Walter grew up in Burlingame, California, and studied with Anna Mears in Pacifica, California; Walter Rudolph, San
Francisco; the Peninsula Conservatory of Music; James L. Jordan (Serra High
School band director); and José Bowen (Stanford University jazz band director).
He has 12 years of formal classical piano studies and has performed since 1986 in
venues such as Yoshi's, The Garden City, Kuumbwa Jazz Center, Kimball's Carnaval,
Johnny Love's Cafe, Café Du Nord, J.J.'s Blues, Sacramento Blues Festival,
Waterfront Blues Festival (Portland, OR) and Flint Center.
Walter
has appeared with Stan Getz, John Lee Hooker, Bobby Shew, Rebecca
Parris, and Bobby Hutcherson. He is extensively
involved with the San Francisco Bay Area vocal jazz community as
the accompanist for the Oakland
Jazz Choir and for the De Anza College jazz vocal
ensembles. Walter also has accompanied many S.F.
Bay Area vocalists. He is no stranger to the recording studio,
having contributed piano and keyboard work, compositions, arrangements,
and an occasional voice track to over a dozen album and demo projects
with blues bands, vocal ensembles, and instrumental ensembles.
FSJ guitarist Mike Cohen produced a CD album of original jazz compositions
entitled "Fugue" in 1997, featuring Walter and FSJ drummer
Carlos Almeida.
Walter
has composed and arranged tunes for jazz band, LSJUMB (aka
the Stanford Marching
Band), vocal jazz choir, and small jazz ensembles, has been
a faculty accompanist at Jazz Camp West each year since
1995. He also has worked as an accompanist for voice instructors
including Seth Riggs, Roger Letson, Rebecca Parris, Rhiannon, Faye
Carol, Kellye Gray, Nicolas Bearde, Brenda Boykin, Madeline Eastman,
Ledisi, Kitty Margolis, Ellen Robinson, and Sandy Cressman.
His
favorite pianists are Chick Corea, Oscar Peterson, Dave Brubeck,
the late great SF Bay Area pianist Smith Dobson, and Susan Muscarella.
Walter
holds a B.S. in Mathematical and Computational Science (1986) and
an M.S. in Computer Science (1987) from Stanford University and
works in software design/development for Agilent Technologies in
Santa Clara, California.
You can send email to: Walter
Bankovitch
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