One of the few jazz musicians to play the unwieldy euphonium, Zawadi is also an accomplished trombonist. He was born Bernard McKinney to a large, musically-inclined family; several of his nine siblings also became musicians. His first professional gig was with pianist Barry Harris and saxophonist Sonny Stitt in 1951. In the early '50s he played in a band led by bassist Alvin Jackson (brother of vibist Milt). During the mid-'50s Zawadi worked with drummer Art Blakey, saxophonist Yusef Lateef, and trumpeter Donald Byrd. He went to New York with Lateef in 1959 and decided to stay; there he worked with saxophonist Illinois Jacquet and trombonist Slide Hampton. He also recorded with baritone saxophonist Pepper Adams, pianist/bandleader Sun Ra, trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, saxophonist James Moody and trombonist Curtis Fuller in the late '50s and early '60s. He took the name Kiane Zawadi in the '60s. During the '70s he recorded and performed in a variety of styles with such musicians as saxophonists Archie Shepp, Carlos Garnett, Harold Vick, and Frank Foster and trumpeter Charles Tolliver, as well as pianists Dollar Brand and McCoy Tyner. In 1978 he began working in the pit orchestra of the Broadway show #"Dancin'." In 1985 he played in a concert tribute to Charlie Parker at New York's Town Hall. Zawadi has also played with percussionist Mongo Santamaria, trumpeters Dizzy Gillespie and Clark Terry, saxophonist Joe Henderson, and singer Aretha Franklin, among others. ~ Chris Kelsey, Rovi