Gregory Lewis Organ Monk Trio

Virtuoso organist, pianist, and composer Gregory Lewis is a highly accomplished mainstay on the city’s jazz, blues, and funk scenes. He is deeply committed to discovering his musical language through specific jazz techniques.

“I’m creating music for the next generation of jazz innovators,” said the New York City native, whose style on the Hammond B3 demonstrates a mastery of the complex contraption. He uses the organ’s enormous sonic range to playfully turn traditional jazz melodies and notes into harmonic insights.

A product of the hip-hop generation, Lewis was born into a musical family. His introduction to jazz came from hearing his late father’s collection of Thelonious Monk and Elmo Hope records. Lewis grew up doing the human beatbox and started his own piano studies at age 11. By the time he was a teenager, he was playing professionally around New York.

Lewis’s sensitive and soulful keyboard playing has made him a favorite among some of many vocalists, including blues queen Sweet Georgia Brown, who recently was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. Throughout the years, the spotlight has grown on his talent as the leader of his own all-star trio, featuring multitalented guitarist Ron Jackson and drummer extraordinaire Cindy Blackman.