(Drums, b. 1924) Along with Kenny Clarke, Max Roach shares the credit for inventing bebop drumming. When Clarke found himself drafted in 1943, it was Roach who emerged as the leading activist in the search for a drum style to suit the emerging melodic and harmonic complexities of the new music. He developed an approach that was both ...
(Maks Brookh) 1838–1920 German composer Bruch studied first with his mother, a soprano, and then with Ferdinand Hiller (1811–85) in Cologne. He held conducting posts across Germany, as well as with the Liverpool Philharmonic Society (1880–83), and a professorship at the Berlin Academy from 1891. Late in his career he received honorary doctorates from the universities of Cambridge and ...
(Maks Ra’-ger) 1873–1916 German composer A student of Hugo Riemann (1849–1919), Reger bridged the divide between nineteenth-century Brahmsian academicism and Liszt’s ‘New German School’, with music that combined Bachian counterpoint and Wagnerian chromaticism. Reger was among the most frequently performed composers at Schoenberg’s Society for Private Musical Performance. After army service, he worked in Munich (1901) then as a professor at ...
(Folklorists, John Avery Lomax 1867–1948; Alan Lomax 1915–2002) John Lomax was born in Goodman, Mississippi and raised near Fort Worth, Texas. Although his initial interest lay in cowboy songs, a pre-teen friendship with a servant named Nat Blythe sparked an interest in black music. With the 1910 publication of Cowboy Songs And Other Frontier Ballads, his ...
b. 1934 English composer Early use of serialism (Trumpet Sonata, 1955) led Davies to a less systematic method of composing with smaller sets of pitches (Prolation, 1958). Alongside this grew a fascination for the pre-Baroque. Davies makes particular use of plainsong themes, which he then subjects to quasi-serial transformations. A peculiar leaning towards parody was central to Davies’s ...
b. 1974 Russian violinist Vengerov gave his first recital when he was five, and played his first concerto at the age of six. Since winning the Carl Flesch competition in 1990 he has given recitals and played concertos in Europe, America and the Far East. He gave the first performance of Rodin Shchedrin’s Concerto cantabile in 1998. His many ...
(Vocal/instrumental group, 2003–present) Signed to Sheffield’s Warp Records, a label more synonymous with ambient dance acts like Boards of Canada, Newcastle’s Maxïmo Park – Paul Smith (vocals), Duncan Lloyd (guitar), Archis Tiku (bass), Lucas Wooller (keyboards) and Tom English (drums) – deliver a view of the north-east of England that is refreshingly different to the sterilized slants on ...
(Vocal/instrumental group, 1993–present) Stars of the nu metal era at the turn of the century, Californians Papa Roach – Jacoby Shaddix (vocals), Jerry Horton (guitar), Tobin Esperance (bass) and David Buckner (drums) – had to wait until Infest (2000) to break through, alongside the likes of Limp Bizkit. 2002’s lovehatetragedy saw increased sales, but by 2003’s Getting ...
(Vocals, composer, b. 1930) Lincoln caps her long, diversified singing and acting career as an iconic songwriter and performer. Her first record, in the 1950s, was with Benny Carter’s orchestra; in the 1960s she recorded politicized material with then-husband Max Roach. In the mid-1980s she re-emerged, paying tribute to Billie Holiday and embodying an African-American ...
(Piano, 1924–66) Bud Powell was the pre-eminent bebop pianist. His spare chords and asymmetric accents in the left hand combined with fluid linear inventions in the right hand to establish the foundation of the standard approach to bop piano playing. The mental instability and introverted character that dogged his life are often ascribed to a beating by the police in ...
(Drums, 1917–87) Bernard ‘Buddy’ Rich was a powerhouse drummer with a phenomenal technique, but he was also capable of great delicacy when required. He grew up in the family vaudeville act before joining Joe Marsala’s band in 1937. It was the beginning of a series of associations with major swing era bandleaders such as Harry James, Artie Shaw ...
(Piano, b. 1929) Since the late 1950s, pianist Cecil Taylor has maintained a prime position in the pantheon of free jazz. He was one of the first jazzmen to jettison standard chord changes, fixed rhythms and expected ensemble roles in the interest of musical democracy. Taylor developed his unorthodox style while studying at New England Conservatory. Duke Ellington ...
(Bass, piano, composer, 1922–79) Charles Mingus had a tempestuous, multi-faceted personality, which is reflected in the almost schizophrenic extremes of his music and the sheer magnitude of his creative aspirations. Early work with Lionel Hampton and Red Norvo brought him in 1951 from California to New York, where he worked with Miles Davis, Duke ...
(Trumpet, 1930–56) The tragic death of Clifford Brown in a road accident robbed jazz of one of its brightest young stars, but even his truncated legacy has established his standing as a major figure and profound influence. He took up the trumpet at the age of 13, drawing on the influence of bebop stars Dizzy Gillespie and Fats ...
(Tenor saxophone, 1904–69) ‘Hawk’ played with Mamie Smith’s Jazz Hounds in 1922 before joining Fletcher Henderson’s band in New York. Louis Armstrong’s presence in the band had a major effect on Hawkins’ playing; by marrying a swing feel to his heavy tone, informed by his advanced understanding of harmony and chords, Hawkins became a star soloist and the ...
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David Bowie
Fantastic new, unofficial biography covers
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