Gárdonyi László
piano
Place of Birth
Budapest
Date of Birth
1956
Web
3 July 1956 Budapest
Jazz pianist, composer and music teacher, also professor of the Berklee College of Music.
His talent in music was visible at a very young age: he has already improvised on the piano from the age of five. He started to learn music at seven, first he chiefly played rock, blues and classical music, and as teenager he was mostly influenced by the music of Bill Evans, Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck and John Coltrane. From 1974 to 1979 he studied mathematics and physics at the Faculty of Nature of the Lóránd Eötvös University. Between 1976 and 1979 he was pupil of János Gonda at the Jazz Department of the Béla Bartók Secondary School for Music. He came in fourth place at the International Jazz Piano Contest in Kalisz, Poland.
After finishing his studies, he gave concerts in many countries of Europe with his international band, which was founded in 1980 with Imre Kőszegi, the bass player Jack Gregg and the saxophone player Zbigniev Namyslowski. He’s been living in the U.S. since 1983, and he was scholarship holder of the Berklee College of Music between 1983 and 1985. His trio that was founded in 1986 with Miroslav Vitous and Ian Froman, released a successful album titled The Secret in 1988. They won the first prize of the Great American Jazz Piano Competition in 1987.
In the USA he recorded many independent albums: The Legend of Tsumi (with Dave Holland and Bob Moses) and the Changing Standards were released in 1990, the Breakout in 1994, the Behind Open Doors in 2001, the Ever Before After in 2003, the Natural Instinct in 2006, and the Dig Deep in 2008. Throughout his career he performed with artists like Randy Brecker, Dave Liebman, Joe Lovano, Dave Holland, Bob Moses, John Abercrombie, John Blake, David (Fathead) Newman, Freddie Hubbard, Garrison Fewell, Mick Goodrick, Jamey Haddad, Steven Kirby, Tony Lakatos, John Lockwood, Yoron Israel and Shelley Neill. He regularly plays with The Wayfaring Strangers, besides, he composes music and makes instrumentations for the Big Band of the Danish Radio. He’s been on concert in more than twenty countries and he’s been invited to almost every prestigious jazz festival.
Actually he lives in Boston and he’s been teaching piano at the Berklee College of Music since 1987.
Jazz pianist, composer and music teacher, also professor of the Berklee College of Music.
His talent in music was visible at a very young age: he has already improvised on the piano from the age of five. He started to learn music at seven, first he chiefly played rock, blues and classical music, and as teenager he was mostly influenced by the music of Bill Evans, Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck and John Coltrane. From 1974 to 1979 he studied mathematics and physics at the Faculty of Nature of the Lóránd Eötvös University. Between 1976 and 1979 he was pupil of János Gonda at the Jazz Department of the Béla Bartók Secondary School for Music. He came in fourth place at the International Jazz Piano Contest in Kalisz, Poland.
After finishing his studies, he gave concerts in many countries of Europe with his international band, which was founded in 1980 with Imre Kőszegi, the bass player Jack Gregg and the saxophone player Zbigniev Namyslowski. He’s been living in the U.S. since 1983, and he was scholarship holder of the Berklee College of Music between 1983 and 1985. His trio that was founded in 1986 with Miroslav Vitous and Ian Froman, released a successful album titled The Secret in 1988. They won the first prize of the Great American Jazz Piano Competition in 1987.
In the USA he recorded many independent albums: The Legend of Tsumi (with Dave Holland and Bob Moses) and the Changing Standards were released in 1990, the Breakout in 1994, the Behind Open Doors in 2001, the Ever Before After in 2003, the Natural Instinct in 2006, and the Dig Deep in 2008. Throughout his career he performed with artists like Randy Brecker, Dave Liebman, Joe Lovano, Dave Holland, Bob Moses, John Abercrombie, John Blake, David (Fathead) Newman, Freddie Hubbard, Garrison Fewell, Mick Goodrick, Jamey Haddad, Steven Kirby, Tony Lakatos, John Lockwood, Yoron Israel and Shelley Neill. He regularly plays with The Wayfaring Strangers, besides, he composes music and makes instrumentations for the Big Band of the Danish Radio. He’s been on concert in more than twenty countries and he’s been invited to almost every prestigious jazz festival.
Actually he lives in Boston and he’s been teaching piano at the Berklee College of Music since 1987.
| Year | Title | Publisher | Code | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Tony Lakatos: Tony Lakatos and his friends | Krém | SLPX 17817 | LP |
| 1984 | Gárdonyi & Namyslowski: Reggae for Zbiggy | Krém | SLPX 17841 |
Own LP |
| 1988 | Gárdonyi László: The Secret | Antilles | AN8722 |
Own |
| 1989 | Gárdonyi László: The Legend of Tsumi | Antilles | 91250-2 |
Own |
| 1994 | Laszlo Gardony: Breakout | Avenue Jazz | R2 71829 |
Own |
| 1995 | Csaba Deseő: Magic Violin | Pannon Jazz | PJ 1001 | |
| 1996 | The Akadimpex Concerts | Pannon Jazz | PJ 1015 | |
| 1999 | George Haslam - Gárdony László: Harmonance | Slam | SLAMCD 310 |
Own |
| 2001 | Gárdonyi László: Behind open doors | Sunnyside | SSC 1093D |
Own |
| 2003 | Gárdonyi László: Ever before ever after | Sunnyside | SSC 1107 |
Own |
| 2006 | Gárdonyi László: Natural Instinct | Sunnyside | SSC 4003 |
Own |