Biography
|
Lewis Porter (PhD, Brandeis, 1983) is Professor of Music at Rutgers University in Newark, and founder and director of the Master's Program in Jazz History and Research there since Fall 1997. A leading jazz scholar, he has dedicated his career to raising the standards of jazz scholarship, and to mentoring young scholars worldwide and in his Master's program. While full-time at Rutgers, he has also taught at the New School, Manhattan School of Music, Jazz At Lincoln Center, and as a guest at numerous colleges in the US and Europe. He is an author or coauthor of six books on jazz and numerous articles on jazz, an assisting author of the definitive Coltrane discography, and a consultant to record producers, publishers, and producers of jazz radio shows and films. He is a frequent guest on radio (NPR, WNYC, WBGO, etc.), often quoted in print (NY Times, Star Ledger, etc.) and occasionally appears on TV and film (BET, BBC). He is Jazz Talk moderator for Jazz at Lincoln Center, where he organizes and leads four panels a year; recent guests have included Nat Hentoff, Billy Taylor, Don Byron, Ira Gitler, Roy Haynes, Randy Weston, Ravi Coltrane, Amiri Baraka, Jared Grimes, and others. He made numerous media appearances in 2005 about his role in researching and releasing the Monk/Coltrane Carnegie Hall recording. He was nominated for a Grammy in 1996 (under Best Historical Reissue) for his role in producing the boxed set of Coltrane's Atlantic Recordings. He has performed extensively, primarily as a pianist. He has recorded two CDs as a leader for the Altrisuoni label: Second Voyage (with Dave Liebman, Harvie S, Dan Faulk, Kenny Wessel, Marcus Baylor) and Italian Encounter(with Furio Di Castri and Fabrizio Sferra, leading European musicians). The critics rave about the latter CD, Porter's latest: "A HELLUVA PIANO PLAYER" (Jazz Times). (Lewis Porter plays) with a lively glitter and amazing sense of assurance." "Mixing experimental with traditional, (he) plays up a storm." "Porter is a deep thinker (whose music is) founded upon depth and cunning use of space."
His first book, Lester Young (1985), appeared in a revised edition in 2005 (University of Michigan Press), with an added photo section and CD guide. Porter edited A Lester Young Reader, coauthored Jazz: From Its Origins to the Present (with Michael Ullman, and Ed Hazell; Prentice-Hall,1992), compiled an anthology of historical articles and his own essays (Jazz: A Century of Change, Schirmer Books, 1997), and published the acclaimed study John Coltrane: His Life and Music (University of Michigan Press, Jan. 1998; Italian and French editions, 2007). The latter book won the 1999 Jazz Research Award from the Association of Recorded Sound Collections, and the Prix du livre de Jazz ("Best Jazz Book of the Year") from the Academy of Jazz in Paris.
In 2002 he was appointed editor for a series of books on jazz for the University of Michigan press, and he has completed a jazz encyclopedia which has been published at Jazz.com. He is editor of the comprehensive John Coltrane Reference book (Routledge, 2008). Perhaps most exciting of all, he is founder, and co-editor with Professor John Howland, of a new peer-reviewed journal, Jazz Perspectives, which began publication early in 2007.
Lewis Porter has a fast-rising profile as a jazz pianist and keyboardist (Yamaha Motif synthesizer, 76 keys). Known for a free and open attitude, he can contribute to any type of musical situation. His own groups swing like mad, taking a loose, open attitude to standard tunes and to Porter's own original compositions. Porter has appeared in concert with jazz masters such as Ravi Coltrane, Dave Liebman, Judi Silvano with Joe Lovano, Jeff Coffin, Jane Ira Bloom, Wycliffe Gordon, Joe Morris, Marc Ribot, George Garzone, Mark Dresser, Gerry Hemingway, Don Friedman, Alan Dawson, Joe Cohn, Gregg Bendian and many others. He is a regular member of the Indian-influenced group Dharma Jazz with Badal Roy, Vic Juris, and percussionist Karttikeya. often amplifies his concert appearances with separate appearances as a guest lecturer, or as the leader of workshops and master classes. In just the 07-8 school year, Porter was guest lecturer and/or performer at U of Penn, The U of the Arts (Phil., PA), Berklee College, BU, Northeastern, MIT, Worcester Polytechnic U, U of North Texas, Houston High School of Performing and Visual Arts, the public schools in Greece, NY, Eastman School of Music, and William Paterson U. (During the 1980s Porter performed as an alto saxophonist, and this has caused some confusion among his older fans. But he was a pianist first and was also playing piano all along.)
Lewis is divorced and has two grown children, Matt and Rachel. He lives in Port Chester, NY.
Lewis Porter's résumé/CV, as of May 06 (revised CV will be posted about once a year--regular updates are in Lew's News). This is 30 pages long!
