Harold McKinney

Jazz pianist Harold McKinney was a traveling power in Detroit’s jazz picture in the ’40s on through the brand new millennium. McKinney was motivated to study traditional music as a kid by his mom, Bessie Walon McKinney, an organist. He was changed into a jazzman when he strolled into an snow cream store and noticed Charlie Parker around the juke package playing bebop around the alto sax. After graduating from Detroit’s Northwestern SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL, McKinney continuing onto Morehouse University in Atlanta. He came back house when he became disenchanted using the college’s bias values towards Western music. He briefly went to Wayne State University or college and offered in the Military through the early ’50s in Germany. The pianist performed a variety of jazz from bop to boogie woogie and caused many greats including Kenny Burrell, John Coltrane, and Wes Montgomery and toured to towns all over the world. Fellow music artists have acknowledged McKinney with assisting to maintain jazz in Detroit’s musical forefront when styles in popular tradition threatened its livelihood. The pianist was also a instructor, showing up on instructional video clips and giving personal lessons and every week workshops at Detroit’s SerNgeti Ballroom. In 1990, McKinney received the Jazz Grasp honor from Arts Midwest for life time accomplishment. In 1995, he toured Africa and the center East along with his music group, the Jazz Experts. IN-MAY of 2001, McKinney joined a healthcare facility after a heart stroke, returning to train his SerNgeti workshop seven days later. Soon after, he was readmitted to a healthcare facility because of the 1st in an extended group of strokes. McKinney underwent medical procedures but passed on because of a stroke-induced coma on June 20, 2001. He offered his final overall performance on June 10 in the semiannual Jam & Breads student display for the ballroom workshops.