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 MIKE NING Man of Many Keys © 1996 John Encell
While living in Bangkok, the education of the Ning children was a top priority, and because of the lack of a suitable Chinese language facility, it was decided they would learn English, with the hope of someday continuing their education in the United States. At age 10, and still in Bangkok, Mike first expressed an interest in playing the piano, thus beginning what would become a life-long love affair with music. A piano was purchased and Mike received just a year's worth of lessons, his only formal training to this day. "I would memorize the lesson for the week while practicing," Mike remembers with a grin, "never really learning to read the music." Coming To America... Cut to 1956. Newly arrived in the United States from Bangkok, Mike continued his education at a Presbyterian private school in Albuquerque, New Mexico. ("It was the Presbyterian Church that made it possible for me to come to America.") Upon graduation, Mike then pursued a course of study in art at the University of New Mexico. It was during this period that the early influence of Oscar Levant (from a series of movie musicals) combined with the discovery of Nat King Cole and George Gershwin began to stir a more serious interest in music. All as Mike became an increasingly dedicated (and self-taught) pianist. There was an important turning point one year in Albuquerque. "I was playing in a local coffee house," Mike recalls, "and a traveling rhythm section, including a bassist named Gerry Grable and a drummer named 'Sonny', came through town looking for a jam session. They were told about me and the result was a memorable session at a place called the Purple Sage. It was with Gerry and Sonny that I first learned about soloing, exchanging ideas, and trading fours and eights." Additional influences for Mike came from American television (Henry Mancini's "Peter Gunn" scores) and the playing of such renowned pianists as Andre Previn, Dave Brubeck, Oscar Peterson and George Shearing. Mike's was a life of art study during the day, and music at night and on weekends. It would be the former that would take him to Kansas City. ...Goin' To Kansas City In 1963, Kansas City-based Hallmark Cards was recruiting at various college campuses around the country, and one stop was the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. Mike presented Hallmark with his portfolio, and was offered a position in the Lettering Department, an association that continues to this day. Once relocated to Kansas City in 1964 , Mike returned to the familiar mix of art and music. He started hanging out at the Musicians Union, got to know many of the local players, and started his first trio (a hit at the 1965 Kansas City Jazz Festival). His friend, bassist Gerry Grable, even came to town to help launch the group. It was the beginning of the Vietnam era, however, and Mike, not yet an American citizen, was drafted into the Army. A musician friend that year who, when confronted with a similar dilemma had joined the Kansas National Guard Army band, suggested Mike do the same. Mike did indeed join the Guard band in 1966, playing the glockenspiel ("I'd never even heard of one!") and other percussion instruments for the next six years, and avoiding battle in Vietnam (although, because of his Asian heritage, he was ready to offer his services as an interpreter). He was also able to continue his jazz education in a "Shearing-like quintet" while briefly stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. During the late 1960s, and now an established member of the Kansas City jazz scene, Mike joined forces with singer Kay Dennis. He even took time off from Hallmark for a six month coast-to-coast tour with the popular KC vocalist. Then, for the next ten years, he continued working with his trio in and around Kansas City while developing affiliations with such organizations as the Women's Jazz Festival (organized by singer/pianist Carol Comer and then-broadcaster Diane Gregg), and Jack Gibson's Friends of Jazz series. Each association enabled Mike to perform with numerous high caliber musicians (Bill Watrous, Danny Stiles and Arnie Lawrence to name a few), and each opportunity represented a positive experience that would lead Mike to later contribute, along with Topeka's Jim Monroe and KCUR's Ginny Coleman, to the formation of the first Kansas City Jazz Workshop in 1993. The KCJW, with Mike as its current president, is now in its fourth season.
In the early 1980s, Mike began working with vocalist, Sherry Jones, also a Hallmark employee. This collaboration continues to exist today, both professionally and personally (Mike and Sherry just celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary and have a son, Timothy, named after Mike's father). "Sherry and I try to seek out obscure tunes," Mike notes, "and weave other songs with similar messages and structures into the mix." Invariably, the enjoyable results of this approach are tasty, well-arranged tributes to some of the great songwriters. And it was the trademark Ning-Jones diversity, sensitivity and all around excellence that made for five wonderful years at the Sunset Restaurant, a steady gig in southern Kansas City that ended earlier this year when the Sunset changed management. Today, in addition to ongoing appearances with Sherry, Mike works frequently with vocalist Julie Turner and drummer Tommy Ruskin. He has also recorded several albums over the years, including With You (reviewed in JAM, December '93/January '94) that features Sherry. It can still be found at Streetside Records, Borders Books & Music, and Music Exchange. Saluting Bill Evans Even though Mike's first influences were Previn, Shearing and Peterson, there was another pianist who made a profound impact early on and is also the inspiration for an upcoming project. "In the summer of 1962," says Mike, "I took my portfolio to New York to seek employment as an artist. While walking the streets of Manhattan, I went into a record store and found, in the budget jazz section, Bill Evans' Portrait in Jazz with (bassist) Scott LaFaro and (drummer) Paul Motian. To this day, that album is a major influence for me, as was the harmonic concept Bill Evans brought to his music. He really was the ultimate. Sherry and I are currently working on a CD dedicated to his memory. Most people don't know this, but many of Bill Evans' compositions have wonderful lyrics. Right now we're transposing and re-orchestrating many of those songs to fit Sherry's vocal range. It's going to be a wonderful experience." [Mike Ning and Sherry Jones are two of the most active jazz musicians in the Kansas City area. Call the Jazz Hotline at 816-753-JASS for an update on their upcoming appearances.] RETURN TO OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 1996 MAIN INDEX ------------------------------------------------------------------------ © Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors 1996-2001. All rights reserved. |
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