regularly at well-known Bay area clubs such as Jazz at Pearls, Bacar and Shanghai 1930 in San Francisco. She has done many television and radio projects and was a regular on the NPR radio show “West Coast Live”. She has been the Music Director for many clubs and musical projects in the Bay Area. She studied classical piano (M. Music) and studied composition with the American master George Crumb before dedicating herself primarily to jazz. As an educator and member of the Music Teachers of America, and IAJE, she teaches both classical and jazz disciplines in Marin County, California.

The SFCJQ has made waves in the San Francisco area and nationally. Their concerts and recent CDs, SFCJQ (2005) and The Crossing Point, (2003) and were heard extensively on national jazz radio stations and gained national attention and praise…

"With her effortless technique and thorough knowledge of the classic piano literature of both Europe and America, Gini Wilson joins the noble tradition of George Shearing, Lenny Tristano and Bill Evans in merging the best of 'classical ' music with the best of jazz." Grover Sales, jazz author, historian and critic

Gini and the SFCJQ appear regularly in jazz festivals and concerts in Northern California such as The Bach Dynamite and Dancing Society, San Jose Jazz Festival, Jazz at Kuumbwa, The Whale and Jazz Festival in Gualala, Music in the Mountains Festival, Jazz in Jackson Hole, Wyo. and the San Miguel de Allende International Festival in Mexico and many others.

Tags

669
Take Five With...

Take Five With Gini Wilson: The Duchess

Read "Take Five With Gini Wilson: The Duchess" reviewed by AAJ Staff


Meet Gini Wilson: The Duchess: Gini Wilson, known as The Duchess, is legendary in the Bay area as a brilliant jazz pianist, entertainer, and composer. Gini performs regularly at Jazz Festivals, well-known jazz clubs such as Jazz at Pearls, and Shanghai 1930 in San Francisco and Kuumbwa in Santa Cruz; in solo and with her groups. In many television and radio projects, concerts and interviews she is also noted for her irreverent sense of humor. Her nationally recognized ...

216
Album Review

Gini Wilson Quartet: The Crossing Point

Read "The Crossing Point" reviewed by Ken Hohman


The concept of combining elements of classical music with jazz is hardly a new one. George Shearing, Miles Davis, Andre Previn and Bill Evans are just a few of the countless artists to blur the lines between the nightclub the concert hall. With Crossing Point, enormously gifted Bay Area pianist and composer Gini Wilson (a.k.a. The Duchess) puts her own spin on the concept with a musical direction she has labeled “chamberjazz." With the intuitive support of Steve Heckman on ...

Read more articles
131

Recording

Gini Wilson: The Duchess Releases a New CD of Solo Piano Jazz

Gini Wilson: The Duchess Releases a New CD of Solo Piano Jazz

Source: Michael Ricci

Best of the Vintage Solo Piano Jazz

Pianist Gini Wilson: The Duchess, is the Director and co-founder of the well known San Francisco ChamberJazz Quartet. Best of the Vintage contains lyrical and haunting arrangements of well-loved jazz standards, two pop songs, two bossa novas by the famed composer Amandio Cabral, and some emotionally resonant originals by the legendary Bay Area pianist.

“Wilson is a highly trained musician who is informed by the best elements of classical music and jazz. Emotion-drenched ...

Legendary in the Bay Area for her irreverent sense of humor as well as her mix of numerous jazz-related styles- Monk,Chopin, Piazzola, Waller, Bach, Bill Evans …pianist Gini Wilson founded this ensemble with reedsman Steve Heckman in 2002. Effortlessly and beautifully blending the realms of jazz and classical ..Proving with a little ingenuity, seemingly disparate musical styles … create perfect harmony. Jonathan Widran All Music Guide
Primary Instrument

Piano

Willing to teach

Advanced only

Credentials/Background

Performing jazz pianist; fully credentialed M.Music; member of International Association of Jazz Educators, ChamberMusic of America and Music Teachers Association California Branch Master Class: "The Spirit of Improvisation; Lifting classical Player Off The Page" e-mail: [email protected]

Clinic/Workshop Information

Master Class: "The Spirit of Improvisation; Lifting classical Player Off The Page" e-mail: [email protected]

Photos

Music

Videos

Similar

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.