What happened to Monty Alexander? Measurements, Ethnicity



Known for movies



Monty Alexander is a world-renowned jazz pianist, composer and bandleader with a career spanning more than six decades. A native of Kingston, Jamaica, he began playing piano at the age of six and made his professional debut at the age of fifteen. He came to the United States in 1961 on a scholarship to the Berklee College of Music, and later toured with such jazz legends as Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins and Milt Jackson. He has recorded more than sixty albums as a leader, and his many collaborators include Frank Sinatra, Quincy Jones, Ray Brown, Herb Ellis and Oscar Peterson. His distinctive style blends elements of Jamaican mento and calypso with American jazz and blues, creating a sound that is uniquely his own.

Alexander has been awarded the National Medal of Arts, the nation’s highest honor for artistic achievement, by President Barack Obama. He is a member of the Grammy-winning trio The Three Piano Erroll Garner Tribute and has been awarded honorary doctorates from the Berklee College of Music and the University of the West Indies. He currently resides in New York City with his wife, the singer Irene Kral.

Born in Kingston, Jamaica on June 6, 1944, Monty Alexander was exposed to music at an early age. His father, a bandleader, exposed him to the sounds of American jazz and blues on the radio, and his mother was a singer who often performed at local clubs. When he was six years old, his father gave him his first piano lesson; by the age of fifteen, he was playing professionally in nightclubs.

In 1961, Alexander was awarded a scholarship to study at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. He later moved to New York City, where he quickly became a fixture on the jazz scene. He toured with such legends as Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins and Milt Jackson, and recorded more than sixty albums as a leader. His many collaborators include Frank Sinatra, Quincy Jones, Ray Brown, Herb Ellis and Oscar Peterson.

Alexander has been awarded the National Medal of Arts, the nation’s highest honor for artistic achievement, by President Barack Obama. He is a member of the Grammy-winning trio The Three Piano Erroll Garner Tribute and has been awarded honorary doctorates from the Berklee College of Music and the University of the West Indies. He currently resides in New York City with his wife, the singer Irene Kral.

Source: IMDb, Wikipedia