After spending 25 years in the United States, Bill Anschell, a Seattle native, returned to the Emerald City. After graduating from high school in Seattle, Anschell attended Oberlin College (Ohio) for two years before transferring to Wesleyan University of Connecticut (Connecticut), where his Music degree was awarded Phi Beta Kappa. Anschell was a close collaborator with Bill Barron, a saxophone legend. Anschell also studied semi-privately alongside South Indian mridangum master T Ranganathan. This ignited a passion for rhythmic experimentation which has driven Anschell’s music since then. Anschell moved to Atlanta in 1989 after a life as a jazz vagabond. Anschell was first drawn to Atlanta by the chance to be the Jazz Coordinator at the Southern Arts Federation (SAF), a regional arts agency in the South. Anschell created JazzSouth, an international syndicated radio station, and set up SAF’s jazz division from scratch. He was a jazz musician by night, playing sideman for various bands and leading his own band. Anschell’s performance schedule had grown to the point that he was unable to focus on it. Anschell left the SAF job and continued to produce JazzSouth from his home, while also focusing on writing and playing. Anschell rose up the jazz ranks in Atlanta over the next ten year, leading his trio at major jazz festivals and becoming the first-call accompanist to visiting jazz greats. Highlights of his trio included the 1996 Summer Olympic Games and the Montreux Atlanta Festival. He also accompanied four tours through South America. Anschell was also instrumental in Nnenna’s arrangements and musical direction. Their performances included the North Sea Jazz Festival, Monterey Jazz Festival, California, and six European tours. Radio France, French national television and NPR’s JazzSet broadcast their concerts. Anschell’s arrangements and piano playing were featured on Freelon’s 1996 Concord album Shaking Free. This was nominated as the best jazz vocal recording of the year for a Grammy. Anschell’s CDs have received critical acclaim as well as widespread exposure. Many of his CDs made it to Jazzweek’s “Top 50” radio chart. United Press International (UPI), a jazz magazine, selected Anschell’s 1998 album, “10 Best”, as one of their best jazz albums. Many radio stations and critics across the country chose his 2006 album, More to the Ear than Meets the Eye to be on their “10 Best of 2006” lists. Cadence described his 2009 duo CD, which featured spontaneous improvisations and saxophonist Brent Jensen, as “startlingly beautiful,” “surprising, powerful, and transformative…a life-changing experience.” Thomas Conrad’s JazzTimes review called Figments, his solo piano album from 2011, “magical.” In 2001, Anschell was selected by the American Composers Forum for its Composer-in-the-Schools program; his residency included a commissioned piece for chamber orchestra. His original compositions have been featured on numerous cable and network programs, including NCIS: LA, NBC’s The West Wing and HBO’s acclaimed series The Wire. Anschell’s Atlanta trio reunited in 2008 for a fifth South American tour. They visited the Colombian cities Medellin Pereira, Manizales, and Pereira. In 2012, the trio traveled to Peru for the fourth time, while Paraguay was its third visit. Anschell was a Seattleite and had the privilege of performing weekly with Floyd Standifer, Northwest jazz legend. Anschell was awarded the Golden Ear Award in 2005 as “Northwest Jazz Instrumentalists of the Year” and his trio was named “Best Northwest Acoustic Jazz Ensemble” in 2006. Anschell was named again “Northwest Jazz Instrumentalist of the year” in 2010 and 2011. His CD Figments was also named “Northwest Jazz Recording of the year” in 2011. He performed several concerts with the Seattle Symphony in 2013. Impulses, his 2013 CD, was a new venture. It featured twelve tracks of original electronica. Anschell is also a well-known jazz humorist. He writes jazz vignettes as well as a monthly column on jazz etiquette. His satirical essay “Careers in Jazz,” which has more than 250,000 hits, is the most popular piece on allaboutjazz.com. It was also featured in a Wall Street Journal article about jazz audiences. He was awarded the Paul Desmond Award in 2014, an allaboutjazz.com celebration of the most funny jazz musicians. from http://originarts.com
