Frank Zappa, Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis, Bill Evans and his last trio, Elliott Carter, Chopin, Beethoven, Bach, Rodrigo, Schumann, Liszt, Dizzy Gillespie, Thad Jones, Phil Woods, Bernhard Weiser, Frank Bencriscutto, Bill Berg, Archie Dean Walker III, Roger Dumas, Ralph Campagna, Ian Anderson, Chaka Khan, Keith Jarrett, Chick Corea, John McLaughlin, Sting, Bonnie Raitt, Joni Mitchell, Al Jarreau, Maurice Ravel, George Crumb, Rolf Gidlow, Bernhard Weiser, Pete Krogseng, Craig Taborn, Barbara Smith, Ella Fitzgerald, Tony Bennett, Artur Rubenstein, Jeff Beck, Bobby Crea, Eric Kamau Gravatt, Billy Barber, Luciana Souza, Jaco Pastorius, Klaus Tennstedt, Sarah Vaughn, Debbie Duncan, Leah Bernstein...
("LATE NIGHT SONGS" CD IS NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON.COM...WITH DIGITAL DOWNLOADS ON DIGSTATION.COM)
Peter Murray is an independent musician currently living in Pittsburgh. He grew up both improvising Jazz and performing the Classical repertoire of Western piano, studying the latter under Bernhard Weiser at the University of Minnesota and ultimately obtaining a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Piano Performance in 1987 before electing to retire from public music performance in order to pursue a “second” career in Psychiatry.
Early in his musical career, Murray performed with a number of notable Jazz figures, including Dizzy Gillespie, Thad Jones, Phil Woods, Louis Bellson, Eric Kamau Grávátt, Bill Berg, Roberta Davis, Bill Evans and many others. He was the pianist for the Univerisity of Minnesota Jazz Ensemble I for four years, performed the music of Rodgers, Hart & Hammerstein with the Minnesota Orchestra, and of Scott Joplin and Duke Ellington with Gunther Schüller. He recorded for National Public Radio and also played annual solo piano Classical recitals from age 8 through 22, having started to play by ear at age 3; his repertoire included such pieces as Bach-Busoni Organ Chorale Prelude transcriptions, the Haydn Sonata No. 62 in E flat, Schumann’s Carnavale, the Chopin Barcarolle and the great Piano Sonata (1945-46) of Elliott Carter. He rounded out his exploration of improvisation by studying the Classical music of India with Ustad Hafeez Ahmed Khan, also studying the Tabla Drums with Ustad Sadakat Hussein Khan when the masters were Artists in Residence at the University of Minnesota.
Murray comes out of musical "retirement" now to bring his unique musical language to everyone who enjoys the richness and depth, melodiousness and emotionality that the solo piano can offer. The songs he has recorded in Late Night Songs are all mainstream Jazz standards, yet the sound of his improvised orchestrations fuse elements from all the genres in which he trained. The end result is an evocative, personal and compelling music that doesn’t sound like Jazz or Classical or Indian so much as it just sounds ...human.
Hey there! You are so sweet, man! You have got a whole albums worth of tracks up here now! I am well, looking for job (as music teacher) and looking forward to a couple of weeks in Denmark soon! :) X
Hey Peter, Hope all is well. Wanted to let you know that I just got through to the Australian Idol top 100. It will only get harder from here but I'm going to give it my best shot. Brooke
The model as in i hope firm friends it's hard with AN OCEAN OF WATER BETWEEN US BUT ONE DAY WHEN my music takes me to your state i hope you have the kettle on as i'm sure we'll have a lot laugh and talk about. cream no sugar i'm sweet enough lol ; ))
I'm sitting here after a night of political banter and good wine and i am listening to your opus with a SAD MEANING. THIS IS SLIGHTLY ODD TO ME BECAUSE IT REMINDS ME OF JONI ALTHOUGH THERE ARE NO GUITARS OR lYRICS BUT IT RINGS TRUE TO ME LIKE A memory of something i once em brassed i know it is about your friend but to me it smacks of a long warm evening waiting for my friends to play outside under hazy skies. you know i love what you make the inside of you is everyth9ing i need to make me smile. there is more sadness in the compositions of others that you play, to me this is hope sweet and pure. i hear answers when your theme should be full of questions. thank god for you peter some souls are twinned and in your music i have found my twin. i love where you take me whether my hand be out stretched or not! ; ))
Thanks for the friendship here on Myspace. It's much appreciated.
I wish you great success with your musical endeavors.
On another front, I hear you have a book coming out soon. (I hope I'm not betraying secrets.) Nonetheless, may your book be a best seller! Then may you invite me into your entourage! (The latter I state with decorous sincerity. ;o)
Some arms would be good alas i only have someone hands being flung about my neck at the mo. Lots on here no time for love . I'm hoping that will change but i can't see from where though as i'm mostly surrounded by people in relationships boo hoo; )
hi Peter! i was enjoying A Child is Born - I remember first singing that song back when I lived in SF - haven't heard it in a long time. Are you all ready to vote in the PA primary? ;) I hope you're well out there, and enjoying the coming of spring. Thank you for your musical offerings! all best, Jen
Yup. I figured if he'd worked with you at some point, I'd like to hear what your music sounded like. Very nice. Love new music... (Don't know too much about blues, but I'm learning...)
ahh i'm back in my pram and just wanted to wish you a happy new year. You were on my ipod in spain this holiday chilled me right out so thanks for that...its gonna great mr murray very fine indeed ; )
