5 Jazz Music Artists You Need to Know
In need of some new jazz music in your life? Look no further than these five artists. From Miles Davis to Nina Simone, these musicians have shaped the genre and continue to inspire new generations of listeners.
Miles Davis
Miles Davis was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of musical styles throughout his career.
Early life and musical training
Miles Dewey Davis III was born on May 26, 1926, to an affluent African American family in Alton, Illinois. His father, Miles Dewey Davis II of Arkansas, was a dental surgeon who owned a private practice and taught dentistry at St. Louis University; his mother, the former Cleota Myrtle Henry of Mississippi, was a music teacher. As a child Davis heard traditional New Orleans jazz in his home and city performances by such notables as Louis Armstrong and Fats Poree. He also listened to the contemporary big bands of Benny Goodman and Fletcher Henderson on radio broadcasts.
When he was eight years old his father gave him a trumpet, and by the time he was thirteen Davis was gigging locally with territory bands. In 1943 he moved to East St. Louis to live with an aunt; there he attended Lincoln High School and studied harmony with composer-arranger Russell Garcia. After graduation Davis enrolled at Juilliard in New York City but withdrew after only two months to join Edgar Hayes’s big band, with which he toured extensively for several years.
Career highlights
Miles Davis was an American trumpeter, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music. Davis adopted a variety of musical styles throughout his career, which included bebop, cool jazz, hard bop, modal jazz and jazz fusion.
Davis’ meteoric rise to fame began in 1944 when he joined forces with Charlie Parker to play at Billy Eckstine’s groundbreaking Bebop Big Band concert at the Arcadia Ballroom in New York City. The young trumpeter quickly established himself as one of Parker’s most trusted sidemen and would go on to play a pivotal role in the bebop revolution that was sweeping the jazz world.
In the 1950s, Davis’ style began to evolve as he experimented with cool jazz, hard bop and modal jazz. He also started to gain a reputation as an innovative bandleader, assembling some of the finest musicians of his generation in his legendary Quintet. Highlights from this period include the groundbreaking albums “Birth of the Cool” (1957) and “Kind of Blue” (1959), which are widely considered two of the greatest jazz records ever made.
The 1960s saw Davis embrace a whole new musical direction with his foray into jazz fusion. His pioneering work in this field resulted in some truly groundbreaking recordings, such as “In a Silent Way” (1969) and “Bitches Brew” (1970). These albums saw Davis pushing the boundaries of both his own playing and the genre itself, cementing his reputation as one of music’s true innovators.
Davis continued to experiment with different styles throughout the 1970s and 1980s, culminating in a triumphant return to form with his Grammy-winning album “Tutu” (1986). He continued to perform and record until his untimely death in 1991, leaving behind a remarkable legacy that has had a profound impact on generations of musicians.
John Coltrane
John Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer who was one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. He was known for his virtuosic improvisation and his innovative sound.
Early life and musical training
John Coltrane was born in Hamlet, North Carolina on September 23, 1926. His father, John R. Coltrane, was a participant in the first ever recorded jazz performance in North Carolina. His mother’s name was Alice Blair. At the age of six, young Coltrane’s family moved to High Point, North Carolina so his father could find work. It was there he received his first music lessons on the E-flat horn from bandleader Dexter Whitehead. When he turned thirteen, his father gifted him with a used saxophone and Coltrane began to teach himself how to play by ear. In 1943, he dropped out of high school to pursue a career in music full time. He joined Jimmy Heath’s band and began gigging around Philadelphia. A year later, he was drafted into the Navy and while serving he had the opportunity to perform with bands led by smokers such as Dizzy Gillespie and Jackie Gleason.
Career highlights
Best known for his work in the jazz genre, John Coltrane was a staple in the world of music for many years. He was born in North Carolina in 1926 and began playing the saxophone at a young age. When he was just 20 years old, he joined a band called The Navy Band and served as a musician in the United States Navy for two years. Upon his return, he played with various bands before eventually joining Miles Davis’ ensemble in 1955.
Coltrane gained notoriety while playing with Davis and went on to release several solo albums that were well received by both fans and critics alike. Some of his most popular recordings include “My Favorite Things” and “A Love Supreme.” He continued to play and record until his untimely death in 1967 at the age of 40.
Charlie Parker
One of the most important figures in jazz, Charlie Parker was a highly influential saxophonist who helped to shape the sound of modern jazz. Parker’s innovative approach to harmony and rhythm led to him being nicknamed “Bird”, and his style of playing would go on to be hugely influential.
Early life and musical training
Charlie Parker was born in Kansas City, Kansas, on August 29, 1920. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Parker became interested in music after hearing Louis Armstrong play the trumpet on the radio. He took up the alto saxophone at age 11 and later learned to play tenor saxophone and clarinet. Parker began his musical career playing in local clubs and bars around Kansas City.
In 1933, Parker moved to New York City, where he studied with well-known jazz musician Buster Smith. In 1936, Parker returned to Kansas City, where he played with Jay McShann’s band. It was during this time that Parker began developing his own style of playing. In 1939, Parker moved back to New York City, where he joined Fletcher Henderson’s band.
During the early 1940s, Parker began to develop his own style of music, which became known as bebop. Bebop was a new type of jazz that was characterized by fast tempos, complex chord progressions, and improvisation. In 1945, Parker recorded his first record under his own name, “Now’s the Time.” The following year, he recorded “Ko-Ko” with Dizzy Gillespie. These two recordings are considered to be among the first bebop recordings ever made.
Career highlights
Charlie Parker was one of the most influential jazz musicians of all time. Born in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1920, Parker began playing the saxophone at age 11. He quickly developed a unique style that blended elements of swing and bebop. Parker’s approach to improvisation was highly innovative, and he is widely considered to be one of the greatest jazz soloists of all time.
During his career, Parker recorded several classic albums, including “Now’s the Time” (1945), “Bird and Diz” (1952), and “Charlie Parker with Strings” (1949). He also played an important role in the development of bebop, a style of jazz that emphasized complex harmonies and fast tempos. Parker died in 1955 at the age of 34, but his impact on jazz was immeasurable.
Dizzy Gillespie
Dizzy Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, composer, and singer. Gillespie was a strong influence on bebop and modern jazz. He is considered one of the greatest jazz trumpeters of all time.
Early life and musical training
Dizzy Gillespie was born in Cheraw, South Carolina, on October 21, 1917. Gillespie’s father was a local bandleader and trombonist who exposed his son to the music of New Orleans jazz greats like King Oliver and Louis Armstrong. Gillespie began playing the trumpet at the age of 12 and quickly developed a facility for improvisation. He studied music theory and harmony at Laurinburg Institute in North Carolina before moving to Philadelphia in 1935 to join Freddie Webster’s band.
In 1936, Gillespie joined Cab Calloway’s orchestra, one of the most popular big bands of the Swing Era. It was during his tenure with Calloway that Gillespie began to develop his distinctive style of improvisation, influenced by bebop innovators like tenor saxophonist Lester Young. In 1939, Gillespie left the Calloway band to pursue a career as a freelance musician in New York City.
During the early 1940s, Gillespie performed with several small groups led by pianist Earl Hines and alto saxophonist Charlie Parker. These collaborations helped define bebop—a new style of jazz characterized by its complex harmony and fast tempo—and cemented Gillespie’s reputation as one of its foremost pioneers. In 1945, he formed his own big band, which popularized bebop with hits like “Salt Peanuts” (1945) and “A Night in Tunisia” (1946).
Career highlights
Dizzy Gillespie’s contributions to jazz were enormous. In the 1940s, he was at the forefront of the bebop movement, a style of jazz characterized by fast tempos and complex harmonic structures. He was also a master of improvisation, able to create intricate melodic lines on the spot.
In the 1950s, Gillespie helped to popularize a new style of jazz known as Afro-Cuban jazz. This type of music combined the rhythms of Cuban music with the harmonies and improvisational techniques of jazz. It was a major breakthrough in both jazz and Latin music, and Gillespie was one of its chief innovators.
Throughout his career, Gillespie worked with some of the biggest names in jazz, including Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, and Miles Davis. He also collaborated with a number of Latin musicians, such as Cuban percussionist Chano Pozo. In addition to his work as a musician, Gillespie was also an educator; he taught at New York’s Hartnett School of Music and co-founded the Jazz Academy of Music in Washington, D.C.
Thelonious Monk
Thelonious Monk was a jazz pianist and composer who was highly influential in the development of bebop and modern jazz. He is one of the most renowned and respected jazz musicians of all time. Monk was known for his distinctive style and originality.
Early life and musical training
Thelonious Sphere Monk was born on October 10, 1917, in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. He was the second of three children born to Barbara and Thelonious Monk, Sr. His sister, Marion, was five years older than he was, and his brother Thomas was four years younger.
From a very early age, Monk showed an interest in music and wanted to learn to play the piano. His parents were supportive of his musical aspirations and arranged for him to have piano lessons. When he was nine years old, Monk’s family moved to New York City so that his father could find work as a Baptist minister. It was in New York City that Monk began to develop his distinctive approach to playing the piano.
At the age of 13, Monk started playing the violin but quickly switched back to the piano after a few months. Around this time, he began exploring the works of jazz pianists such as Art Tatum and Fats Waller. He also began to develop his own style of improvising and comping (accompanying a soloist or melody).
Monk continued his musical education at DeWitt Clinton High School in Harlem. After graduating from high school in 1934, he enrolled at Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University) in Alabama on a music scholarship. However, he only stayed at Tuskegee for a year before returning to New York City.
Career highlights
Thelonious Monk is one of the most important figures in jazz history. He was a pioneer of bebop, a style of jazz that emphasized complex harmonies and fast tempos. Monk was also known for his unique approach to the piano, which made him one of the most distinctive voices in jazz.
Monk began his career in the early 1940s, playing with artists like Dizzy Gillespie and Coleman Hawkins. He made his first recordings as a leader in 1947, and released his breakthrough album, “Brilliant Corners,” in 1956. Monk continued to record and perform throughout his career, and was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1993.
