Paul C. Pieper (born October 20, 1972) is an American guitarist and composer, known primarily for his work as a jazz musician.

Biography

Pieper won second place from over 200 competitors at the 1995 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Guitar Competition, a global event whose judges included Jim Hall, Pat Metheny, John Scofield, and Pat Martino. As a jazz musician in the Washington D.C. area, Pieper has numerous appearances at D.C.'s

Blues Alley Blues Alley, founded in 1965, is a jazz nightclub in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Musicians who have performed at Blues Alley include John Abercrombie, Monty Alexander, Mose Allison, Tony Bennett, Rory Block, Ruby Braff, Gar ...

and a 2000 stint with the

Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra The Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra (SJMO) is the national jazz orchestra of the United States. It is based at the National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C., where it is the orchestra-in-residence. The SJMO was founded in 199 ...

to his name. Pieper has performed as a touring musician in numerous countries, including Bangladesh, Ecuador, Iceland, Japan, Korea, Russia, and Turkey. A composer and arranger, Pieper's compositions "Spider Monkey," "Pensées," "Kineticism," and "The Red and the Black" have all been included on recordings led by other musicians. As a

session player Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

, Pieper has appeared on upwards of twenty CD's, such as

Buck Hill Buck Hill is a ski hill in Burnsville, Minnesota, a suburb south of Minneapolis. It is one of three ski areas in the Twin Cities metropolitan area; the others are Afton Alps and Hyland Ski and Snowboard Area. Buck Hill opened in 1954 and offe ...

's 2005 release, ''Relax''. Best known for his work as a jazz player, Pieper's versatility is evidenced by his recent work as band leader and electric bassist for Five Finger Discount, a band performing classic

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

songs; he is also a founding member of Washington D.C. area indie rock band Glass and Apples.

Discography

As leader

* ''Stories of Before'' (Bright Orange, 2005) *''Standards'' (Bright Orange, 2018) *''Making Time'' (Bright Orange, 2018)

As sideman

, ''Relax'' ( Severn, 2005)

References

External links

Official site
* ttp://www.ffdband.com/ Five Finger Discount official sitebr>Glass and Apples MySpace site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pieper, Paul C. 1972 births Living people American jazz guitarists 21st-century American guitarists