Tanner Tayler©Andrea Canter

An unlikely wellspring for great jazz artists, Iowa claims such legends as Bix Biederbacke, Glenn Miller, and Charlie Haden, as well as young trumpet master, Ryan Kisor. Add to that “young lion” pool pianist Tanner Taylor, whose move to the Twin Cities in 2001 gave us one more reason to gloat at our neighbors to the south. Next weekend, June 6-7, Taylor pays tribute to one of his primary muses, the late great Oscar Peterson. 

“I began classical training when I was about six,” notes Tanner, and shortly thereafter he started composing his own tunes.  But his initial inspiration to try jazz came “after seeing the Glenn Miller Story when I was twelve.” In addition to playing piano, Taylor took up jazz trombone, playing both instruments through high school. His music education was eclectic: “I studied most notably with Jack Oatts, Gary Dial of the Manhattan School of Music, classical instructors Chuck and Virginia Radke, and took one year of composition at the University of Northern Iowa.” Jack Oatts also created Tanner’s first professional opportunity, when at fourteen “my first pro gig was at a place in Carroll, IA with the Jack Oatts Quartet.”