November 13, 1930 Benny Andrews, painter, printmaker, and educator, was born in Plainview, Georgia. After serving in the United States Air Force as a staff sergeant from 1950 to 1954, Andrews earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He had his first New York City solo […]
Tag Archives | National Endowment for the Arts
November 10th in African American History – Benny Andrews
November 10, 2006 Benny Andrews, painter, printmaker, and educator, died. Andrews was born November 13, 1930 in Plainview, Georgia. After serving in the United States Air Force as a staff sergeant from 1950 to 1954, he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Andrews had his […]
October 25th in African American History – James Edward “Jimmy” Heath
October 25, 1926 James Edward “Jimmy” Heath, jazz saxophonist, composer and arranger, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1948, at the age of 21, Heath performed in the First International Jazz Festival in Paris. He has performed with nearly all the jazz greats of the last 50 years, including Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Milt Jackson, […]
October 21st in African American History – John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie
October 21, 1917 John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie, jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer, was born in Cheraw, South Carolina. By the age of 12, Gillespie had taught himself to play the piano, trombone, and trumpet and he took his first professional job at 18. Together with Charlie Parker, Gillespie was a major figure in the development […]
October 9th in African American History – Milton Jackson
October 9, 1999 Milton Jackson, jazz vibraphonist and composer, died. Jackson was born January 1, 1923 in Detroit, Michigan. He was discovered by Dizzy Gillespie who hired him for his sextet in 1946. Around 1950, Jackson formed his own group, the Milt Jackson Quartet which in 1952 was renamed the Modern Jazz Quartet.
September 28th in African American History – Miles Dewey Davis III
September 28, 1991 Miles Dewey Davis III, jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer, died. Davis was born May 26, 1926 in Alton, Illinois. By the age of 16, Davis was a member of the musical society and playing professionally. In 1944, he moved to New York City to study at the Juilliard School of Music. In […]
September 7th in African American History – Theodore Walter “Sonny” Rollins
September 7, 1930 Theodore Walter “Sonny” Rollins, jazz tenor saxophonist and composer, was born in New York City. Rollins received his first saxophone at 13 and first recorded in 1949. By 1954, Rollins had recorded with such jazz giants as Miles Davis, Charlie Parker, and Thelonious Monk. By 1956, Rollins was leading his own groups […]