Mark Jay Levine (October 4, 1938 – January 27, 2022) 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 m ...

pianist, trombonist, composer, author and educator.

Early life

Levine was born in Concord, New Hampshire, on October 4, 1938. He began playing the piano at the age of five and started trombone in his early teens. He attended

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with ...

, and graduated with a degree in music in 1960. He also studied privately with

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 ...

, Hall Overton, and

Herb Pomeroy Irving Herbert Pomeroy III (April 15, 1930 – August 11, 2007) was an American jazz trumpeter, teacher, and the founder of the MIT Festival Jazz Ensemble. Early life Pomeroy was born in Gloucester, Massachusetts, United States. He began playing ...

Career

After graduating, Levine moved to New York, where he freelanced and then played with musicians including

Houston Person Houston Person (born November 10, 1934) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and record producer. Although he has performed in the hard bop and swing genres, he is most experienced in and best known for his work in soul jazz. He received the ...

(1966),

Mongo Santamaría Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría Rodríguez (April 7, 1917 – February 1, 2003) was a Cuban percussionist and bandleader who spent most of his career in the United States. Primarily a conga drummer, Santamaría was a leading figure in the pachanga an ...

(1969–70), and

Willie Bobo William Correa (February 28, 1934 – September 15, 1983), better known by his stage name Willie Bobo,Biography ''AllMusic'' was an American Latin jazz percussionist of Puerto Rican descent. Bobo rejected the stereotypical expectations of Lat ...

(1971–74). Levine then moved to San Francisco, and played there with

Woody Shaw Woody Herman Shaw Jr. (December 24, 1944 – May 10, 1989) was an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, composer, arranger, band leader, and educator. Shaw is widely known as one of the most important and influential jazz trumpet ...

in 1975–76. Levine made his first recording as a leader for Catalyst Records in 1976. He also played with the

Blue Mitchell Richard Allen "Blue" Mitchell (March 13, 1930 – May 21, 1979) was an American trumpeter and composer who worked in jazz, rhythm and blues, soul, rock and funk. He recorded albums as leader and sideman for Riverside, Mainstream Records, and ...

Harold Land Harold de Vance Land (December 18, 1928 – July 27, 2001) was an American hard bop and post-bop tenor saxophonist. Land developed his hard bop playing with the Max Roach/ Clifford Brown band into a personal, modern style, often rivalling Cliffo ...

Quintet (1975–79), Joe Henderson, Stan Getz, Bobby Hutcherson, Luis Gasca, and

Cal Tjader Callen Radcliffe Tjader Jr. ( ; July 16, 1925 – May 5, 1982) was an American Latin Jazz musician, known as the most successful non-Latino Latin musician. He explored other jazz idioms, even as he continued to perform music of Afro-Jazz, ...

(1979–83). From 1980 to 1983, he concentrated on valve trombone, but then returned to playing mainly the piano. He then led his own bands, and recorded for

Concord Concord may refer to: Meaning "agreement" * Pact or treaty, frequently between nations (indicating a condition of harmony) * Harmony, in music * Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other ...

as a leader in 1983 and 1985. From 1992 Levine was part of Henderson's big band. Levine created a new trio in 1996 and recorded it for his own, eponymous label. His Latin jazz group, Que Calor, was formed in 1997. Levine began teaching in 1970: in addition to private lessons, he worked at

Diablo Valley College Diablo Valley College (DVC) is a public community college with campuses in Pleasant Hill and San Ramon in Contra Costa County, California. DVC is one of three public community colleges in the Contra Costa Community College District (along with ...

(1979–95),

Mills College Mills College at Northeastern University is a private college in Oakland, California and part of Northeastern University's global university system. Mills College was founded as the Young Ladies Seminary in 1852 in Benicia, California; it was ...

(1985–95), Antioch University in San Francisco (1986–87), the

San Francisco Conservatory of Music The San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) is a private music conservatory in San Francisco, California. As of 2021, it had 480 students. History The San Francisco Conservatory of Music was founded in 1917 by Ada Clement and Lillian Hodg ...

(1992–97),

Sonoma State University Sonoma State University (SSU, Sonoma State, or Sonoma) is a public university in Rohnert Park in Sonoma County, California, US. It is one of the smallest members of the California State University (CSU) system. Sonoma State offers 92 Bachelor's ...

(1989-1990), and the

JazzSchool The California Jazz Conservatory is a private conservatory in Berkeley, California. It is the only independent music conservatory in the United States devoted solely to jazz and related styles of music. Located in the Downtown Berkeley Arts Distr ...

in Berkeley (from 1997). Levine also wrote two method books: '' The Jazz Piano Book'' (1990), and '' The Jazz Theory Book'' (around 1995). He was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

for Best Latin Jazz Album in 2003 for his recording ''Isla''.

Personal life and death

Levine died of pneumonia on January 27, 2022, at the age of 83.Local artists mourn death ‘one of our Bay Area musical icons’
The Mercury News, January 31, 2022

Discography

As leader

As sideman

With Pete & Sheila Escovedo * ''Solo Two'' ( Milestone Records, 1977) With

* ''La Onda Va Bien'' (

, 1979) * ''Gozame! Pero Ya...'' (Concord, 1980) * ''A Fuego Vivo'' (Concord, 1981) * ''

Heat Wave A heat wave, or heatwave, is a period of excessively hot weather, which may be accompanied by high humidity, especially in oceanic climate countries. While definitions vary, a heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the ...

'' (Concord, 1982) - with

Carmen McRae Carmen Mercedes McRae (April 8, 1920 – November 10, 1994) was an American jazz singer. She is considered one of the most influential jazz vocalists of the 20th century and is remembered for her behind-the-beat phrasing and ironic interpre ...

* ''Good Vibes'' (Concord, 1984) With

* '' Underground Soul!'' (Prestige, 1966) With

Joe McPhee Joe McPhee (born November 3, 1939) is an American jazz multi-instrumentalist born in Miami, Florida, a player of tenor, alto, and soprano saxophone, the trumpet, flugelhorn and valve trombone. McPhee grew up in Poughkeepsie, New York, and is ...

* '' Rotation'' (HatHUT, 1977) With

Moacir Santos Moacir Santos (26 July 1926 – 6 August 2006) was a Brazilian composer, multi-instrumentalist and music educator. Musicians such as Baden Powell, Bola Sete and Wilson das Neves studied under him. As a composer, Santos worked with Nara Leão, Ro ...

* ''

Saudade ''Saudade'' (, , , ; plural ''saudades'') is an emotional state of melancholic or profoundly nostalgic longing for something that one loves despite it not necessarily being real. It often carries a repressed knowledge that the object of lo ...

'' (Blue Note, 1974)

Bibliography

* '' The Jazz Piano Book'', Sher Music Co. (1989), ISBN 0961470151 * '' The Jazz Theory Book'', Sher Music Co. (1995), ISBN 1883217040 * ''Jazz Piano Masterclass with Mark Levine. The Drop 2 Book'', Sher Music Co. (2006), ISBN 1-883217-47-4 * ''How to Voice Standards at the Piano: The Menu'', Sher Music Co. (2014), ISBN 1883217806

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Levine, Mark 1938 births 2022 deaths 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American pianists 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century American pianists American jazz educators American music educators American jazz pianists American male pianists American male jazz musicians Afro Blue Band members People from Concord, New Hampshire Musicians from New Hampshire