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Kenny Barron was born June 9, 1943 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the younger brother of the late tenor saxophonist Bill Barron. Starting on piano at 12, by 1957 he was playing in with Mel Melvin’s R& B band. By the time he turned 18, he was living in New York and playing with the likes of James Moody, Lee Morgan, Roy Haynes and Lou Donaldson. From 1962 to 1966 he was a member of Dizzy Gillespie’s quartet, followed by stints with Freddie Hubbard, Yusef Lateef, Stanley Turrentine, Milt Jackson, Buddy Rich and Ron Carter.

In the Eighties, Barron along with Buster Williams, Ben Riley and Charlie Rouse co-founded the quartet Sphere, focusing on music composed by Thelonious Monk and original compositions inspired by him. He has also co-led the Classical Jazz Quartet and led his own trios and quintets with a multitude of players.

Kenny recorded several albums with Stan Getz between 1987 and 1991 including his last duet project. He has been nominated for a Grammy nine times often for both album and solo performance, he consistently wins jazz critics and readers polls for Down Beat, Jazz Times and Jazziz magazines and is a six time recipient of Best Pianist by the Jazz Journalists Association.

Known for his lyrical, adaptive style, Barron is the pianist of choice for the most prestigious jazz musicians in the world. In 2005 he was inducted into the American Jazz Hall of Fame, won the MAC Lifetime Achievement Award and in 2010 was honored as a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master.

For over 25 years, Barron taught piano and keyboard harmony at Rutgers University in New Jersey mentoring young musicians like David Sanchez, Terence Blanchard and Regina Bell. He now teaches at the Manhattan School of Music, has recorded nearly four dozen albums as a leader and many more as a sideman with jazz greats such as Ella Fitzgerald, Booker Ervin, Roy Haynes, Joe Henderson, Bobby Hutcherson, Elvin Jones, Yusef Lateef and James Moody. He continues to perform, record and tour with his newest quintet “Brazilia” featuring some of Brazil’s greatest musicians.

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