Donald Ward Preston (born September 21, 1932) is an American jazz and rock keyboardist. He is best known for being a member of the original version of Frank Zappa's band The Mothers of Invention during the late 1960s. He continued to work with Zappa during the early 1970s following the band's split.
Early life
Preston was born into a family of musicians in Detroit and began studying music at an early age. His father played saxophone and trumpet, and had been offered the lead trumpet chair in the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra. Upon moving the family to Detroit, Don's father became the staff arranger for NBC, and was the composer-in-residence for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Don took sporadic lessons on the piano from the age of about five.
In 1950, Preston began a stint in the Army. He served in Trieste, Italy and played in the Army band (initially piano, bass drum and glockenspiel) alongside Herbie Mann. In Trieste he shared a barracks with fellow recruit Buzz Gardner, who introduced him to contemporary classical composers such as Béla Bartók, Anton Webern, Alban Berg and Arnold Schoenberg. Preston took up the bass while in the 98th Army band.
Don Preston (back row, right) with Frank Zappa & The Mothers (1968)
Preston first met Frank Zappa in 1961. Zappa would sometimes sit in with Preston's band he had at the time, which Preston described as "kind of an experimental band", and at one point was asked by Zappa to join a trio he was forming with an unknown drummer, who unsuccessfully auditioned at The Bank Club in Santa Ana.
In 1966, Preston began a long collaboration with Zappa as the keyboardist of the original Mothers of Invention, although originally his main instrument was a gong. Preston performed and recorded with Zappa until 1974. During that time he was music director for Meredith Monk (with whom he had previously shared a house) and started recording and performing electronic music.
He is a co-founder of the Grandmothers and toured with them from 2000 through 2016.
Preston also appeared on-stage as a guest keyboardist with the Zappa tribute band Project/Object (featuring Zappa alumni Ike Willis and Napoleon Murphy Brock) for several shows in 2001, 2002 and 2016.
In 2002, Don Preston joined forces with Frank Zappa alumni along with guitarist Ken Rosser, and drummer/percussionist Christopher Garcia to form the Grande Mothers Re:Invented. They performed at numerous concerts and festivals throughout America, Canada and Europe, including Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, Germany, Holland, Italy, Norway and Switzerland. In 2005, guitarist, Miroslav Tadic replaced Ken Rosser in the lineup. Guitarist/bassist Robbie "Seahag" Mangano filled in for Miroslav Tadic on Grande Mothers tours in 2009 and 2010.
When speaking about if he looks upon the music of Frank Zappa differently when performing it in more modern times, Preston said: "Yeah, in many respects. Because performing it now is different than it was then. Then, you were under Zappa’s scrutiny, and there was always the fear of getting him mad if you fucked up. That doesn’t exist any more. Basically, we’re just having a lot of fun playing his music; the music is brilliant. We try not to screw it up; we think of Zappa looking down upon us while we play. We do our best. And most of the time that’s pretty good."
In 2010, Preston, together with his lifelong friend Bunk Gardner, started a collaboration with guitar player/composer Jon Larsen and Zonic Entertainment. The first recordings were an audio-autobiographical production, The Don Preston Story, followed by the electronic music, contemporary space drama Colliding Galaxies. Preston released his own book entitled "Listen".
Also around 2010, Preston and Bunk Gardner began touring as the Don & Bunk Show and twice toured the eastern part of the US. They later toured as a trio with Chris Garcia as The Grandmothers Of Invention.
Preston wrote the music for the film Dancing With Were-wolves, which was released in July 2016.
Personal life
Don Preston is no relation to the Don Preston who played lead guitar for Joe Cocker and Leon Russell in the 1970s. However, the former has admitted to accidentally receiving (and unwittingly cashing) a royalty check intended for the latter some years ago.
Awards and recognition
Preston is the winner of numerous awards, and has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and London Philharmonic. Known to jazz and keyboard aficionados for his pioneering contributions in the use of synthesizers, legendary clarinetist and composer John Carter dubbed Don Preston the "father of modern synthesis."
From his Cryptogramophone Records biography:
"Often compared to Cecil Taylor for his style of attacking the keys with intense passion, Preston’s solos also reflect intellect, technical skills and a storyteller's way with a line. His playing, like his compositions, ranges across panoramas of mood and emotion, all colored with the freedom that comes from possessing remarkable facility.
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