American jazz pianist, keyboardist, sound engineer and film score composer; instructor at University of Colorado Boulder and the Colorado Conservatory for the Jazz Arts; owner of [l783149] from August 2004 to May 2013.
Raised in Nebraska City, Nebraska. After high school, he attended Midland Lutheran College. After 3 semesters, he went to the Jamie Abersold jazz camp, where he met Joe Henderson, Rufus Reid, and Dan Haerle, whose influence made him decide to attend North Texas State University, where Haerle would be his piano instructor.
After graduation, he was hired for a Fort Collins, Colorado band named Kinesis with whom he recorded at Caribou Ranch.
He moved back to Dallas for a couple of years before moving on to New York City, where he studied with Kenny Barron, Richie Beirach, and Fred Hersch.
He played the Blue Note and Visiones, and the off-Broadway musical, Little Shop of Horrors.
In 1990, he moved to Denver. Other than a two-year stint travelling with the show The Who’s Tommy, he has continued to work there.
Artists Jenkins has played with include Dave Douglas, Chris Botti, Chuck Mangione, Phil Woods, David Fathead Newman, Marlena Shaw, Richie Cole, Bobby Hutcherson, Curtis Fuller, Benny Golson, John Abercrombie, Freddie Hubbard, Eddie Harris, Clark Terry, Dakota Staton, and the Count Basie Orchestra.