Jazz Pianist, Composer, Arranger, Metropolitan Records Recording Artist
"She (Linda Presgrave) has the potential to make a major impact on the jazz world, with the highly enjoyable and creative music of Inspiration inspiring other musicians to develop their own voices.”
Scott Yanow – Jazz author
“She (Linda Presgrave) tells beautiful stories in the music she writes.”
John Stubblefield (Saxophonist)
"With her lyrical playing and a stellar ensemble, Presgrave adeptly mines the secular and spiritual side of the music while paying homage to her heroines."
Terrell Holmes - All About Jazz/New York
Linda Presgrave, jazz pianist, composer, and arranger, relocated to New York City in 1998 leaving a very active music career in her native city of St. Louis. Since that time, she has recorded five (5) CDs on the METROPOLITAN RECORDS label including Along the Path, Inspiration, The Journey, The Linda Presgrave Quartet – LIVE and In Your Eyes along with being a featured artist on the label’s compilation recordings - A Jazz Christmas:That Special Time of Year, Ballads in Jazz, Running With Jazz and Blues in Jazz.
All of Linda’s jazz recordings as a leader on Metropolitan Records as well as the label’s compilations include her original jazz compositions. She is dedicated to helping keep jazz a viable living cultural art form by composing music that is very accessible to the public.
Linda’s third recording, The Journey, serves as the beginning of her personal discovery and interest in the music of “inspirational jazz artists who happen to be women”. One of her missions is to bring attention to little known jazz works by women. The works on this CD were recorded by Linda’s working quartet (Stan Chovnick – soprano sax, Wei Sheng Lin – bass, Seiji Ochia- drums) along with famed jazz artists (Oliver Lake - alto saxophone and flute, Harvie S - bass Eric Allen – drums).
Linda was a featured artist on three different dates on the stage of the prestigious JVC Jazz Festival, New York as a part of the International Women in Jazz Festival Special Event Concert with The Linda Presgrave Quartet, as a member of the International Women in Jazz Ensemble and as a member of the International Women in Jazz All-Stars.
Linda’s European performance debut grew out of one of those JVC Jazz Festival performances. She was invited to perform as the pianist and as a composer with Ritmi E Voci Dell’International Women in Jazz, New York in Frascati, Italy as a part of the festival ControCanto:Donne in Jazz sponsored by Fondazione Adkins Chiti: Donne in Musica. Linda was invited back to Italy to perform on the same concert series three more times with her own group, The Linda Presgrave Quartet, at Scuderie Aldobranzini (Frascati), the University of Rome (Rome) and also at Casa Internazionale delle Donne (Rome). As a result of these performances with Donne in Musica, Linda was invited to perform on the Gala Concert: A Celebration of Women in Music at the first ever World Forum on Music in Los Angeles. Her performance in Los Angeles led to another invitation – this time to perform in Europe once again as a featured jazz artist on the VI. FESTIVAL INTERNATIONALDE MUSIQUE EN CATALOGNE which took place at Place Picasso in Céret, France and an additional concert in Le Boulou, France.
Linda continues to appear on many of New York’s most prestigious jazz festivals, stages and venues with her own group and also as a member of other jazz combos and ensembles. Previous past performances include Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola at the famed Jazz at Lincoln Center , the IRIDIUM Jazz Club, KITANO Jazz, Women in Jazz Festival at Saint Peter’s (aka as the “Jazz Church”), Sweet Rhythm, Flushing Town Hall, Cornelia Street Café, Club Bonafide , Detour, TOMI Jazz and the Uptown Lounge at Minton’s to name a few.
Some of the notable venues outside of New York where Linda has appeared are Jazz at the Bistro (St. Louis), Cookie’s Jazz and More (St. Louis), Just Jazz (St. Louis), Jazz at Holmes Series - Washington University (St. Louis), Mary Lou Williams Jazz Festival at the Kennedy Center (Washington, D.C.) with the Astoria Big Band, Nighttown (Cleveland, OH), Many Colors of a Woman Jazz Festival (Hartford, CT) and the Webster University Jazz Series (St. Louis, MO).
Linda has devoted her life to music and music education. Even though she now focuses her talents only on performing jazz piano, she continues to educate the public with her concerts and recordings that introduce the audience and listeners to music by great jazz artists who happen to be women. In fact, two of her CDs, “The Journey” and “Inspiration”, feature only music by women. “ Inspiration” was also named as one of the top 10 jazz CDs of the year 2009 by “Something Else”. 2015 marked the release of “Along the Path” and features her most recent original compositions. Linda’s compositions incorporate jazz and world music into her own unique style.
When not performing with her own group, Linda also serves as the pianist in Carol Sudhalter’s Astoria Big Band which was featured on the acclaimed Mary Lou Williams Jazz Festival at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. and performs regularly with “Ladies Day” a jazz ensemble featuring vocalist MJ Territo, bassist Iris Ornig and drummer Barbara Merjan.
Before arriving on the New York jazz scene, Linda performed with her own group, After Six Jazz, at the finest jazz venues in St. Louis including Jazz at the Bistro and Just Jazz. At the same time, she worked with the Sessions Big Band, the Modern Vintage Jazz Quartet and the Kim Portnoy Jazz Orchestra. As a former professional French Horn player, she performed regularly at the MUNY, FOX and RIVERPORT (St. Louis, MO) theaters in orchestral settings behind top entertainers, world class ballet ensembles and national theatrical productions.
As an educator Linda taught for many years at Washington University, as adjunct faculty, teaching French horn as well as jazz piano in the music department and also at various public and private schools in St. Louis including John Burroughs, Parkway School District and University City Schools. She also taught many students private lessons at the St. Louis Symphony Music School, CASA, Webster University, Fontbonne College and her own music studio. In 2011, she was named to the “Hall of Fame” in the Affton Education Foundation in St. Louis.
Quotes from Reviewers:
On ALONG THE PATH:
ALONG THE PATH which is filled with colorful solos and rich melodies, is one of Linda Presgrave’s finest recordings and is a strong step forward for the talented pianist-composer.
Scott Yanow – Jazz author
Surprise. For those who don’t know Presgrave, she’s not a middle aged seeker of wisdom and truth singing about the search thereof. She’s a real piano playing jazzbo that attracts real jazzbos to her side for her sonic impressionistic view of ports of call. Almost like an anti-Loreena McKennitt, Presgrave can go around the world and not make it seem so serious and self important. Smart stuff in line with the vibes thrown off by later period Windham Hill or Living Music, this is a sure bet if you want some comfy sitting down jazz that melts the wax in your ears instead of blowing it out. Well done.
Chris Spector/Midwest Record
Pianist Linda Presgrave has been a well respected presence in the New York jazz arena for 16 years now, so much so that she attracted the inimitable Harvie S to her ensemble and, man, does he ever insert a number of great solos throughout the session! Then there’s Allison Miller who understands exactly where the volume adjustments for her voices on the traps should go: sometimes brushy and mellow, other moments zippy and conversational, and every so often mashing hell out of ‘em so the listener knows where the emphases lie. Presgrave herself is constantly arriving from bucolic fields in solidly baroque jazzifications, many times even magisterial, oft mindful of olden Richie Beirach (his early ECM content), Art Lande, and Dave Brubeck. No matter where the rest of the combo may wander, she always has firm control but in the pleasantest of ways.
Mark S. Tucker – Acousticmusic.com
****RINGER OF THE WEEK**** Linda Presgrave/Along the Path: The mix of traditional sounds and modern musings is an irresistible time.
George W. Harris – Jazz Weekly
If it’s a solid piano and all original jazz you’re yearning for, look no further than this excellent album from Linda! I give Linda & crew a MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED with an “EQ” (energy quotient) rating of 4.98.
Rotcod Zzaj – improvijazzation- nation issue
On INSPIRATION:
She (Linda Presgrave) has the potential to make a major impact on the jazz world, with the highly enjoyable and creative music of Inspiration inspiring other musicians to develop their own voices.
Scott Yanow – Jazz author
Pianist Linda Presgrave is a talent awaiting discovery by the jazz public…Highly recommended. (INSPIRATION)
Ken Dryden – All Music Guide
Pianist Linda Presgrave delivers a gem of a recording proving what inspired play can produce, music that jazz audiences will enjoy and critics will rave about.
Edward Bianco – Ejazznews.com
A smart, tasty set that covers a lot of ground, Presgrave knows her way around the keys and delivers the goods. A nice find for piano fans on the prowl for something new that’s sure to tingle their ears.
Chris Spector - Midwest Record
Together this band grooves hard, listen hard and play memorable, forward thinking modern jazz. (Inspiration)
Tom Chandler – JazzReview.com
On THE JOURNEY:
With her lyrical playing and a stellar ensemble, Presgrave adeptly mines the secular and spiritual side of the music while paying homage to her heroines.
Terrell Holmes - All About Jazz/New York
The main star, however, is Linda Presgrave, whose piano style is pretty original and whose five songs are worth exploring. Recommended. *****
Scott Yanow - ALL MUSIC GUIDE
On IN YOUR EYES:
Linda Presgrave is truly a discovery who is pouring her heart into her first recording of national distribution.
Don Williamson - 52nd Street Jazz
She (Linda Presgrave) tells beautiful stories in the music she writes.
John Stubblefield (Saxophonist)
The St. Louis transplant Linda Presgrave, a probing, resourceful mainstream pianist with an impressive debut album, In Your Eyes, prowls the bebop landscape for all the stylistic diversity it can offer.
The New Yorker
Discography
LINDA PRESGRAVE - As a Leader
ALONG THE PATH – METROPOLITAN RECORDS (MR 1132)
INSPIRATION – METROPOLITAN RECORDS (MR 1129)
THE JOURNEY – METROPOLITAN RECORDS (MR 1124)
THE LINDA PRESGRAVE QUARTET - LIVE - METROPOLITAN RECORDS (MR 1123)
IN YOUR EYES - METROPOLITAN RECORDS (MR 1120)
METROPOLITAN RECORDS COMPILATIONS
BALLADS IN JAZZ - METROPOLITAN RECORDS (MR 1127)
A JAZZ CHRISTMAS:THAT SPECIAL TIME OF YEAR - METROPOLITAN RECORDS (MR 1125)
RUNNING WITH JAZZ - METROPOLITAN RECORDS - (only available as a digital download)
BLUES IN JAZZ - METROPOLITAN RECORDS – (only available as a digital download)
As a side person:
LADIES DAY – MJ TERRITO; JOLLIE MOLLIE MUSIC: New York, New York
SO MANY SONGS ABOUT LOVE - DEBBIE GIFFORD: Cleveland/New York
X-MAS X-ING: The Acme Brass Co - KAMPINI RECORDS: New Jersey (KAB60298)
Last Train to Astoria - Astoria Big Band - CAROLINA RECORDS: Astoria, New York
Wash Away the Dust of Everyday Life - KIM PORTNOY JAZZ ORCHESTRA: St. Louis, MO
Major Jazz Performances
(Jazz Piano)
CLUB BONAFIDE: New York, NY
COOKIE’S JAZZ AND MORE : St. Louis, MO
CORNELIA STREET CAFÉ: New York, NY
DIZZY'S CLUB COCA-COLA - JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER: New York, NY
FONDAZIONE ADKINS-CHITI: DONNE IN MUSICA: Frascati & Rome Italy (4 Festivals)
IRIDIUM JAZZ CLUB: New York, NY
JAZZ AT THE BISTRO: St. Louis, MO
JUST JAZZ: St. Louis, MO
JVC JAZZ FESTIVAL NEW YORK: New York, NY (3 IWJ Special Event Concerts)
LOUIS ARMSTRONG HOUSE: Flushing, NY
MARY LOU WILLIAMS JAZZ FESTIVAL: Washington D.C. - Carol Sudhalter’s Astoria Jazz Band
NIGHTTOWN: Cleveland, OH
SOMETHIN’ JAZZ: New York, NY
TOMI JAZZ: New York, NY
WARWICK HOTEL: New York, NY
WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: JAZZ AT HOLMES SERIES - St. Louis, MO
WEBSTER UNIVERSITY: JAZZ SERIES – St. Louis, MO
WOMEN IN JAZZ FESTIVAL Saint Peter’s Church: New York, NY
WORLD FORUM ON MUSIC: Gala Concert: A Celebration of Women in Music Los Angeles, CA
VI. FESTIVALE INTERNATIONALDE MUSIQUE EN CATALOGNE: Ceret, France & Le Boulou, France
"MANY COLORS OF A WOMAN" FESTIVAL: Hartford, CT