Jazz pianist McCoy Tyner was born on this day in 1938 in Philadelphia, PA. Tyner was born in Philadelphia as the oldest of three children. He was encouraged to study piano by his mother. He began studying the piano at age 13 and within two years music had become the focal point in his life. His early influences included Bud Powell, a Philadelphia neighbor. When he was 17, he converted to Islam through the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community and changed his name to Sulieman Saud.[3] Early career Tyners first main exposure came with Benny Golson, being the first pianist in Golsons and Art Farmers Jazztet (1960). After departing the Jazztet, Tyner joined Coltranes group in 1960 during its extended run at the Jazz Gallery, replacing Steve Kuhn. (Coltrane had known Tyner for a while in Philadelphia, and featured one of the pianists compositions, The Believer, as early as 1958.) He appeared on the saxophonists popular recording of My Favorite Things for Atlantic Records. The Coltrane Quartet, which consisted of Coltrane on tenor sax, Tyner, Jimmy Garrison on bass, and Elvin Jones on drums, toured almost non-stop between 1961 and 1965 and recorded a number of albums, including Live! at the Village Vanguard, Ballads, Live at Birdland, Crescent, A Love Supreme, and The John Coltrane Quartet Plays, on the Impulse! label. Tyner has recorded a number of highly influential albums in his own right. While in Coltranes group, he recorded a series (primarily in the piano trio format) for Impulse! Records.[1] The pianist also appeared as a sideman on many of the highly acclaimed Blue Note albums of the 1960s, although was often credited as etc. on the cover of these albums (when listing the sidemen on the album) in order to respect his contractual obligations at Impulse![1] His involvement with Coltrane came to an end in 1965. Coltranes music was becoming much more atonal and free; he had also augmented his quartet with percussion players who threatened to drown out both Tyner and Jones: I didnt see myself making any contribution to that music... All I could hear was a lot of noise. I didnt have any feeling for the music, and when I dont have feelings, I dont play.[4] By 1966, Tyner was rehearsing with a new trio and embarked on his career as a leader.[5] Post-Coltrane McCoy Tyner, Keystone Korner, San Francisco CA, March 1981 (photo: Brian McMillen) After leaving Coltranes group, Tyner produced a series of post-bop albums released on Blue Note Records from 1967 to 1970, which included The Real McCoy (1967), Tender Moments (1967), Time for Tyner (1968), Expansions (1968) and Extensions (1970). Soon thereafter he moved to the Milestone label and recorded many influential albums, including Sahara (1972), Enlightenment (1973), and Fly with the Wind (1976), which featured flautist Hubert Laws, drummer Billy Cobham, and a string orchestra. His music for Blue Note and Milestone often took the Coltrane quartets music as a point of departure and also incorporated African and East Asian musical elements. On Sahara, for instance, Tyner plays koto, in addition to piano, flute, and percussion. These albums are often cited as examples of vital, innovative jazz from the 1970s that was neither fusion nor free jazz.[citation needed] Trident (1975) is notable for featuring Tyner on harpsichord (rarely heard in jazz) and celeste, in addition to his primary instrument, piano. Tyner still records and tours regularly and played from the 1980s through 90s with a trio that included Avery Sharpe on bass and first Louis Hayes, then Aaron Scott, on drums. He made a trio of solo recordings for Blue Note, starting with Revelations (1988) and culminating with Soliloquy (1991). Today[when?] Tyner records for the Telarc label and has been playing with different trios, one of which has included Charnett Moffett on bass and Al Foster on drums. In 2008, Tyner toured with his quartet, which featured saxophonist Gary Bartz with Gerald Cannon (bass) and Eric Kamau Gravatt (drums). McCoy was also a judge for the 6th, 10th[6] and 11th[7] annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists careers. Style McCoy Tyner with Ravi Coltrane Tyners style of piano is easily comparable to Coltranes maximalist style of saxophone.[1] Though a member of Coltranes group, he was never overshadowed by the saxophonist, but complemented and even inspired Coltranes open-minded approach.[1] Tyner is considered to be one of the most influential jazz pianists of the 20th century, an honor he earned both with Coltrane and in his years of performing following Coltranes death.[1] Though playing instruments of vastly different versatility, both Tyner and Coltrane utilize similar scales, chordal structures, melodic phrasings, and rhythms. Tyners playing can be distinguished by a low bass left hand, in which he tends to raise his arm relatively high above the keyboard for an emphatic attack; the fact that Tyner is left-handed may contribute to this distinctively powerful style. Tyners unique right-hand soloing is recognizable for a detached, or staccato, quality. His melodic vocabulary is rich, ranging from raw blues to complexly superimposed pentatonic scales; his unique approach to chord voicing (most characteristically by fourths) has influenced a wide array of contemporary jazz pianists, most notably Chick Corea. Other instruments included the Appalachian dulcimer.[citation needed
Posted on: Thu, 11 Dec 2014 14:50:57 +0000
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