Conversations with John A. Kite

Today we’d like to introduce you to John A. Kite.

Hi John, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I began playing the piano at The Brown Palace Hotel in 1985.

I started as The Ship Tavern Piano Player. Presently I am The Director of Entertainment at The Brown and in addition to playing Tuesday through Sunday, every week I have two other Pianists and a Harpist who play for Lobby Tea and Lobby Cocktails. I keep the Ship Tavern shifts on Friday and Saturday nights because A) my roots are in The Ship Tavern, and B) I love accompanying the many singers and instrumentalists who come and sit in and perform for the room.

In 2011, we started doing Brown Palace Lobby Jazz. Today, I host Tuesday evenings with The Gabriel Mervine Quartet, Wednesday evenings with The Raul Murciano Mambo Quartet, and my quartets on Friday and Saturday evenings.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I would say the one huge heartache came when we had to close the hotel because of the COVID crisis.

Never in my adult life had I not worked. I was off for three months. After the Brown reopened, the difficult part was figuring out how the jazz groups would play together. I ended up spacing the Piano, Bass, and Drums six feet apart on the floor and putting the horn player, saxophone, or trumpet, on the landing of the Grand Staircase, about 25 feet away from the rest of the group.

We look back on it now and have a good laugh, but making music under all those restrictions was certainly a challenge.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
First and foremost, I am the House Pianist for The Brown Palace, a position I have cherished for 38 years. Secondly, I now schedule all the other musicians that play in the hotel week to week. I normally schedule two months out.

I relish playing with the jazz musicians in Denver. They have become my dear friends and I’d do anything for them. They have been loyal, trustworthy, and supportive colleagues and there is not a jazz session go by, that I am so grateful and honored that I get to make music with these amazing musicians.

Networking and finding a mentor can have a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
My mentor was the great Roger Wolf who started at The Brown Palace six months before me. He was scheduled to take a vacation and asked me to substitute for him in The Brown Palace Lobby. That is when the Food and Beverage Director heard me and hired me to play in The Ship Tavern.

I would go and listen to as many Pianists as I could, Roger Wolf, Bruce Barnes, Bonnie Hackett, Les James, Mark Pressey, Joe Bonner, Budd Hashimoto, Larry Wegner, and many others. I gleaned something from each one of them. I cherished the performances of Al Fike, and Phyllis Pastore, the two people I credit the most in formulating my “entertainer” sensibilities.

Contact Info:

• Website: BrownPalace.com/Dining/Entertainment/ThisWeek’s Schedule/Next Week’s schedule