Geri Allen

{{Short description|American jazz musician and educator (1957–2017)}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Geri Allen

| image = Geri-allen-by-pablo-secca.jpg

| caption = Allen in 2008

| image_size = 200px

| birth_date = {{birth date|1957|6|12}}

| birth_place = Pontiac, Michigan, U.S.

| death_date = {{death date and age|2017|6|27|1957|6|12}}

| death_place = Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.

| alma_mater = Howard University
University of Pittsburgh

| spouse = {{marriage|Steve Coleman|1987|1989|end=div}} {{cite web | url=https://www.reddit.com/r/Jazz/comments/qh23tx/separate_the_art_from_the_artist/ | title=Separate the art from the artist? | date=27 October 2021 }} {{marriage|Wallace Roney|1995|2008|end=div}}

| children = 3

| module =

{{Infobox musical artist

| embed = yes

| background = non_vocal_instrumentalist

| genre = Jazz, blues, funk, gospel

| occupation = Musician, educator, composer

| instrument = Piano

| years_active = 1982–2017

| label = Motema Music, Polygram, Storyville, Blue Note, Telarc

| associated_acts =

| website = [http://www.geriallen.com/ www.GeriAllen.com]

}}

File:Geri Allen DSC0110b.jpg

Geri Antoinette Allen (June 12, 1957 – June 27, 2017) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. She taught at the University of Michigan and the University of Pittsburgh.

Early life and education

Allen was born in Pontiac, Michigan, on June 12, 1957, and grew up in Detroit. "Her father, Mount Allen Jr, was a school principal, her mother, Barbara, a government administrator in the defence industry." Allen was educated in Detroit Public Schools.{{Cite book | last = Cook | first = Richard | year = 2005 | title = Richard Cook's Jazz Encyclopedia | publisher = Penguin Books | location = London | isbn = 0-141-00646-3 | page = 8}} She started playing the piano at the age of seven, and settled on becoming a jazz pianist in her early teens.

Allen graduated from Howard University's jazz studies program in 1979.{{cite news |last=Schudel |first=Matt |date=June 28, 2017 |title=Geri Allen, Versatile Jazz Pianist, Composer and Educator, Dies at 60 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/geri-allen-versatile-jazz-pianist-who-appeared-with-musical-greats-dies-at-60/2017/06/28/d6084e1c-5c0d-11e7-a9f6-7c3296387341_story.html?noredirect=on |newspaper=The Washington Post }} She then continued her studies: with pianist Kenny Barron in New York; and at the University of Pittsburgh, where she completed a master's degree in ethnomusicology in 1982. After this, she returned to New York.

Later life and career

File:Trio 3 + Geri Allen featuring Andrew Cyrille, Reggie Workman and Oliver Lake - 6122681066.jpg

Allen became involved in the M-Base collective in New York. Her recording debut as a leader was in 1984, resulting in The Printmakers. This trio album, with bassist Anthony Cox and drummer Andrew Cyrille, also featured some of Allen's compositions.

Allen married trumpeter Wallace Roney in 1995. They had a daughter and a son; the marriage ended in divorce. Allen was awarded the Jazzpar Prize in 1996. In the same year, she recorded two albums with Ornette Coleman: Sound Museum: Hidden Man and Sound Museum: Three Women.

In 2006, Allen composed "For the Healing of the Nations", a suite written in tribute to the victims and survivors of the September 11 attacks.{{cite news |last=Fordham |first=John |author-link=John Fordham (jazz critic)|date=July 3, 2017 |title=Geri Allen Obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/jul/03/geri-allen-obituary |newspaper=The Guardian }} She was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2008.

Allen was a longtime resident of Montclair, New Jersey.Staudter, Thomas. [https://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/09/nyregion/making-jazz-and-family-home-and-the-road-work-together.html "Making Jazz and Family, Home and the Road Work Together"], The New York Times, September 9, 2001. Accessed September 18, 2017. "Her luggage already packed for a late afternoon flight to San Francisco, Geri Allen, a jazz pianist, still had several precious hours remaining before her departure out of Newark, so she was filling the morning in the company of three children, ages 3 to 11. Ms. Allen's husband, Wallace Roney, a trumpeter, had returned home after midnight from an evening rehearsal at Carnegie Hall, and to respect his need to sleep, mother and children romped in the yard until growling stomachs sent them back inside to the breakfast table.... Ms. Allen and Mr. Roney have lived in their three-story frame house in Montclair, a short trip from Manhattan, since 1991." Geri Allen and Wallace Roney were divorced in 2008. For 10 years she taught jazz and improvisational studies at the University of Michigan, and she became director of the jazz studies program at the University of Pittsburgh in 2013.{{cite news |last=Russonello |first=Giovanni |date=June 27, 2017 |title=Geri Allen, Pianist Who Reconciled Jazz's Far-Flung Styles, Dies at 60 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/27/arts/music/geri-allen-dead-jazz.html |work=The New York Times }}

Allen died on June 27, 2017, two weeks after her 60th birthday, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, after suffering from cancer.{{cite news|last=Adlet|first=David R.|url=http://wbgo.org/post/geri-allen-brilliantly-expressive-pianist-composer-and-educator-dies-60|title=Geri Allen, Brilliantly Expressive Pianist, Composer and Educator, Dies at 60|work=WGBO|date= June 27, 2017|access-date= June 27, 2017}}

Awards

Honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee, 2014{{Cite web|url=https://www.berklee.edu/news/jimmy-page-geri-allen-valerie-simpson-thara-memory-receive-honorary-degrees-berklee|title=Jimmy Page, Geri Allen, Valerie Simpson, Thara Memory to Receive Honorary Degrees {{!}} Berklee College of Music|website=www.berklee.edu|language=en|access-date=September 7, 2019}}
Guggenheim Fellowship, 2008{{Cite web|url=https://www.gf.org/fellows/all-fellows/geri-allen/|title=John Simon Guggenheim Foundation {{!}} Geri Allen|language=en-US|access-date=September 7, 2019}}
African American Classical Music Award from Spelman College, 2007{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2017/06/27/534409838/geri-allen-pianist-composer-and-educator-dies-at-60|title=Geri Allen, Pianist, Composer And Educator, Dies At 60|website=NPR.org|language=en|access-date=September 7, 2019}}
The Benny Golson Jazz Master Award, 2005{{Cite web|url=http://huje.org/benny-golson-award |title=Benny Golson Award |website=Howard University Jazz Ensemble |access-date=September 20, 2023}}
Distinguished Alumni Award from Howard, 1996{{cite web |url=https://financialservices.howard.edu/sites/financialaid.howard.edu/files/2022-10/HowardUniversityAlumniOutcomesAssessment2015.pdf |title=Howard University Alumni Outcomes Assessment Project: Perspectives Along the Path to Truth and Service |website=Howard University |access-date=February 5, 2024}}
Danish Jazzpar Prize (first woman recipient), 1996{{cite book |last=Shipton |first=Alyn |title=On Jazz: A Personal Journey |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2022 |pages=247 |isbn=978-1-108-99833-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WrNrEAAAQBAJ}}{{cite magazine |date=June 29, 1996 |title=As Gender Bias Fades, New Artists Emerge |magazine=Billboard |pages=94 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pgkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA94}}
Soul Train{{'}}s Lady of Soul Award (first recipient) for jazz album of the year for Twenty-One, 1995

Discography

= As leader/co-leader =

Main sources:[http://www.jazzlists.com/SJ_Geri_Allen.htm Jazzlists: Geri Allen: leader and co-leader discography]. Retrieved November 22, 2017.[https://www.jazzdisco.org/geri-allen/discography/ "Geri Allen Discography"], JazzDisco.org. Retrieved November 22, 2017.

class="wikitable sortable"

! Recording date

! Title

! Label

! Year released

! Personnel/Notes

1984-02

|The Printmakers

|Minor Music

|1985

|Trio, with Anthony Cox (bass), Andrew Cyrille (drums, percussion)

1985-01

|Home Grown

|Minor Music

|1985

|Solo piano

1986-12

|Open on All Sides in the Middle

|Minor Music

|1987

|With Rayse Biggs (trumpet, flugelhorn), Robin Eubanks (trombone), David McMurray (soprano sax, flute), Steve Coleman (alto sax), Jaribu Shahid (bass), Tani Tabbal (drums), Shahita Nurallah (vocals); plus guests Mino Cinelu (drums, percussion), Lloyd Storey (tap dance), Marcus Belgrave (flugelhorn)

1989

|Twylight

|Minor Music

|1989

|Trio, with Jaribu Shahid (bass), Tani Tabbal (drums), plus Sadiq Bey (congas, percussion), Eli Fountain (percussion) as guests, and Clarice Taylor Bell (vocals) on one track

1989-03

|In the Year of the Dragon

|JMT

|1989

|Trio, with Charlie Haden (bass), Paul Motian (drums); one track quartet, with Juan Lazaro Mendolas (flute) added

1989-04

|Segments

|DIW

|1989

|Trio, with Charlie Haden (bass), Paul Motian (drums)

1990-01

|The Nurturer

|Blue Note

|1991

|Sextet, with Marcus Belgrave (trumpet, flugelhorn), Kenny Garrett (alto sax), Robert Hurst (bass), Jeff "Tain" Watts (drums), Eli Fountain (percussion)

1990-12

|Live at the Village Vanguard

|DIW

|1991

|Trio, with Charlie Haden (bass), Paul Motian (drums); in concert

1990-12

|Live at the Village Vanguard: Unissued Tracks{{cite web |url=https://www.jazzmusicarchives.com/album/geri-allen/live-at-the-village-vanguard-unissued-tracks(live) |title=Geri Allen - Live at the Village Vanguard: Unissued Tracks |website=Jazz Music Archives |access-date=February 5, 2024}}

|Somethin' Cool

|2022

|Trio, with Charlie Haden (bass), Paul Motian (drums); in concert

1992-02

|Maroons

|Blue Note

|1992

|With Marcus Belgrave and Wallace Roney (trumpet), Anthony Cox and Dwayne Dolphin (bass), Pheeroan akLaff and Tani Tabbal (drums) in various combinations

1994-03

|Twenty One

|Blue Note

|1994

|Trio, with Ron Carter (bass), Tony Williams (drums)

1995-12,
1996-03

|Eyes in the Back of Your Head

|Blue Note

|1997

|Some tracks solo piano/synthesizer; some duos with Ornette Coleman (alto sax), Wallace Roney (trumpet) and Cyro Baptista (percussion); some trio tracks, with Roney (trumpet) and Baptista (percussion)

1996-03

|Some Aspects of Water

|Storyville

|1997

|With Henrik Bolberg Pedersen (trumpet, flugelhorn), Johnny Coles (flugelhorn), Kjeld Ipsen (trombone), Axel Windfeld (tuba), Michael Hove (alto sax, flute, clarinet), Uffe Markussen (tenor sax, soprano sax, bass clarinet), Palle Danielsson (bass), Lenny White (drums)

1998-02

|The Gathering

|Verve

|1998

|With Wallace Roney (trumpet, flugelhorn), Robin Eubanks (trombone), Dwight Andrews (piccolo, alto flute, bass flute, bass clarinet), Vernon Reid (guitar), Ralphe Armstrong (7-stringbass), Buster Williams (bass), Lenny White (drums), Mino Cinelu (percussion) in various combinations

2004-01

|The Life of a Song

|Telarc

|2004

|Trio, with Dave Holland (bass), Jack DeJohnette (drums); one track sextet, with Marcus Belgrave (flugelhorn), Dwight Andrews (sax), Clifton Anderson (trombone) added

2006-03

|Timeless Portraits and Dreams

|Telarc

|2006

|Trio, with Ron Carter (bass), Jimmy Cobb (drums); some tracks solo piano; some tracks with Wallace Roney (trumpet), Donald Walden (tenor sax), Carmen Lundy, George Shirley and The Atlanta Jazz Chorus (vocals) added in various combinations

2008-12

|Flying Toward the Sound

|Motéma

|2010

|Solo piano

2009-02

|Geri Allen & Timeline Live

|Motéma

|2010

|Quartet, with Kenny Davis (bass), Kassa Overall (drums), Maurice Chestnut (tap dance)

2011-01,
2011-04

|A Child Is Born

|Motéma

|2011

|Solo keyboards; some tracks with Carolyn Brewer, Connaitre Miller, Barbara Roney and Farah Jasmine Griffin (vocals) added in various combinations

2012-08

|Grand River Crossings

|Motéma

|2013

|Solo piano; some tracks duo, with Marcus Belgrave (trumpet); one track duo with David McMurray (alto sax)

2012-09

|A Lovesome Thing{{cite web |url=https://www.jazzmusicarchives.com/album/geri-allen/geri-allen-and-kurt-rosenwinkel-lovesome-thing(live) |title=Geri Allen & Kurt Rosenwinkel: A Lovesome Thing |website=Jazz Music Archives |access-date=February 5, 2024}}

|Motéma

|2023

|Duo, with Kurt Rosenwinkel (guitar)

2015-06

|Perfection

|Motéma

|2016

|Trio, with David Murray (tenor sax, bass clarinet), Terri Lyne Carrington (drums); one track sextet, with Wallace Roney (trumpet), Craig Harris (trombone), Charnett Moffett (bass) added

= As sidewoman =

Main source:[http://www.jazzlists.com/SJ_Geri_Allen.htm Jazzlists: Geri Allen sidewoman: main albums and selected single artist collections]. Retrieved November 22, 2017.

With Franco Ambrosetti

Movies (Enja, 1987) – rec. 1986
Movies Too (Enja, 1988)

With The Batson Brothers

Three Pianos for Jimi (Douglas, 1998){{Discogs master|1509312|Triad - Three Pianos for Jimi}}

With Betty Carter

Droppin' Things (Verve, 1990) – live
Feed the Fire (Verve, 1994) – live rec. 1983
The Music Never Stops (Blue Engine, 2019) – live

With Ornette Coleman

Sound Museum: Hidden Man (Harmolodic/Verve, 1996)
Sound Museum: Three Women (Harmolodic/Verve, 1996)

With Steve Coleman

Motherland Pulse (JMT, 1985)
And Five Elements: On the Edge of Tomorrow (JMT, 1986)
And Five Elements: World Expansion (JMT, 1986)
And Five Elements: Sine Die (Pangaea, 1986) – 1 track

With Charlie Haden

1987: Etudes (Soul Note, 1988)
1989: The Montreal Tapes: with Geri Allen and Paul Motian (Verve, 1997)
1989: The Montreal Tapes: Liberation Music Orchestra (Verve, 1999)

With Oliver Lake

Expandable Language (Black Saint, 1984)
Otherside (Gramavision, 1988)
Talkin' Stick (Passin' Thru, 2000)

With Charles Lloyd

Lift Every Voice (ECM, 2002)
Jumping the Creek (ECM, 2005) – rec. 2004

With Wallace Roney

Munchin' (Muse, 1993)
Crunchin' (Muse, 1993)
Mistérios (Warner Bros., 1994)
Village (Warner Bros, 1997)
No Room for Argument (Stretch, 2000)
Prototype (HighNote, 2004)
Mystikal (HighNote, 2005)
Jazz (Highnote, 2007)

With Trio 3 (Oliver Lake, Reggie Workman & Andrew Cyrille)

At This Time (Intakt, 2009)
Celebrating Mary Lou Williams–Live at Birdland New York (Intakt, 2011)

With others

Cecil Brooks III, The Collective (Muse, 1989)
Roy Brooks, Duet in Detroit (Enja, 1993) – rec. 1989
Buddy Collette, Flute Talk with James Newton (Soul Note, 1988)
Craig Handy, Reflections in Change (Sirocco Music, 1999)
Joseph Jarman, Inheritance (FourStar, 1991) - rec. 1983
Frank Lowe, Decision in Paradise (Soul Note, 1984)
Paul Motian, Monk in Motian (JMT, 1988)
Greg Osby, Mindgames (JMT, 1988)
Dewey Redman, Living on the Edge (Black Saint, 1989)
Gregory Charles Royal, Dream Come True (GCR, 1979) – reissued (Celeste (Japan), 2008)
Woody Shaw, Bemsha Swing (Blue Note, 1997) – rec. 1986
John Stubblefield, Bushman Song (Enja, 1986)
Wayne Shorter, Joy Ryder (Columbia, 1988)Yanow, S. [http://allmusic.com/album/joy-ryder-r147521/review AllMusic Review] accessed April 2, 2012
Gary Thomas, By Any Means Necessary (JMT, 1989)
Ernie Watts, Unity (JVC, 1995)
The Mary Lou Williams Collective, Zodiac Suite: Revisited (Mary, 2006)
Buster Williams, Houdini (Sirocco Music, 2001) – rec. 2000
Reggie Workman, Cerebral Caverns (Postcards, 1995)
V.A., Kansas City (A Robert Altman Film, Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Verve, 1996)

Filmography

Geri Allen portrays jazz pianist Mary Lou Williams and performs with the jazz band in the Robert Altman film Kansas City.

References

{{Reflist|30em|refs=

}}

External links

[http://www.geriallen.com Official Website] 4
[http://motema.com/artist/geri-allen Geri Allen] at Motéma Music
[https://web.archive.org/web/20100626035028/http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/musician.php?id=3360 Geri Allen at All About Jazz]
[https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15131132 Geri Allen at NPR Music]
[http://streams.wgbh.org/online/play.php?xml=specials/jazz_conversations/jazz_1993_02_18_allen_geri.xml&template=wgbh_audio Jazz Conversations with Eric Jackson: Geri Allen], from [https://web.archive.org/web/20091006000423/http://www.wgbh.org/jazz/ WGBH Radio Boston]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20110106050609/http://blog.rhapsody.com/2010/12/jazz2010.html Geri Allen] at Rhapsody

Category:1957 births

Category:2017 deaths

Category:African-American jazz pianists

Category:African-American record producers

Category:American women jazz musicians

Category:American jazz composers

Category:American women jazz composers

Category:American jazz educators

Category:Cass Technical High School alumni

Category:Deaths from cancer in Pennsylvania

Category:Howard University alumni

Category:Jazz musicians from Detroit