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Mulgrew Miller (August 13, 1955 – May 29, 2013) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. As a child he played in churches and was influenced on piano by Ramsey Lewis and then Oscar Peterson. Aspects of their styles remained in his playing, but he added the greater harmonic freedom of McCoy Tyner and others in developing as a hard bop player and then in creating his own style, which influenced others from the 1980s on. Miller's style evolved through playing with a series of major jazz figures. After leaving university he was pianist with the Duke Ellington Orchestra for three years, then accompanied vocalist Betty Carter. Three-year stints with trumpeter Woody Shaw and with drummer Art Blakey's high profile Jazz Messengers followed, by the end of which Miller had formed his own bands and begun recording under his own name. He was then part of drummer Tony Williams' quintet from its foundation, while continuing to play and record with numerous other leaders, mostly in small groups. Miller was Director of Jazz Studies at William Paterson University from 2005, and continued to play and tour internationally with other high profile figures in the music until his death from a stroke at the age of 57. ==Early life== Mulgrew Miller was born in Greenwood, Mississippi,〔 to parents who had been raised on plantations.〔Bourne, Kay (November 2, 1995) "Musician's Musician Jazz Pianist Performs in Homage to His Roots". ''The Bay State Banner''. p. 17.〕 He had three brothers and four sisters.〔 His family was not musical, but they had a piano, which no-one in the house could play.〔Dockery, Ben (September 9, 2008) ("Mulgrew Miller – Stressing Conceptual Clarity" ). Chicago Jazz Magazine.〕 Miller, however, played tunes on the piano from the age of six, playing by ear.〔 He had piano lessons from the age of eight.〔 As a child, he played blues and rhythm and blues for dances, and gospel music in a church.〔 His family was Methodist, but he played in churches of various denominations.〔Mergner, Lee (January 18, 2010) ("Mulgrew Miller to Appear with Julliard Jazz Ensemble in Celebration of MLK Day" ). ''JazzTimes''.〕 His principal influence on piano at this stage was Ramsey Lewis.〔 While at high school, Miller formed a trio that played at cocktail parties.〔 His elder brother recommended that he listen to pianist Oscar Peterson, but there was no way of doing this in Greenwood until Peterson appeared on ''The Joey Bishop Show'' on television〔 when Miller was about 14.〔 After watching Peterson's performance, Miller decided to become a pianist: "It was a life changing event. I knew right then that I would be a jazz pianist".〔("Mulgrew Miller" ). Allaboutjazz.com. Retrieved October 30, 2013.〕 Miller later mentioned Art Tatum and Erroll Garner as piano influences during his teenage years.〔Panken, Ted (2005) ("Mulgrew Miller, R.I.P. (1955–2013) – A Downbeat Article and Several Interviews" ). (May 29, 2013) Interview transcript. tedpanken.wordpress.com.〕 Miller reported years later that he always found that playing fast was easy, so playing slowly and with more control were what he had to work hardest on.〔"Miller's Tale" (1993) ''Piano & Keyboard''. p. 328.〕 After graduating from Greenwood High School,〔 Miller became a student at Memphis State University in 1973,〔Feather, Leonard & Gitler, Ira (1999) ''The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz'', p. 152. Oxford University Press.〕 attending with a band scholarship.〔 He played euphonium, but, during his two years at the university,〔 Miller met pianists Donald Brown and James Williams, who introduced him to the music of well-known players such as Wynton Kelly, Bud Powell, and McCoy Tyner.〔 Still at Memphis State, Miller attended a jazz workshop, where one of the tutors was his future bandleader, Woody Shaw, who stated that they would meet again in two years.〔 They did meet again two years later, and Shaw remembered the young pianist.〔 After leaving university in 1975, Miller took lessons privately in Boston with Madame Margaret Chaloff, who had taught many of the pianists that Miller admired.〔 He later commented that, "I should have stayed with her longer, () but at that time I was so restless, constantly on the move."〔 Miller played with saxophonists Ricky Ford and Bill Pierce in Boston.〔 That winter, Miller was invited to Los Angeles by a school friend and decided to go, to escape the northern cold.〔 He stayed on the West Coast for a year, playing locally in clubs and a church.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Mulgrew Miller」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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