- Reginald Robinson
Reginald R. Robinson, born October 19, 1972, is a noted composer and performer of
ragtime music. In 2004, he received aMacArthur Genius Grant . He was raised by working class parents in Chicago, for many years living in theHenry Horner Homes , a South Side housing project. He hasAbsolute pitch .Biography
In 1986, (Robinson was in seventh grade at the time,) Urban Gateways (a performing group sponsored by the city of Chicago) visited Robinson's school. They performed a variety of musical works including Scott Joplin's The Entertainer. This piece intrigued him because, although he had heard it played by ice-cream trucks before, he had never considered it as a serious musical work. Robinson wanted to learn the piano, but his families finances only allowed for a small keyboard, which he began teaching himself how to play. In 1987, his mother bought a piano at an affordable price from a neighbor who was moving. He dropped out of school and spent the next three years teaching himself a number of rags, learning how to read and write music. Being generally unable to afford musical education, he was largely self taught. Around 1990, he began composing the pieces which would constitute his debut album. In 1992, he began searching for work in the musical world, eventually meeting pianist
Jon Weber , who helped him get his first recording contract.He released his first CD, "The Strongman" in 1993, and followed up with "Sounds in Silhouette" (1994), then "Euphonic Sounds" (1998). All three were released by Delmark Records, an independent record label based in Chicago and specializing in jazz and blues. Although these records garnered critical praise, they did not sell well, and Robinson had difficulty finding gigs. In 2003, in the face of mounting financial difficulties, he stopped playing the piano until learning, in 2004, that he had won the MacArthur grant, which, besides financing his continued playing, boosted his profile in the Jazz community. He has released one more CD, "Man Out of Time" (2006).
External links
* [http://www.reginaldrobinson.com/aboutreginald.html Personal Website]
* [http://maroon.uchicago.edu/voices/articles/2006/02/27/ragtime_great_regina.php Chicago Maroon, 2006. "Ragtime great Reginald Robinson combines education with syncopation"]
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