MYRA MURPHY MUSIC
Her interest in poetry came from creating lyrics to instrumental jazz compositions,
several of which were published as poems in The Ledge poetry magazineMyra Murphy, a New York City native, is a classically trained musician who was awarded a scholarship to Juilliard School of Music and earned a Master’s Degree in Choral Conducting there. At the same time, she developed a lifelong passion for jazz. Among her early influences was Robert Hickok, a choral conductor at Brooklyn College while Myra was accompanist for the chorus. Another mentor was Andy Thomas-Anselmo, Actor’s Studio vocal instructor, who gave her the ability to fully disclose her feelings in performance. After Juilliard, Myra performed in New York with her husband, Art Murphy, who was a composer/ arranger, colleague of Hall Overton and transcriptionist for Bill Evans. With him, she has two daughters, Jenny Robinson and Mimi Bishop. Myra has performed jazz piano and vocals at many clubs, concerts, jazz festivals and renowned venues including Lincoln Center. She is the recipient of a National Endowment of the Arts Grant for a multi-media concert in tribute to pianist Bill Evans. Some of the jazz artists with whom she has shared a stage are saxophonist Bill Evans, saxophone; trumpeter John McNeill; drummer Adam Nussbaum; pianist Gerald Price; arranger Manny Album; and bassist Ed Schuller. Myra has extensive performing and teaching experience at many colleges and universities including Columbia University, Moravian College and Penn State University and originated a highly popular jazz improvisation workshop at Montgomery County Community College. Currently, Myra lives in Bucks County, Pa. where she enjoys communing with the natural beauty of lakes and trees around her and finds inspiration for expressing the feelings within. After years of performing with her Jazz Trio in New York and Philadelphia, she has recorded four CDs and is working on new recordings which combine spoken poetry with instrumental improvisation. Her interest in poetry came from creating lyrics to instrumental jazz compositions, several of which were published as poems in The Ledge, a poetry magazine. |