Chester Monson Brooks Joseph Kerr III (December 26, 1951 – April 28, 2018) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

pianist. He was perhaps best known for being bandleader of a small group featuring

Sonny Greer William Alexander "Sonny" Greer (December 13, c. 1895 – March 23, 1982) was an American jazz drummer and vocalist, best known for his work with Duke Ellington. Biography Greer was born in Long Branch, New Jersey, United States, and play ...

and

Russell Procope Russell Keith Procope (August 11, 1908 – January 21, 1981) was an American clarinetist and alto saxophonist who was a member of the Duke Ellington orchestra. Before Ellington Procope was born in New York City, United States, and grew up in S ...

and for his knowledge of

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was based ...

's work, which he often performed.

Early life and education

Kerr was born in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

, to Chester Kerr, a notable editor who worked at

Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous. , Yale Universi ...

from 1949 until 1979, and Edith Kerr (née Chilewich), an editor and writer. Kerr was born premature, and suffered from a degenerative

retinal disease The retina (from la, rete "net") is the innermost, light-sensitive layer of tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focused two-dimensional image of the visual world on the retina, which then ...

called

retrolental fibroplasia Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), also called retrolental fibroplasia (RLF) and Terry syndrome, is a disease of the eye Eyes are organs of the visual system. They provide living organisms with vision, the ability to receive and process vi ...

, which made him blind in one eye and only partially seeing in the other. By the time he was 28, Kerr was totally blind due to

glaucoma Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that result in damage to the optic nerve (or retina) and cause vision loss. The most common type is open-angle (wide angle, chronic simple) glaucoma, in which the drainage angle for fluid within the eye rem ...

. Because of his blindness, his parents focused on teaching him to focus on other senses, notably music. Kerr learned the piano by assigning colors in his mind for each key. He became a child prodigy on the piano. When he was 2 years old, Kerr took lessons from Jane Stevens at

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

, and attended Dr. Milton Senn's Child Study Center. From 1954 to 1956, Kerr took private lessons from Jean Brown. He then attended the

Foote School New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,023 ...

in New Haven. In 1958, Kerr studied jazz with

Lucky Roberts Charles Luckyth Roberts (August 7, 1887 – February 5, 1968), better known as Luckey Roberts, was an American composer and stride pianist who worked in the jazz, ragtime, and blues styles. Biography Luckey Roberts was born in Philadelphia ...

. From 1961 to 1963, Kerr worked with Russell Rega in New Haven. In 1963, Kerr's parents got divorced. He and his siblings lived with his mother in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. From 1964 to 1972 studied piano with Sanford Gold. From 1969 to 1973, Kerr was a student of

Willie "The Lion" Smith William Henry Joseph Bonaparte Bertholf Smith (November 23, 1893 – April 18, 1973), nicknamed "The Lion", was an American jazz and stride pianist. Early life William Henry Joseph Bonaparte Bertholf, known as Willie, was born in 1893 in Goshen, ...

. From 1966 to 1970, Kerr attended the

Dalton School The Dalton School, originally the Children's University School, is a private, coeducational college preparatory school in New York City and a member of both the Ivy Preparatory School League and the New York Interschool. The school is located in ...

. He also attended the

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in mu ...

. He attended

The Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

, as well, up until 1972.

Career

The band Kerr led with Greer and Procope frequented

Greenwich Village Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...

jazz clubs and hotels in the New York City area. Kerr was an expert on

. Kerr also participated in several tributary projects devoted to

that featured former members of Ellington's crew, such as

Ray Nance Ray Willis Nance (December 10, 1913 – January 28, 1976) was an American jazz trumpeter, violinist and singer. He is best remembered for his long association with Duke Ellington and his orchestra. Early years Nance was the leader of his ow ...

and Francis Williams.

Death

Kerr died in

on April 28, 2018. He had kidney disease.

Discography

* 1974: ''Prevue,'' Brooks Kerr-Paul Quinichette Quartet with Gene Ramey & Sam Woodyard (Famous Door) * 1975: ''Soda Fountain Rag (The Music Of Duke Ellington)'' (aka Poodle Dog Rag), Brooks Kerr (Chiaroscuro Records) * 1981: ''Brooks Kerr Salutes Fats Waller,'' Brooks Kerr (Blue Wail Records) * 1981: ''Brooks Kerr Salutes Irving Berlin,'' Brooks Kerr (Blue Wail Records) * 1982: ''Brooks Kerr Salutes Duke Ellington,'' Brooks Kerr (Blue Wail Records)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kerr, Brooks American jazz pianists American male pianists 1951 births 2018 deaths Musicians from New Haven, Connecticut 20th-century American pianists Jazz musicians from Connecticut 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians