Quick Facts
Biography
Miles Black (born April 13, 1966) is a multi-instrumentalist and producer residing in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Early life
Miles Black was born in Port Alberni, British Columbia. He started playing piano at age 12. He studied jazz and classical music with George Essihos and began performing professionally at age 14 in Victoria, B.C., with various jazz and R & B groups as pianist, arranger and composer.
By the age of 18, Black had worked as a music therapist, musical director of the C.A.S.T. Theatre Company, guitarist, bassist, saxophonist, vocalist and scoring films in the Victoria and Vancouver Island area.
Career
In 1987, Black moved to Vancouver and has since performed with Glenda Rae, Ann Mortifee, Shari Ulrich, Maynard Ferguson, Valdy, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Slide Hampton, Mark Murphy, Rodney Whitaker, Dee Daniels, Carl Anderson, Christine Duncan, Skywalk (band) (as keyboardist since 1989), Oliver Gannon, Kenny Colman, Carl Allen, the Mike Allen Quartet, The Robin Shier Quintet, Almeta Speaks, The Paul Horn Band (USSR Tour 1988), Wildroot Orchestra, Chuck Israels, Jim Ferguson, Brad Turner, Soulstream, Sam Masich, Rob Frayne, Fraser MacPherson, Max Roach, Claudio Roditi, Jeff Hyslop and Ruth Nichols, Lew Tabackin, Houston Person, Gaye Delorme, The Bill Clark Sextet, Von Freeman, Ernie Krivda, Johnny Frigo, Martha Lorin and has played with many other popular, established artists locally and abroad.
Black taught piano at Capilano College in Vancouver from 1990 to 1996, and toured across Canada in 1996 with his own quartet featuring the drummer Claude Ranger.
Black also played piano and keyboards for musical theatre and recording sessions for television and film.
Black has also experience producing music instructional software (complete with transcripts), including The Jazz Pianist Levels One & Two, The New Age Pianist, The Children's Pianist, The Modern Jazz Pianist, Jazz Piano Masterclass, and an Oscar Peterson instructional CD ROM.
Black has a long-standing composition/performance relationship with West Coast vocalist/lyricist Glenda Rae, and together have written over 350 songs, and recorded several albums.
In addition to Black's ongoing collaborations with local and visiting singers and instrumentalists, he has teamed up with Juno Award-winning saxophonist and jazz flute player Tom Keenlyside to create their jazz ensemble, Altered Laws. The quartet performs regularly and Black and Keenlyside are currently writing and producing new material to accompany albums The Outsiders and Live at the Cellar (both released 2005).
Discography
Miles Black has performed on over 150 albums, including:
- Another Day - Glenda Rae (2004 Brown Bag Music)
- The Cocktail Party Vol. 1 - Glenda Rae (2008 Carltunes Recordings)
- Larger Than Life - Skywalk (1994 Mesa Blue Moon)
- Great Northern - Skywalk (1996 Lions Gate Records)
- Some Enchanted Evening - (2007 Miles Black Trio, Live at the Jazz Cellar)
- Love Story - Dee Daniels (1999 Three X D Music)
- Bellingham Sessions, vols 1&2 - Chuck Israel's Quartet
- Live At The Cellar - Oliver Gannon Quartet
- One Step Closer - Mike Allen (Almus 1998)
- Different Standards - Christine Duncan (1998)
- The Vogue Show - Christine Duncan (1998 SafetyNet Productions)
- For All We Know- Vince Mai Band (1998)
- Straight Ahead - Kenny Colman (Justintime Records 1999)
- Stay With Me - Aubrey Tadman (2001 Groovetime Records)
- Suburban Groove - Robin Shier (Unity Records 1993)
- My Kingdom For A Reed - Stewart Loseby (CBC 2001)
- Struggle To Surface - Moreen Meridan (1999)
- Spin Cycle - Miles Black Quartet (1995)
- Purple Phase - Miles Black Trio (1991)
- Hooked On Romance - Renee Doruyter
- Excentrique - Michel Pan (2000)
- Land Of Passages - Fiona Blackburn
- Everybody's Crying Mercy - LilyAnn MacDonald (1994)
- Why Do People Fall In Love - Doug Laalo (2001)
- The Outsiders - Altered Laws (Artist Jazz Recordings)
- Metaphora - Altered Laws (winner of West Coast Music Award 2008)(Artist Jazz Recordings)
- Two - (jazz duet with bassist Rene Worst)
- In The Shade - Gwen Greenway / Ken Mayo (2004)
- Silk Stockings - Gwen Greenway / Ken Mayo (2008)
- One With You-Trudi Diening (2009)
- Holiday Party (Christmas Album)- Armi Grano(2010 JAC Productions)