"nea jazz master"
Ron Carter

May 4th in African American History – Ron Carter

May 4, 1937 Ron Carter, jazz double-bassist, cellist, and composer, was born in Ferndale, Michigan. Carter started to play the cello at the age of 10 and later moved to the bass. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the Eastman School of Music in 1959 and a master’s degree in double bass performance from the […]

Read full story · Comments { 0 }
Billy Higgins

May 3rd in African American History – Billy Higgins

May 3, 2001 Billy Higgins, jazz drummer, died. Higgins was born October 11, 1936 in Los Angeles, California. He began playing drums at the age of five. Higgins was one of the co-founders of the free jazz movement and beginning in 1958 played on Ornette Coleman’s first recordings.

Read full story · Comments { 0 }
Percy Heath

Percy Heath – April 28th in African American History

April 28, 2005 Percy Heath, jazz bassist, died. Heath was born April 30, 1923 in Wilmington, North Carolina but raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He started playing the violin and singing at the age of eight. Heath was drafted into the United States Army in 1944 and became a member of the Tuskegee Airmen. After World […]

Read full story · Comments { 0 }
Ella Jane Fitzgerald

Ella Jane Fitzgerald – April 25th in African American History

April 25, 1917 Ella Jane Fitzgerald, jazz and pop vocalist also known as the “First Lady of Song,” was born in Newport News, Virginia. Fitzgerald made her singing debut at the age of 17 at the Apollo Theater and won the first prize of $25.00. In 1935, she began singing with the Chick Webb Orchestra […]

Read full story · Comments { 0 }
Dexter Keith Gordon

Dexter Keith Gordon – April 25th in African American History

April 25, 1990 Dexter Keith Gordon, jazz tenor saxophonist and actor, died. Gordon was born February 27, 1923 in Los Angeles, California. He played the clarinet from the age of 13 before switching to the saxophone at 15. Between 1940 and 1943, Gordon was a member of the Lionel Hampton Band and in 1943 he […]

Read full story · Comments { 0 }
Melba Doretta Liston

April 23rd in African American History – Melba Doretta Liston

April 23, 1999 Melba Doretta Liston, jazz trombonist, composer and arranger, died. Liston was born January 13, 1926 in Kansas City, Missouri but raised in Los Angeles, California. In 1943, she joined the big band led by Gerald Wilson and during the 1940s she played with Dexter Gordon, Dizzy Gillespie, Count Basie, and Billie Holliday. […]

Read full story · Comments { 0 }
Sarah Lois Vaughan

Sarah Lois Vaughan – April 3rd in African American History

April 3, 1990 Sarah Lois Vaughan, jazz singer known as “The Divine One,” died. Vaughan was born March 27, 1924 in Newark, New Jersey. She began piano lessons at the age of seven and sang in the church choir. By her mid-teens, she was singing in local nightclubs. In 1942, Vaughan sang “Body and Soul” […]

Read full story · Comments { 0 }