Biography

Pianist and composer Kenny Werner was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1951. Although he was educated in classical piano, his talent for improvisation led him to Berklee, where he studied with Madame Chaloff during the ‘70s. From 1981 to 1995, he was part of a trio with Tom Rainey (drums) and Ratzo Harris (double bass). With this ensemble, he traveled across America and Europe, in addition to recording four albums. During those years, he also played in the Mel Lewis Orchestra – now known as the Village Vanguard Orchestra – for which he composed original music. Those orchestral compositions eventually led him to write for the Cologne, Danish, Stockholm and Finland’s UMO jazz orchestras. He was also a soloist and a guest composer of the Dutch Metropole. He currently writes for European major orchestras. In the ‘90s, he began playing duo with harmonica player Toots Thielemans. He also accompanied and arranged for Betty Buckley, with whom he recorded six albums. In 2000, he started a trio with Ari Hoenig (drums) and Johannes Weidenmueller (bass). The group released three albums; the latest one, Peace, recorded live at the Blue Note during 2004, marked the beginning of a fruitful relationship with Half Note Records. In 2010, he was awarded the Guggenheim prize for No Beginning No End, an album including original compositions for choir, string quartet and wind ensemble and featuring Joe Lovano and Judi Silvano.