Biography

Alison Keslow, a bass player with a cool, sultry style all her own, grew up in New York and started playing piano at age four. Her mother, a jazz pianist and singer, was her main inspiration. As a child, Alison was driven by a strong connection with music that led her to write songs, practice piano and sit in on her mom's gigs. In her teens she picked up the electric bass and found her true voice. After high school, Alison started playing gigs in rock and blues bands and later got into to jazz. Formal jazz studies began in Orlando, Florida under Dr. Larry Weed and Florida Symphony Bassist Paul Straushoffer. After completing her studies in Orlando, Alison moved to Boston to study at Berklee College of Music and continued playing gigs w/ big bands, singer/songwriters, jazz and funk bands and theatre productions. She graduated from Berklee in 1994 with honors.

After graduating from Berklee she continued her own education with graduate courses in jazz improvisation with Philadelphia based pianist Jimmy Amadie and jazz arranging techniques with trombonist Phil Wilson. She also contnued her bass studies with the great jazz bassist Bruce Gertz. Most recently Alison studied advanced improvisation techniques with the amazing jazz master Charlie Banacos. Alison was also a instrumental and general music teacher in the Brookline, MA public schools for 8 years. In the Summer of 2010, she taught at the Berklee guitar week alongside Faculty member Scott Tarulli. In the Summer of 2010 Alison shared the stage opening with Katrin for 3 time grammy nominated Joan Armatrading at the Lowell Summer Concert Series. Currently she is playing gigs, doing session work and teaching private lessons in her home studio. Alison is also working on her new solo CD due out in 2012!

Alison's first CD "Between Earth and Sky” has seven of her originals and two arrangements of jazz tunes. The album was recorded "live in the studio" with some amazing musicians. Check out clips here.

Alison's CD has received air play on the Jazz Oasis and Women in Music programs on WERS radio in Boston, Upper Room with Joe Kelly on WVOF in Fairfield CT, WMFO at Tuffs University, Women on Air (which broadcasts over 99 public radio stations across the country) and many others.