Biography
Spike Wilner has earned acclaim as a pianist, producer, and club proprietor whose improvisational command draws deeply from the post-bop lineage. His commitment to the music manifests both in his leadership of small groups and in his stewardship of two Greenwich Village landmarks, Smalls and Mezzrow. Active on the New York circuit from the 1990s onward, he has issued several recordings under his own name—Portraits in 2000, 3 to Go with Ryan Kisor in 2008, and Live at Smalls in 2015—while also operating the in-house label that issues many of the venue’s captured performances. Every evening at the club has been preserved, yielding an archive that includes work by frequent participants such as Peter Bernstein, Harold Mabern, Cyrille Aimee, and Joel Frahm.
Born in New York, Wilner began piano studies near the age of six and first gravitated toward jazz after encountering the ragtime pieces of Scott Joplin. When his father’s employment relocated the family to St. Louis at age thirteen, he attended concerts by Eubie Blake, Oscar Peterson, and the Count Basie Orchestra, deepening his involvement with the idiom. Following high school he enrolled among the earliest students at the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, where his classmates included Brad Mehldau, Peter Bernstein, and Larry Goldings. Instruction from Jaki Byard and Walter Davis, Jr. complemented formative listening to Art Tatum, Bud Powell, and Tommy Flanagan.
After graduation he parted with his Steinway to finance an additional year in the city, securing steady work as house pianist at Smalls, the Village Gate, Visiones, The Angry Squire, and The Village Corner. In 2001 he recorded his first trio album, Portraits, featuring bassist Kenji Rabson and drummer Brian Floody along with guests Peter Bernstein, Joe Magnarelli, and Grant Stewart. That same year he entered graduate study, first at the Manhattan School of Music and later at the State University of New York. Additional releases from this period include A Blues of Many Colors and Late Night: Live at Smalls, the latter documenting his trio with saxophonist Ian Hendrickson. Beyond his own trios and quartets, Wilner has performed with larger ensembles such as the Artie Shaw Big Band, the Glenn Miller Orchestra, and Maynard Ferguson’s band.
The economic contraction that followed 9/11 prompted an extended series of European engagements. Returning in the mid-2000s, he joined Mitch Borden—founder of both Smalls and Fat Cat—in reviving the financially strained Smalls. Serving simultaneously as house pianist and manager, Wilner revitalized the room, expanded its roster of regular artists, and cultivated a consistent audience while systematically archiving each night’s music for both physical and digital release. In 2004 he opened the companion venue Mezzrow, which quickly developed its own devoted following. Through the Smalls label he has issued numerous live documents, among them Peter Bernstein’s Grammy-nominated Live at Smalls as well as albums by Cyrille Aimee, Joel Frahm, and Harold Mabern.
Amid these responsibilities Wilner maintained an active recording schedule, releasing A New York Noel, Songs of the ’20s & ’30s in 2006 and 3 to Go with Ryan Kisor and Joel Frahm in 2008. A solo recital, Solo Piano: Live at Smalls, appeared in 2010, followed in 2011 by the Posi-Tone trio date La Tendresse with bassist Dezron Douglas and drummer Joe Saylor. Another concert recording, Live at Smalls, arrived in 2015, this time pairing the pianist with bassist Paul Gill and guitarist Yotam Silberstein. He returned to Posi-Tone in 2016 for the trio album Koan.
Born in New York, Wilner began piano studies near the age of six and first gravitated toward jazz after encountering the ragtime pieces of Scott Joplin. When his father’s employment relocated the family to St. Louis at age thirteen, he attended concerts by Eubie Blake, Oscar Peterson, and the Count Basie Orchestra, deepening his involvement with the idiom. Following high school he enrolled among the earliest students at the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, where his classmates included Brad Mehldau, Peter Bernstein, and Larry Goldings. Instruction from Jaki Byard and Walter Davis, Jr. complemented formative listening to Art Tatum, Bud Powell, and Tommy Flanagan.
After graduation he parted with his Steinway to finance an additional year in the city, securing steady work as house pianist at Smalls, the Village Gate, Visiones, The Angry Squire, and The Village Corner. In 2001 he recorded his first trio album, Portraits, featuring bassist Kenji Rabson and drummer Brian Floody along with guests Peter Bernstein, Joe Magnarelli, and Grant Stewart. That same year he entered graduate study, first at the Manhattan School of Music and later at the State University of New York. Additional releases from this period include A Blues of Many Colors and Late Night: Live at Smalls, the latter documenting his trio with saxophonist Ian Hendrickson. Beyond his own trios and quartets, Wilner has performed with larger ensembles such as the Artie Shaw Big Band, the Glenn Miller Orchestra, and Maynard Ferguson’s band.
The economic contraction that followed 9/11 prompted an extended series of European engagements. Returning in the mid-2000s, he joined Mitch Borden—founder of both Smalls and Fat Cat—in reviving the financially strained Smalls. Serving simultaneously as house pianist and manager, Wilner revitalized the room, expanded its roster of regular artists, and cultivated a consistent audience while systematically archiving each night’s music for both physical and digital release. In 2004 he opened the companion venue Mezzrow, which quickly developed its own devoted following. Through the Smalls label he has issued numerous live documents, among them Peter Bernstein’s Grammy-nominated Live at Smalls as well as albums by Cyrille Aimee, Joel Frahm, and Harold Mabern.
Amid these responsibilities Wilner maintained an active recording schedule, releasing A New York Noel, Songs of the ’20s & ’30s in 2006 and 3 to Go with Ryan Kisor and Joel Frahm in 2008. A solo recital, Solo Piano: Live at Smalls, appeared in 2010, followed in 2011 by the Posi-Tone trio date La Tendresse with bassist Dezron Douglas and drummer Joe Saylor. Another concert recording, Live at Smalls, arrived in 2015, this time pairing the pianist with bassist Paul Gill and guitarist Yotam Silberstein. He returned to Posi-Tone in 2016 for the trio album Koan.
Albums
Live
