Bruce David Barth (born September 7, 1958) is a

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, composer, and producer.

Early life

Barth was born in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. I ...

, on September 7, 1958. He started to play the piano around the age of five. He had private jazz lessons with pianist

Norman Simmons Norman Simmons (1915–2004) was a DNA research pioneer."Obituaries". ''Harvard Dental Bulletin'' 10(4): 28. Fall 2004-Winter 2005. Simmons worked with Elkan Blout on proteins and polypeptides and was also recognized for isolating a structural ...

from 1978 to 1980 and studied at the

New England Conservatory of Music The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a Private college, private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music Music school, conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The ...

in the early 1980s, including under

Jaki Byard John Arthur "Jaki" Byard (; June 15, 1922 – February 11, 1999) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and arranger. Mainly a pianist, he also played tenor and alto saxophones, among several other instruments. He was known for hi ...

and George Russell.

Later life and career

Barth moved to New York in 1988, where he was part of groups led by

Stanley Turrentine Stanley William Turrentine (April 5, 1934 – September 12, 2000) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. He began his career playing R&B for Earl Bostic and later soul jazz recording for the Blue Note label from 1960, touched on jazz fusion dur ...

(1989–90) and

Terence Blanchard Terence Oliver Blanchard (born March 13, 1962) is an American trumpeter and composer. He started his career in 1982 as a member of the Lionel Hampton Orchestra, then The Jazz Messengers. He has composed more than forty film scores and performed ...

(1990–94). Barth's first album as a leader, ''In Focus'', was released by

Enja Records Enja Records is a German jazz record company and label based in Munich which was founded by jazz enthusiasts Matthias Winckelmann and Horst Weber in 1971. The label's first release was by Mal Waldron, and early releases included European and Jap ...

and was based around standards. The follow-up, ''Morning Call'', was also released by Enja and the material was mostly Barth originals. He has led his own small groups since 1993, and has been a freelance pianist and arranger. He was on the teaching faculty of the

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

from 1985 to 1988 and

Long Island University Long Island University (LIU) is a private university with two main campuses, LIU Post and LIU Brooklyn, in the U.S. state of New York. It offers more than 500 academic programs at its main campuses, online, and at multiple non-residential. LIU ...

from 1990. He has also been a record producer, including for vocalist

Carla Cook Carla Cook is a Grammy-nominated jazz vocalist. Biography Cook was drawn to a life of music at an early age. As a student at Cass Technical High School she played string bass in the school orchestra, studied piano and voice on weekends, and s ...

Discography

An asterisk (*) indicates that the year is that of release.

As leader

As sideman

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barth, Bruce American jazz pianists American male pianists Musicians from Pasadena, California 1958 births Living people 20th-century American pianists Jazz musicians from California 21st-century American pianists 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Enja Records artists Double-Time Records artists