Joe Della Penna

Jazz Musician and Teacher

Hear what people are saying ...

"If I were stranded on a desert island, I'd only want one thing. A CD of Joe Della Penna playing the piano. That's all I'd need to sustain myself for years..."-Paul Rudd (Actor, "Clueless", "The Object Of My Affection", "The 40-Year-Old Virgin", "Knocked Up", New York, NY)

"...a creator of gorgeous sounds of dusk and optimism, sometimes approaching majesty."-Ran Blake (Pianist, Professor and Director, Contemporary Improvisation Department, New England Conservatory, Boston, MA)

"Joe Della Penna is a truly gifted musician and composer with a lyrical and engaging style. His original compositions sing with emotion and sensitivity. As an interpreter of standards, he has the rare ability to respect a melody while somehow making it sound entirely fresh."-Stephen McCauley (Author, "Alternatives to Sex", "True Enough", "The Object Of My Affection", Cambridge, MA)

"Joe Della Penna is one of my prize students, one the best and hardest working students that I ever had. During his education he excelled not only academically, graduating cum laude, but was also a leader as a pianist and composer. He knows the language of this music and his playing commands your attention with its unique and inventive beauty."-Dr. Jackie McLean (Jazz Alto-Saxophonist, Composer, Educator, and Professor of Music, The Hartt School, West Hartford, CT)

"Joe Della Penna is a unique and sensitive interpreter of the Great American Songbook. He is knowledgeable of the vast jazz vocal tradition and unearths many forgotten gems. His ear is always in the music and his heart is definitely in the right place, which draws you right into his sound."-Dominique Eade (Jazz Vocalist & Composer, Professor of Voice, New England Conservatory, Boston MA)

"Joe Della Penna has delighted audiences on many occasions at the Cambridge Center - as a concertizer, accompanist, and lecturer. His natural warmth, intelligence, and suave musicianship let him make an instant connection with the public."-James H. Smith (Executive Director, Cambridge Center for Adult Education, Cambridge, MA)

"Joe brings songs to life with beautiful arrangements, heartfelt playing and a personal connection to the lyrics. His passion for music is contagious."-Will McMillan (Three time IRNE Award winning singer and Director of Public Relations, The Cambridge Center for Adult Education, Cambridge, MA)

Home >

Sorry, I cannot display the flash slideshow for one of the following reasons.
1. Your browser does not support Javascript.
2. If you are using RapidWeaver, please make sure your theme is using the most up-to-date version of the javascript include file.

JOE DELLA PENNA is one of the most renowned jazz musicians on the Greater Boston scene today. A pianist for over thirty years, he holds two performance degrees (New England Conservatory, M.M. and The Hartt School, B.M. cum laude). Joe has studied piano with Jaki Byard, Paul Bley and Ran Blake, and voice with Dominique Eade, David Thorne Scott and Rebecca Parris. Since opening his private studio in 2000, he has been teaching piano, voice, composition and theory. In 2001 he launched "Beginning Jazz Singing", a popular class now in its seventh year at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education.

Joe's compositions blend different genres together: jazz, cabaret, singer-songwriter and classical avant-garde. He has performed at many venues in the greater Boston area including Ryles Jazz Club, Club Cafe, Les Zygomates, and the Zeitgeist Gallery.

Joe performs regularly at UpStairs On The Square . See his calendar for details.

His latest recordings, THE JOE DELLA PENNA TRIO: "CHILDREN GO WHERE I SEND THEE" (CD) and JOE DELLA PENNA: "IT'S A MOST UNUSUAL DAY" (DVD) are now available through this website.