Biography
LEE SHAW
Pianist, composer, and bandleader Lee Shaw is a youthful octogenarian who has more energy, passion, and intellectual curiosity than many people a fraction of her age. She has had her own swinging, acoustic jazz piano trio for more than 40 years, during which time she performed in numerous clubs, concerts, and festivals in the United States and Europe. Her latest CD/DVD, Live in Graz, brings us face to face with this genius of jazz who is finally receiving her due.
Lee Shaw has laser-like musical intensity, true mastery of the piano, and her tonal palette is huge. Owen McNally of The Hartford Courant notes that Lee Shaw is, “a modest, irresistible person of immodest, irrepressible talent. She comes across both in the interview and at the keyboard as an artist who had a virtually religious calling for jazz, come what may.” Bill Milkowski, in Jazz Times, observes , "her harmonic language is expansive, her time impeccable, her touch divine."
Born in Cushing, Oklahoma in 1926, she grew up in Ada,Oklahoma. Shaw learned the "American Songbook" tunes when they were new. She had a voracious appetite for music of all kinds: "I loved music, and I wanted to carry it with me wherever I went. That's why I was really happy when tape recorders came along!" She graduated from the Oklahoma college for Women and earned her Master’s Degree in piano from the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago, but the lure of jazz came strong, and soon she was playing in clubs all over the city.
It was in Chicago that she met drummer Stan Shaw, and they formed a piano trio. Shortly after their marriage in 1962, the couple moved to Puerto Rico, and while there Lee studied with Jesu Maria Sanroma at Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico. She credits her club and concert playing during this period for the influence Latin music has had on her composing and playing. A year later the couple moved to New York, playing their first gig at The Embers. Other city engagements included the Village Vanguard, the Half Note, Minton's Playhouse and other clubs in Harlem.
The trio also performed at the Apollo theatre, the benefit for the Dr. Martin Luther King march on Washington.
Over the years, Shaw studied with Oscar Peterson, taught piano to John Medeski, and worked with countless jazz luminaries including Dexter Gordon, Thad Jones, Chico Hamilton, Pepper Adams, Zoot Simms, Al Cohn, Richard Davis, Slam Stewart, Major Holly, and Eddie Jones, among others. Bandleaders such as Lionel Hampton asked her to join their groups, but she turned down these offers in order to focus on the trio. In 1993, she was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.
Eventually Lee and Stan moved to Albany, New York as they continued to play with big name musicians near home and on the road. In the mid 1990s, Lee and bassist Rich Syracuse began playing as a duo because of Stan's increasing disability. Jeff (Siege) Siegel joined as drummer after Stan's death in 2001, and a new incarnation of the trio formed.
The Lee Shaw Trio has appeared at the Mary Lou Williams Jazz Festival at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. New York state performances include the Lake George Jazz Festival, Hyde Museum, Saugerties Pro Musica, Adirondack Community College, Wall Street Jazz Festival, North Pointe Cultural Arts Center, Spencertown Academy, Rensselaerville Institute, Schenectady Museum, the concert series A Place for Jazz, SUNY Albany, and their CD release concert in the new Massry Center for the Arts. In Oklahoma, the trio has played at East Central University, Oklahoma Central University, and the University of Science and Arts. In 2006, Lee Shaw and bassist Rich Syracuse played a concert at Steinway Hall in San Jose, California. Lee has also appeared on Marian McPartland’s Piano Jazz program, and NPR hailed her, along with McPartland, and the late Mary Lou Williams, as “one of jazz’s premier pianists.”
In 2007 the trio embarked on their three country tour in Europe, where they performed concerts in Austria, Switzerland, and Germany. One of the Austrian concerts was recorded by the Austrian Broadcast Company and became the centerpiece of their 2008 release "Live in Graz" CD/DVD. The German concert, held at the art gallery and concert hall, World of Basses in Reutlingen, prompted owner and musical instrument dealer Tobias Festl to organize the Lee Shaw Jazz Festival for September of 2008. This unique venue draws together an eclectic mix of visual arts and jazz, and in performance allows for a cultural exchange of musicians from around the world. Guest appearances at the Lee Shaw Jazz Festival included noted European musicians Nils Wogram, Torsten Goodes, Julian Wasserfuhr, Cecile Vendry, and Harry Sokol. The trio will be returning to Europe in May of 2009 for more concerts.
Since 1983, Lee has been adjunct faculty at the College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York, and also instructs privately. Lee is an ardently passionate teacher. "So many jazz musicians have been so generous to me in the past. The only way I can truly thank them is to pass on to my students what I learned from them. "
During the Lee Shaw Jazz Festival in Reutlingen, Germany this last September, Armin Knaver noted in a profile of Lee that “playing before the public is not a stressor for her, but a wellspring of pure energy.” Lee Shaw herself adds “As long as it’s so much fun for me, I’ll keep on.”
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RICH SYRACUSE
STRING BASSIST, ELECTRIC BASSIST, COMPOSER
Rich Syracuse has been a mainstay on the New York area scene for more than two decades. For several years, he performed in the Nick Brignola Quartet playing clubs, festivals, and recording sessions. Besides his years with Brignola, he has performed with Mose Allison, Brubeck Brothers, Randy Brecker, Warren Bernhardt, Sumi Tonoka, David Torn, Mike DeMicco, Peter Levin, Sam Morrison, Jimmy Cobb, Bernard Purdy, Adam Nussbaum, Jeff Siegel, Eddie Henderson, Jeff "Tain" Watts and several others.
For the past 10 years, Rich has been the Bassist for Pianist Lee Shaw. He is the Adjunct Professor for String and Electric Bass Studies at Skidmore College in Saratoga, New York. Rich has toured throughout Europe and Southern Africa. As well as touring, Rich is an in demand Bassist throughout the northeast region of the USA.
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JEFF "SIEGE" SIEGEL
DRUMMER, COMPOSER/ARRANGER
Drummer Jeff “Siege” Siegel has performed and/or recorded with a diverse group of jazz artists ranging from veteran performers such as Kenny Burrell, Ron Carter, Benny Golson, Lee Shaw, Wadada Leo Smith, Jack DeJohnette, Baikida Carroll and Mose Allison to those a generation below such as Dave Douglas, Ravi Coltrane, Stefon Harris, Kurt Elling, Graham Haynes and Steve Turre. He was a member of the Sir Roland Hanna Trio from 1994-1999. He is the leader of The Jeff “Siege” Siegel Quartet. He has been described by Jazz World Magazine as a “brilliant drummer”. His 2005 debut cd as a bandleader “Magical Spaces” on the CAP label was critically acclaimed by several publications including Cadence, All Music Guide, Jazz Improv, and several others. Veteran Jazz Artist Jimmy Heath recently noted ..."Jeff's musicality is incredible. He is so tasty as a percussionist and he has become a fine composer/arranger”. A sampling of Siege’s discography includes: Ryan Kisor’s Minor Mutiny (Columbia) and Arthur Rhames Trio Live From Soundscape (DIW). Jeff is also on the faculties of S.U.N.Y. at New Paltz as well as Western Connecticut State University. He is an endorsing artist for Vic Firth Drumsticks.
HONORS
2008: Centennial Celebrations Award as One of Ten Highly Successful Women Graduates; University of Art and Science (formerly Oklahoma College for Women); Chickasha, Oklahoma
2008: Lee Shaw Jazz Festival; Art Gallery (World of Basses); Reutlingen, Germany
2005: Certificate of Recognition for Excellence as “Musician, Jazz Educator, Superb Pianist, and Teacher”; Albany Musicians Association; Albany, New York
2002: Honorary Doctorate; College of Saint Rose; Albany, New York
2001: Swingtime Lifetime Achievement Award; Swingtime Jazz Society; Troy, New York
1999: Alumni Hall of Fame, Induction; University of Science and Art; Chickasha, Oklahoma
1993: Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame, Induction; Tulsa, Oklahoma
Instrumentation
Lee Shaw - piano
Rich Syracuse - bass
Jeff "Siege" Siegel - drums
Discography
“LIVE IN GRAZ “ – ARC (Artists Recording Collective)
The Live at Graz CD/DVD collection is co-produced by Jeff (Siege) Siegel and Rich Syracuse. It’s comprised of audio recordings, video footage, and still photography from their 2007 European Tour and subsequent interviews. The Austrian Broadcast Company recorded a two hour concert at Café Stockwerk in Graz, Austria, and portions of that concert make up the CD. Five of the eight songs that are Lee Shaw originals are a testament to her formidable gifts as a composer. Although she had composed for decades, it was only at Rich Syracuse’s urging that Lee began performing these pieces publicly.
The concert footage on the DVD confirms what is clear on the CD; this is an incredibly tight trio that plays with real telepathy. Each of Shaw's solos is a self-contained musical journey in which a perfect narrative arc is created. The solos often arise from the smallest melodic seeds, which then bear spectacular fruit. Her band mates are always right behind her, reacting to every turn.
“ORIGINALS” – Island View Records
“LITTLE FRIEND” – Luvlee records
“A PLACE FOR JAZZ” -- Cadence Records
“ESSENCE” -- CIMP
“LEE SHAW OK!” – Cadence Records
Links
| "Nipper's Dream" Best of 2007, Times Union |
| "Easy Walker" - World of Basses |
| "Lonely Town" - World of Basses |