Joyce Collins
Encyclopedia
Joyce Collins was a jazz pianist
, singer and educator. Born 5 May 1930, Battle Mountain, Nevada
, USA; died 2010.
Collins began playing piano professionally at the age of 15 while still attending Reno High School in Nevada. Later, while studying music and teaching at San Francisco State College, she played in groups and solo at various jazz clubs, eventually going on tour with the Frankie Carle
band. In the late 50s Collins settled in Los Angeles, working there and also in Reno and Las Vegas, where she became the first woman to conduct one of the resort's show bands. During this time Collins worked in film and television studios, spending 10 years in the band on the Mary Tyler Moore Show and also on comedian Bob Newhart's shows. In 1975 she recorded with Bill Henderson. Their Street Of Dreams and Tribute To Johnny Mercer albums were Grammy nominees. Collins continued to work in films, coaching actors Jeff and Beau Bridges for their roles in The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989). Beginning in 1975, Collins taught jazz piano at the Dick Grove Music School. Collins wrote and arranged extensively, including a program, performed live and on radio, tracing the involvement of women in jazz as composers and lyricists. She appeared twice on Marian McPartland
's Piano Jazz radio show, most recently in Joyce Collins in Studio on Piano Jazz in 2002.
Although she performed mostly in solo, duo and trio work, Collins occasionally sat in with big bands, such as that led by Bill Berry. She also recorded with Paul Horn and under her own name. Her first album appeared in 1961, her next, Moment To Moment, after a long gap. Centered mainly in Los Angeles, Collins worked farther afield in places such as Mexico City, Paris as well as New York and Brazil. A gifted, fluent pianist with a strong sense of time and knowledge of the historical role of the piano in jazz, Collins made a considerable impression as a performer. Her composing and arranging talents are also worthy of mention. She sang pleasantly and with a delicate understanding of the lyricist's intentions.
She died on January 3, 2010.
Jazz piano
Jazz piano is a collective term for the techniques pianists use when playing jazz. The piano has been an integral part of the jazz idiom since its inception, in both solo and ensemble settings. Its role is multifaceted due largely to the instrument's combined melodic and harmonic capabilities...
, singer and educator. Born 5 May 1930, Battle Mountain, Nevada
Battle Mountain, Nevada
Battle Mountain is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Lander County, Nevada, United States. The population was 2,871 at the 2000 census. Though it has no legal status as a municipality, it still functions as the county seat of Lander County...
, USA; died 2010.
Collins began playing piano professionally at the age of 15 while still attending Reno High School in Nevada. Later, while studying music and teaching at San Francisco State College, she played in groups and solo at various jazz clubs, eventually going on tour with the Frankie Carle
Frankie Carle
Frankie Carle – , born Francis Nunzio Carlone, was a American pianist and bandleader. As a very popular bandleader in the 1940s and 1950s, Carle was nicknamed "The Wizard of the Keyboard"."Sunrise Serenade," however, was Carle's best-known composition, rising to No...
band. In the late 50s Collins settled in Los Angeles, working there and also in Reno and Las Vegas, where she became the first woman to conduct one of the resort's show bands. During this time Collins worked in film and television studios, spending 10 years in the band on the Mary Tyler Moore Show and also on comedian Bob Newhart's shows. In 1975 she recorded with Bill Henderson. Their Street Of Dreams and Tribute To Johnny Mercer albums were Grammy nominees. Collins continued to work in films, coaching actors Jeff and Beau Bridges for their roles in The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989). Beginning in 1975, Collins taught jazz piano at the Dick Grove Music School. Collins wrote and arranged extensively, including a program, performed live and on radio, tracing the involvement of women in jazz as composers and lyricists. She appeared twice on Marian McPartland
Marian McPartland
Margaret Marian McPartland, OBE is an English-born jazz pianist, composer, writer, and the host of Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz on National Public Radio, NPR.-Early life:...
's Piano Jazz radio show, most recently in Joyce Collins in Studio on Piano Jazz in 2002.
Although she performed mostly in solo, duo and trio work, Collins occasionally sat in with big bands, such as that led by Bill Berry. She also recorded with Paul Horn and under her own name. Her first album appeared in 1961, her next, Moment To Moment, after a long gap. Centered mainly in Los Angeles, Collins worked farther afield in places such as Mexico City, Paris as well as New York and Brazil. A gifted, fluent pianist with a strong sense of time and knowledge of the historical role of the piano in jazz, Collins made a considerable impression as a performer. Her composing and arranging talents are also worthy of mention. She sang pleasantly and with a delicate understanding of the lyricist's intentions.
She died on January 3, 2010.
As leader
- Girl Here Plays Mean Piano (Jazzland 1961)
- Moment To Moment (Discovery RecordsDiscovery RecordsDiscovery Records was a United States-based record label known for its recordings of jazz music.Discovery was founded in 1948 by jazz fan and promoter Albert Marx...
1981) - Sweet Madness (Audiophile 1990)
- Embraces the heart of Brazil (Audiophile, 2005)
As sideman
- Bill HendersonBill Henderson (actor)William Randall "Bill" Henderson is an American jazz vocalist and actor in television and film.Henderson was born in Chicago, Illinois. Henderson's acting credits have been numerous. Beginning in the mid-1970s, and continuing to this day, he has frequently appeared on television in supporting,...
, When My Dreamboat Comes Home (Joyce Collins(p), Dave Mackay(ep), Steve LaSpina(b), Jerry Coleman(d), Verve, 1965) - Paul Horn & the Concert Ensemble (Libbie Jo Snyder(f/pi), Bruce Emarine(f), Tim Weisberg (f), Joyce Collins(p/h), Chuck Collazzi(g), David Parlato(b), Bart Hall(d),Ovation Records, 1969)
- Bill Henderson, Live at the Times (Joyce Collins & Dave Mackay, Discovery, 1975)
- Bill Henderson Live, Joey Revisited (Steve LaSpina's, Dave Mackay, Joyce Collins, Jerry Coleman, Monad, 1976)
- Bill Henderson, Street of Dreams (Joyce Collins & Dave Mackay, Discovery, 1979)
- Bill Henderson, Something's Gotta Give (Dave Mackay, Jim Hughart, Jimmie Smith, Joey Baron, Joyce Collins, Pete Christlieb, Discovery, 1979)
- Bill Henderson, A Tribute to Johnny Mercer (W/ Joyce Collins & Dave Mackay, Discovery, 1981)