Roger Kellaway
Roger Kellaway recently hit a major milestone: He turned 80 on November 1. For many who reach that monumental threshold, it’s a time for reflection and winding down. However, those concepts don’t exist for a Grammy-winning and Oscar-nominated pianist/composer/arranger/bandleader who’s recorded more than 250 albums and scored an impressive list of films and TV shows. He recently finished a weeklong double engagement at Birdland in New York, playing both downstairs (in a trio with guitarist Roni Ben-Hur and bassist Jay Leonhart) and upstairs (with the Django Festival Allstars, who celebrated their 20th anniversary).
Upon returning home to Southern California, Kellaway performed with his West Coast trio—Bruce Forman on guitar and John Clayton on bass—at Vitello’s in Studio City. He also works regularly with a young 10-piece ensemble led by trumpeter Ilya Serov, in addition to creating new classical and jazz commissions and working on jazz combo recordings. On a very un-L.A. wet afternoon just before Thanksgiving, Kellaway experienced his first Before & After listening session. It took place at his Larchmont Village condo, which he and wife Jorjana use as an urban hub, away from their main residence in Ojai, 75 miles outside of Los Angeles.
1. Roberta Piket
“Threnody” (One for Marian: Celebrating Marian McPartland, Thirteenth Note). Piket, piano; Steve Wilson, alto saxophone and flute; Virginia Mayhew, tenor saxophone and clarinet; Bill Mobley, trumpet and flugelhorn; Harvie S, bass; Billy Mintz, drums and percussion. Recorded in 2016.
The flautist reminds me of Hubert Laws. The last flute player I worked with was Mel Martin in San Francisco—very
