John Howard Riley (born 16 February 1943) is an English pianist and composer, who worked in

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 majo ...

and

experimental music Experimental music is a general label for any music or music genre that pushes existing boundaries and genre definitions. Experimental compositional practice is defined broadly by exploratory sensibilities radically opposed to, and questioning of, ...

idioms. Riley was born in

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into t ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

, England. He began learning the piano at the age of six, and began playing jazz as early as the age of 13. He studied at the

University of Wales The University of Wales (Welsh language, Welsh: ''Prifysgol Cymru'') is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff � ...

(1961–66),

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. * Indiana Univers ...

in America under David Baker (1966–67), and then at

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,000 faculty and staf ...

(1967–70). Alongside his studies he played jazz professionally, with

Evan Parker Evan Shaw Parker (born 5 April 1944) is a British tenor and soprano saxophone player who plays free improvisation. Recording and performing prolifically with many collaborators, Parker was a pivotal figure in the development of European free ...

(1966) and then with his own trio (1967–76), with Barry Guy on bass and Alan Jackson, Jon Hiseman, and Tony Oxley for periods on drums. Additionally he worked with John McLaughlin (1968), the

London Jazz Composers Orchestra Barry John Guy (born 22 April 1947, in London) is an English composer and double bass player. His range of interests encompasses early music, contemporary composition, jazz and improvisation, and he has worked with a wide variety of orchestras ...

(1970-1980s), and with Oxley's ensemble (1972–81). He and Guy worked in a trio with Phil Wachsmann from 1976 well into the 1980s, and played solo piano throughout North America and Europe. From 1978 to 1981, he played in a quartet with Guy, Trevor Watts, and John Stevens; in the early 1980s he did duo work with Keith Tippett, with Jaki Byard, and with

Elton Dean Elton Dean (28 October 1945 – 8 February 2006) was an English jazz musician who performed on alto saxophone, saxello (a variant of the soprano saxophone) and occasionally keyboards. Part of the Canterbury scene, he featured in, among oth ...

. From 1985 he worked in a trio with Jeff Clyne and Tony Levin. Riley has taught at the

Guildhall School of Music and Drama The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a conservatoire and drama school located in the City of London, United Kingdom. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jaz ...

and Goldsmiths, University of London, where he has taught since the 1970s.

Discography

* 1968 ''Discussions'' (Opportunity) * 1969 ''

Angle In Euclidean geometry, an angle is the figure formed by two rays, called the '' sides'' of the angle, sharing a common endpoint, called the '' vertex'' of the angle. Angles formed by two rays lie in the plane that contains the rays. Angles ...

'' (CBS) * 1970 ''

The Day Will Come ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...

'' (CBS) * 1971 ''Flight'' (Turtle) * 1974 ''Synopsis'' ( Incus) * 1977 ''Shaped (Music for Solo Piano)'' (Mosaic) * 1977 ''Intertwine (Music for Two Pianos)'' (Mosaic) * 1978 ''The Toronto Concert'' (Vinyl Records) * 1979 ''The Other Side'' ( Spotlite) * 1982 ''Duality'' (View) * 1984 ''For Four on Two Two'' (Affinity) * 1985 ''In Focus'' with Keith Tippett (Affinity) * 1987 '' Live at the Royal Festival Hall'' with Jaki Byard (

Leo Leo or Léo may refer to: Acronyms * Law enforcement officer * Law enforcement organisation * ''Louisville Eccentric Observer'', a free weekly newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky * Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity Arts an ...

) * 1990 ''Procession'' (Wondrous Music) * 1993 ''Beyond Category'' (Wondrous) * 1993 ''The Heat of Moments'' (Wondrous) * 1994 ''The Bern Concert'' with Keith Tippett ( FMR) * 1995 ''Wishing on the Moon'' with Castronari, Marsh (FMR) * 1997 ''Inner Minor'' (ASC) * 1998 ''Making Notes'' (Slam) * 1999 ''Short Stories'' * 1999 ''One to One'' with

(Slam) * 2001 ''First Encounter'' with Keith Tippett (Jazzprint; recorded 1981) * 2001 ''Singleness'' (Jazzprint; recorded 1974) * 2001 ''Trisect'' (Jazzprint) * 2001 ''Air Play'' (Slam) * 2001 ''Overground'' (Emanem; recorded 1974–1975) * 2002 ''Organic'' with Barry Guy, John Stevens (Jazzprint) * 2002 ''Four in the Afternoon'' with Larry Stabbins, Mark Sanders, Tony Wren (

Emanem Emanem Records is a record company and independent record label founded in London, England in 1974 by Martin Davidson and Madelaine Davidson to record free improvisation. Its headquarters moved to New York City (1975–76), New Jersey (1979, ...

) * 2003 ''Another Part of the Story'' with Keith Tippett, John Tilbury (Emanem) * 2003 ''Duology'' with Lol Coxhill (Slam) * 2004 ''Pianoforte'' with Keith Tippett, Grew, Thomas (Slam) * 2005 ''At Lincoln Cathedral'' (Heliopause) * 2005 ''Consequences'' (33 Jazz) * 2006 ''Four at St. Cyprians'' with Larry Stabbins, Mark Sanders, Tony Wren (FMR) * 2006 ''Short Stories (Volume Two)'' (Slam) * 2006 ''Two Is One'' (Emanem) * 2009 ''The Monk & Ellington Sessions'' (33 Jazz) * 2009 ''Three Is On''e (ASC) * 2010 ''Solo in Vilnius'' (NoBusiness) * 2012 ''St. Cyprians 2'' with Larry Stabbins, Mark Sanders, Tony Wren (FMR) * 2012 ''St. Cyprians 3'' with Philipp Wachsmann, Tony Wren (FMR) * 2013 ''Live with Repertoire'' (NoBusiness) * 2014 ''To Be Continued'' (Slam) * 2015 ''10.11.12'' (NoBusiness) * 2015 ''R&B'' with Jaki Byard (Slam) * 2018 ''Live in the USA'' (NoBusiness) * 2018 ''Listen to Hear'' (Slam)

As sideman

With Barry Guy/The London Jazz Composers' Orchestra * 1972 '' Ode'' (Incus) * 1989 '' Harmos'' (Intakt) * 1990 '' Double Trouble'' (Intakt)

References

Other sources

*Ed Hazell, "Howard Riley". '' The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Riley, Howard Academics of Goldsmiths, University of London Academics of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Alumni of the University of Wales Alumni of the University of York British jazz pianists Indiana University alumni Musicians from Huddersfield Emanem Records artists 1943 births Living people 21st-century pianists Incus Records artists FMR Records artists NoBusiness Records artists