CONCERT June 13, 2010, 7:00 - 8:30 pm (Seating at 6:30 pm) Tribute to Bud Powell Tickets: $25 (Advance reservations only!) Casa Rondena Winery / Los Ranchos de Albuquerque 505.344.5911 / info@casarondena.com Bud Powell Born in New York City in 1924, Bud Powell studied piano from an early age and was something of a prodigy, noted for his performances of works by Bach and other classical composers. He became interested in jazz early on, and was performing professionally by the time he was a teenager. While originally inspired by swing-era pianists like Art Tatum, Powell soon came under the influence of bebop musicians such as Thelonious Monk and Charlie Parker, and he developed a unique piano style suited to this new music. Flowing melodic lines in his right hand emulated the bebop horn players, while the sparse, rhythmically-placed chords in his left hand were the perfect accompaniment to the walking bass lines and rhythmic drum accents of the bebop rhythm section. His minimal use of the left hand made some wonder whether he lacked proficiency with it, but this was in fact not the case: once at a performance Art Tatum criticized Powell's limited use of his left hand, prompting Bud to perform the entire next set with his left hand only! In spite of his brilliance, Powell's musical career was somewhat uneven, due to lifelong issues with mental illness, exacerbated by electroshock therapy and a severe beating at the hands of the police. In 1959, Powell moved to Paris, where he worked with local musicians as well as fellow American expatriates where he was befriended by Francis Paudras. As his mental state and playing deteriorated, he moved back to the U.S. in 1964, and he died two years later at the age of 41. Powell's compositions are an important, if somewhat neglected, part of the early bebop repertoire. They run the gamut from typically bebop-styled pieces like "Wail" and "Celia" to more unique and personal works such as "Parisian Thoroughfare" and "Un Poco Loco". Other works such as "Tempus Fugit" reveal the early influence of Bach, an influence that can also be heard, though less obviously, throughout his other compositions and improvisations.