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NINE WINDS DISCOGRAPHY:
NWCD0134 The Richard Grossman Trio - Trio Live In Real Time
NWCD0146 Richard Grossman - In the Air
pianoRichard Grossman was born in New York City in 1937, and died of lung cancer in Oct, 1992. He grew up in the South, and began playing jazz piano professionally while still in high school in Philadelphia. In the mid-and late '50's, he was part of the now-legendary Philadelphia jazz scene, working with most of the local players, including Lee Morgan, Jimmy Garrison, Henry Grimes, Odean Pope, Reggie Workman, and many others.
His early piano work had been in the post-bop tradition, but, by the late '50's, he was listening to Ornette Coleman, as well as composers like Schoenberg, Webern, Cage, and the European avant-gardists. In1963, Grossman began working with free improvisation. He led the New Music Quintet in 1964-65, and produced the first Philadelphia concert of free jazz in May, 1965.
While jazz-based free piano improvisation remained his basic mode of expression, Grossman had a varied musical career, composing tape and electronic music, playing amplified cello, electric bass, vibes, percussion and electric piano in various new music and free jazz contexts. He also led the rock band, "Duck Soup" from 1972-78 in Philadelphia and San Francisco.
After 1978, Grossman lived in Los Angeles, playing concerts of solo piano improvisation, and also working in duo, trio and quartet settings with Vinny Golia, Alex Cline, Ken Filiano, John Carter and many other artists n the Nine Winds Records label. He was featured in several live radio concerts on stations KPFK and KCRW, and gave workshop-lectures and concerts at UCLA,Westmont, and Santa Monica Colleges. He was on the faculty at the Southern California Institute of Architecture, teaching jazz and improvised music and producing concerts.
