Ray Santisi (February 1, 1933 - October 28, 2014) was an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, recording artist and educator. He played as featured soloist with Charlie Parker, Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon, Mel Torme, Irene Kral, Herb Pomeroy and Natalie Cole to name a few. He also performed with Buddy DeFranco, Joe Williams, Gabor Szabo, Milt Jackson, Zoot Sims & Al Cohn, Carole Sloane, Clark Terry and Bob Brookmeyer. He performed with his own ensemble, The Real Thing and in the 1960s performed with the Benny Golson Quartet. He has performed at Carnegie Hall and Boston's Symphony Hall.
Santisi was professor of piano and harmony at Berklee College of Music in Boston where he taught from 1957 until his death in 2014. He won an honors scholarship to Schillinger House. He was awarded grants from the National Endowment for the Arts in composition and performance. He taught at Stan Kenton's summer jazz clinics throughout the US, performing in Europe, Scandinavia, and Asia. He performed at the first Jazz Workshop, the jazz room of Stables nightclub. In 2008 he was nominated to IAJE Jazz Education Hall of Fame.
His students include many notable jazz musicians, including Diana Krall, Makoto Ozone, Joe Zawinul, Keith Jarrett, Jane Ira Bloom, Jan Hammer, Alan Broadbent, Arif Mardin, Gary Burton, John Hicks, Danilo Perez and Hiromi. Fourteen of his students received Grammy awards.
Santisi authored Berklee Jazz Piano (published by Berklee Press in 2009, distributed by Hal Leonard), available at Amazon.com, and his instructional book, Jazz Originals for Piano,
Santisi's trio played the first Sunday of each month for eleven years at Ryles Jazz Club until the month of his death, showcasing standards of Tin Pan Alley and Harlem renaissance.
Compositions with BMI #
Pendulums,1162959, inspired by the famous "Jitterbug Waltz" of Fats Waller.
Less Talk, 850876
Like Blues, 871895
Little Sue, 883296
Minstrel Eyes, 994378
Moon Mist, 1007633
Mose Knows, 1013249
Perrys Parasol, 1167560
Sam Speaks, 1285483
Sapphire, 1289924
Take Two, 1452520
Theme For John, 1484664
Santisi has recorded on Blue Note Records, Capitol Records, Prestige Records, Sonnet Records, Roulette Records, and United Artists Records labels. He has also recorded on Bethlehem, Transition and Rasan record labels (see Discography below).
Santisi graduated from Berklee College of Music in 1954 and earned his masters from Boston Conservatory in 1956.
REVIEWS "The most exciting piano player I've heard since those first sessions with Bill Evans, Marian McPartland and Oscar Peterson". Raleigh, N.C. News and Observer.
“As anyone familiar with the Boston scene knows, there are few things finer than hearing Ray take on an acoustic piano. This night, he decided to put on a clinic. It was a master indulging in the sheer joy of tackling the possibilities (maybe the impossibilities) of the instrument.” Stu Vandermark, CADENCE Magazine