Alan Broadbent

Alan Broadbent
Birth name Alan Leonard Broadbent
Born (1947-04-23) 23 April 1947
Auckland, New Zealand
Genres Jazz
Occupation(s) Musician, arranger, composer
Instruments Piano
Years active 1974–present
Labels Granite, Trend, Concord Jazz
Associated acts Charlie Haden, Natalie Cole, Lennie Kesl
Website alanbroadbent.com

Alan Leonard Broadbent MNZM (born 23 April 1947) is a New Zealand jazz pianist, arranger and composer best known for his work with artists such as Charlie Haden, Woody Herman, Chet Baker, Irene Kral, Sheila Jordan, Natalie Cole, Warne Marsh, Bud Shank, and many others.

Early life

Born in Auckland in 1947, Broadbent studied piano and music theory in his own country, but in 1966 went to the United States to study at the Berklee College of Music.[1]

Later life and career

Broadbent's first professional gig was in a jazz trio with bassist Kevin Haines and drummer Tony Hopkins at Club 81 in Auckland New Zealand in the mid-1960s.

Broadbent's first two albums, Song of Home and Further Down the Road, were recorded in 1985 in New Zealand on the Tartar label (respectively TRL-043 and TRL-052). Broadbent is joined on those recordings by Andy Brown (bass) and Frank Gibson, Jr. (drums). Those early albums show a fascination (which still characterizes Broadbent's work) with reinterpreting a broad range of standards; he covers material as diverse as "What is this Thing Called Love?" (Cole Porter) and "Oleo" (Sonny Rollins). Further Down the Road also shows Broadbent's increasing confidence as a composer (the title tune, "Nictation" and "Don't Ask Why").

Broadbent's first U.S. release, Everything I Love, was recorded in Hollywood in April 1986 and released on the Discovery label (DS-929). In this set, Putter Smith replaces Brown on bass; Frank Gibson, Jr. continues with the trio. Again, Broadbent covers standards ranging from Oscar Hammerstein ("Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise") to John Coltrane ("Lazy Bird"), and contributes two original compositions ("Continuity" and "Mendocino Nights").

In the early 1990s he was asked to be a part of Natalie Cole's Unforgettable... with Love album, at which time he toured as her pianist and, a little while later, as her conductor. At this time he wrote an orchestral arrangement for her second video with her father, "When I Fall in Love", which won him his first Grammy for "Best Orchestral Arrangement Accompanying a Vocal".[2]

During the 1990s Broadbent was part of Charlie Haden's Quartet West.[3]

It was while he was with Haden that he won his second Grammy, an orchestral accompaniment written for Shirley Horn of Leonard Bernstein's "Lonely Town". As a soloist and with his jazz trio, Broadbent has been nominated for Grammys twice for best instrumental performance, in the company of such artists as Herbie Hancock, Sonny Rollins and Keith Jarrett.

Broadbent is Diana Krall's conductor for her occasional orchestra concerts and is the conductor on her Live in Paris DVD. Recently he has been the arranger on Glenn Frey's cd with strings, After Hours, and wrote six string arrangements for Paul McCartney's Kisses on the Bottom with the London Symphony. He has just returned from solo piano concerts in the UK, Poland and France. It has been his lifelong goal, through his orchestral arrangements and jazz improvisations, to discover, in popular music and standard songs, deeper feelings of communication and love.[4]

In the 2008 Queen's Birthday Honours Broadbent was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to jazz.[5]

In the November 2013 issue of Down Beat magazine, his trio CD Heart to Heart garnered a rare 5-star rating.

Discography

As a trio, duo or solo artist

As sideman

With Natalie Cole:

With Charlie Haden:

With Irene Kral:

With Bud Shank

See also

References

  1. ↑ Henderson, Alex. "Alan Broadbent: Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  2. ↑ <http://musicians.allaboutjazz.com/musician.php?id=5302#.UuB2Z3n0AfE
  3. ↑ Wynn, Ron. "Haunted Heart: Review". Allmusic. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  4. ↑ http://www.alanbroadbent.com
  5. ↑ "Queen's Birthday honours list 2008". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 2 June 2008. Retrieved 17 May 2015.

External links

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