George Colligan is not only one of the great jazz pianists of his generation, but he has earned an international reputation as a multi-instrumentalist (drums, trumpet, organ, keyboards), composer, accompanist, teacher, and bandleader, as well as popular blogger (jazztruth.blogspot.com) and youtuber. Winner of the 2015 DownBeat magazine Critics Poll (Keyboard), he has had a long association with living jazz legend Jack DeJohnette; recent touring took Colligan around the U.S. with “An Evening with Jack DeJohnette and Savion Glover.” With over 130 albums to date as an accompanist, Colligan has worked with a long list of jazz greats, including Buster Williams, Cassandra Wilson, Don Byron, Ravi Coltrane, and many others. His latest album, Humanity (Ultimatum) 2020 is his 33rd as a bandleader. His forthcoming CD, Theoretical Planets: Long Term Goals is on the Portland Jazz Composer Ensemble Label and features PSU faculty and former students. Colligan, a New York resident for 15 years, now resides in Portland, Oregon where he is an Associate Professor at Portland State University. He recently won a RACC Grant as well as the PSU College of The Arts Dean’s Council Award for Research, Scholarship and Creativity(2020).
George Colligan has toured, recorded, and/or performed as a sideman with Lonnie Plaxico, Gary Bartz, Benny Golson, Gary Thomas, Miguel Zenon, Tom Harrell, Steve Coleman, Eddie Henderson, Ralph Peterson, Vanessa Rubin, Steve Wilson,Dave Weckl, Richard Bona, Jane Monheit, Ravi Coltrane, Lenny White, Michael Brecker, Mike Clark, Nicholas Payton, Sheila Jordan, Janis Siegel, Christian McBride, Billy Hart, Charles Fambrough, Mingus Big Band, Al Foster, Mark Turner, Don Braden, Lew Soloff, Gunther Schuller, Larry Coryell, Victor Bailey, Carl Allen, Rodney Whitaker, Lee Konitz, Jamie Baum, Michal Urbaniak, Ron McClure, DJ Logic, Randy Brecker and Stefon Harris, among others.