Bill Carrothers

Not to be confused with Bill Carruthers.

Bill Carrothers (born 1964 in Minneapolis, Minnesota) is a jazz pianist and composer based in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.^[1][2] He has cited Clifford Brown, Shirley Horn, and Oscar Peterson as influences on his development as a musician.^[3][4] Carrothers performs without shoes to better feel the piano pedals, and sits in a chair rather than on a traditional piano bench in order to achieve his preferred seating height.^[2][5]

Career

Carrothers began playing piano at age five, studying with his church organist before learning jazz from Twin Cities pianist Bobby Peterson.^[3][6] By age 15 he was performing in Twin Cities jazz clubs, and in 1982 he briefly attended North Texas State University.^[4][7][8][9] Following his year at university, Carrothers re-settled in the Twin Cities and was a member of Irv Williams' band before moving to New York City in 1988.^[10] During his five-year stint in New York he performed at the Knitting Factory, The Village Gate, and Birdland as well as Blues Alley in Washington, D.C.^[1][3][4] Throughout his career, Carrothers has played live with a variety of musicians including Buddy DeFranco, Curtis Fuller, Billy Higgins, Freddie Hubbard, Lee Konitz, James Moody, Gary Peacock, Dewey Redman, Charlie Rouse, James Spaulding, Terell Stafford, Toots Thielemans, and Prince.^{[1][8][9][11]} Carrothers has performed throughout Europe, in France at the New Morning, Nevers Jazz Festival, and Marciac Festival, in Belgium at the Audi Jazz Festival and Jazz Middelheim, and he headlined the Rising Star Tour in October, 2000 through Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.^[1][2][3] In July, 2009, Carrothers played a week-long stand at the Village Vanguard with his European trio (Nicolas Thys and Dre Pallemaerts), a recording of which was released in 2011.^[12] In his home state of Michigan, Carrothers performed a solo piano concert at the Gilmore International Keyboard Festival in April, 2010, and he made his Monterey Jazz Festival debut in September, 2011.^[2][5][11] He is also a regular on the Chicago scene, having performed at the Chicago Jazz Festival, the Green Mill, and The Jazz Showcase.^[13] In 2011, Carrothers became an adjunct professor at Lawrence University in Wisconsin.^[2][11][13]

Awards and critical reception

Carrothers was awarded the Grand Prix du Disque for Jazz in 2004 and was nominated for the Les Victoires du Jazz (French Grammy Award equivalent) in 2005 and 2011.^[2][7] He has also been featured in top ten lists published by Jazz Magazine, Le Monde, and JAZZIZ Magazine.^[7] Down Beat called him "a probing, intelligent player" with "a beautiful touch and a wide stylistic range" who "never sounds less than a musician who thinks on his feet and channels emotions freely."^[14][15]

Discography

References