Thelonious Sphere Monk (October 10, 1917-February 17, 1982) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Widely considered one of the most important musicians in jazz, Monk had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including "Epistrophy", "'Round Midnight", "Blue Monk", "Straight No Chaser" and "Well, You Needn't". Often regarded as a founder of bebop, Monk's playing style later evolved away from that form. His compositions and improvisations are full of dissonant harmonies and angular melodic twists, and are impossible to separate from Monk's unorthodox approach to the piano, which combined a highly percussive attack with abrupt, dramatic use of silences and hesitations; a style nicknamed "Melodious Thunk" by his wife Nellie …More on Wikipedia.

Yestreday, we listned to Paul Desmond, and today we'll listen to a friend of him, a man that played a lot with him, for whom Desmond has composed the very famous "Take Five" ; the great Dave Brubeck!
David Warren Brubeck (born December 6, 1920 in Concord, California), better known as Dave Brubeck, is an American jazz pianist. Regarded as a jazz icon, he has written a number of jazz standards, including "In Your Own Sweet Way" and "The Duke". Brubeck's style ranges from refined to bombastic, reflecting his mother's attempts at classical training and his improvisational skills. His music is known for employing unusual time signatures, and superimposing contrasting rhythms, meters, and tonalities. His long-time musical partner, alto saxophonist Paul Desmond, wrote the Dave Brubeck Quartet's most famous piece, "Take Five", which is in 5/4 time and has endured as a jazz classic. Brubeck experimented with time signatures through much of his career, recording "Pick Up Sticks" in 6/4, "Unsquare Dance" in 7/4, and "Blue Rondo à la Turk" in 9/8. He is also a respected composer of orchestral and sacred music, and wrote soundtracks for television such as Mr. Broadway and the animated miniseries "This Is America, Charlie Brown"..…More on wikipedia.

Paul Desmond (November 25, 1924 - May 30, 1977), born Paul Emil Breitenfeld, was a jazz alto saxophonist and composer born in San Francisco, best known for the work he did in the Dave Brubeck Quartet and for penning that group's greatest hit, "Take Five". Known to have possessed an idiosyncratic wit, he was one of the most popular musicians to come out of the West Coast's "cool jazz" scene. He played a Selmer Super Balanced Action alto saxophone with an M. C. Gregory model 4A-18M mouthpiece — both circa 1951 — with Rico 3 ½ reeds. In addition to his work with Brubeck he led several of his own groups and did significant collaborations with artists such as Gerry Mulligan, Jim Hall and Chet Baker. After years of chain smoking and general poor health, Desmond succumbed to lung cancer in 1977 following one last tour with Brubeck.…More on wikipedia.

This is one of the best jazz videos on youtube! And I really think so. The great story of two guys, two great friends: Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane. Very impressive testimonials.

Ástor Pantaleón Piazzolla (March 11, 1921 – July 4, 1992) was an Argentine tango composer and bandoneón player. His oeuvre revolutionized the traditional tango into a new style termed nuevo tango, incorporating elements from jazz and classical music. An excellent bandoneonist, he regularly performed his own compositions with different ensembles. …More on wikipedia.

Keith Jarrett (born May 8, 1945 in Allentown, Pennsylvania) is an American pianist, composer and jazz icon. His career started with Art Blakey, Charles Lloyd and Miles Davis. Since the early 1970s he has enjoyed a great deal of success in both classical music and jazz, as a group leader and a solo performer. His improvisation technique combines not only jazz, but also other forms of music, especially classical, gospel, blues and ethnic folk music. In 2003 he received the Polar Music Prize, being the first (and to this day only) recipient not sharing the prize with anyone else. In 2008 he was introduced to the 73rd annual readers poll in the Downbeat Hall of Fame. …More on Wikipedia.

Stanley Gayetzky (February 2, 1927 in Philadelphia – June 6, 1991 in Malibu, California), usually known by his stage name Stan Getz, was an American jazz saxophone player. Known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, Getz's prime influence was the wispy, mellow tone of his idol, Lester Young. In 1986, however, Getz said: "I never consciously tried to conceive of what my sound should be..." Getz played a Selmer Mark VI tenor saxophone. …More on Wikipedia.

Theodore Walter "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930 in New York City) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Rollins' long, prolific career began at the age of 11, and he was playing with piano legend Thelonious Monk before reaching the age of 20. Rollins is still touring and recording today, having outlived most of his contemporaries such as John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Max Roach, and Art Blakey, all performers with whom he recorded. …More on Wikipedia

John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 in Hamlet, North Carolina — July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer, and the husband of Alice Coltrane.
Throughout his career he reshaped modern jazz and influenced generations of other musicians. He was astonishingly prolific: he made about fifty recordings as a leader in these twelve years, and appeared on many more led by other musicians. Throughout his career Coltrane's music took on an increasingly spiritual dimension that would color his legacy.
He received a posthumous Special Citation from the Pulitzer Prize Board in 2007 for his "masterful improvisation, supreme musicianship and iconic centrality to the history of jazz." Along with tenor saxophonists Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, and Sonny Rollins, Coltrane fundamentally altered expectations for the saxophone. …More on Wikipedia.

Richard Galliano (born December 12, 1950) is a French-Italian accordionist. He was drawn to music at an early age, starting with the accordion at 4, influenced by his father Lucien, an accordionist originally from Italy, living in Nice.
After a long and intense period of study (he took up lessons on the trombone, harmony, and counterpoint at the Academy of Music in Nice), at 14, in a search to expand his ideas on the accordion, he began listening to jazz and heard on records the great trumpet player Clifford Brown. "I copied all the choruses of Clifford Brown, impressed by his tone and his drive, his way of phrasing over the thunderous playing of Max Roach." Fascinated by this new world, Richard was amazed that the accordion had never been part of this musical adventure. Some later collaborations include George Mraz, Al Foster, Juliette Greco, Charles Aznavour, Ron Carter, Chet Baker, Enrico Rava, Martial Solal, Miroslav Vitouš, Trilok Gurtu, Jan Garbarek, Michel Petrucciani, Michel Portal and Toots Thielemans. He was a key member of Claude Nougaro's band for several years as a pianist and accordionist…More on Wikipedia.

"A Night in Tunisia" is a musical composition written by Dizzy Gillespie in 1942 while he was playing with the Earl Hines Band. It has become a Jazz standard. It is also known as "Interlude"[1], under which title it was recorded (with lyrics) by Sarah Vaughan. Gillespie himself called the tune, "Night in Tunisia". "A Night in Tunisia", along with "Manteca", was one of the signature pieces of Gillespie's bebop big band, and he also played it with his small groups. One of its most famous performances is Charlie Parker's recording for Dial (Dial even released a fragmentary take of it simply titled "The Famous Alto Break"); it also became closely identified with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, who often gave showstopping performances of it with extra percussion from the entire horn section…More on Wikipedia

Jean-Baptiste Frédéric Isidor, Baron Thielemans (born Brussels, April 29, 1922), known as Toots Thielemans, is a Belgian jazz artist well known for his guitar and harmonica playing as well as his highly accomplished professional whistling. He is often credited by jazz aficionados and jazz critics as being the greatest jazz harmonica player of the century…More on Wikipedia

William John Evans (better known as Bill Evans) (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was one of the most famous and influential American jazz pianists of the 20th century. His use of impressionist harmony, his inventive interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, and his trademark rhythmically independent, "singing" melodic lines influenced a generation of pianists, including Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Denny Zeitlin and Keith Jarrett, as well as as guitarists Lenny Breau and Pat Metheny. The music of Bill Evans continues to inspire younger pianists like Fred Hersch, Ray Reach, Bill Charlap, David Thompson, Brad Mehldau, Geoffrey Keezer, Lyle Mays and Eliane Elias[3]. Evans is an inductee of the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame…More on Wikipedia

Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell (September 27, 1924 – July 31, 1966 in New York City) was an American Jazz pianist. he has been described as one of "the two most significant pianists of the style of modern jazz that came to be known as bop", the other being his friend and contemporary Thelonious Monk.[1] Along with Monk, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie he was a key player in the history of bebop, and his virtuosity as a pianist led many to call him "the Charlie Parker of the piano"… More on Wikipedia