John Bunch

by Scott YanowJohn Bunch has had a long and distinguished career even if his abilities as an accompanist and supportive player have long led to him often being taken for granted. He started on piano when he was 11 and within a year was playing in local clubs. Bunch, a flexible pianist who was most inspired by Teddy Wilson, generally played locally until working with the big bands of Woody Herman (1956-1957), Benny Goodman, and Maynard Ferguson (1958) when he was already in his mid-thirties. Bunch worked in the small groups of Buddy Rich, Al Cohn/Zoot Sims, and Gene Krupa (1961-1964), was a member of Rich's 1966 big band and accompanied Tony Bennett during 1966-1972. Off and on with Goodman during the '60s and '70s, Bunch also recorded five albums as a leader during 1975-1977 for Famous Door, Chiaroscuro (an exquisite solo piano set of Kurt Weill compositions later reissued on CD), and Progressive. In the 1980s and '90s, John Bunch has often been employed by young mainstream stars such as Scott Hamilton and Warren Vache and has recorded for Concord, Chiaroscuro, and Arbors. With Bucky Pizzarelli and Jay Leonhart, Bunch currently co-leads New York Swing. Bunch has appeared in many solo concerts, including Carnegie Hall and most of the world's capitals, and made many television appearances here and abroad. He's conducted the bands of Duke Ellington, Woody Herman, Count Basie, and Buddy Rich, along with the London Philharmonic, the L.A. Philharmonic, and the Cleveland Orchestra. His original compositions have been recorded by Benny Goodman, Woody Herman, Joe Morello, and Warren Vache, Jr.