News & Updates — Bobby Hutcherson

The modern jazz pianist/composer Andrew Hill came from a musical West Indian family in Chicago. A prodigy, he first played accordion, sang and tap-danced before he taking up piano. He studied with Earl Hines, Pat Patrick and German composer Paul Hindemith and as a teenager played clubs, backing artists like Miles Davis, Coleman Hawkins and Charlie Parker. He toured in Dinah Washington's band and settled in NYC in '61. He worked with Johnny Hartman, Roland Kirk, Al Hibbler and others before a series of strikingly original and phenomenal recordings with the Blue Note label brought him acclaim from the musicians'...

The recently departed Bobby Hutcherson was one of the great vibraphone (as well as marimba) players in jazz. His music could look forward or look back and he cut some Latin and soul-jazz records as well. He sometimes would use the four-mallet technique, especially when there was no piano. His '60s & early '70s albums remain my favorite material. Bobby grew up in the Los Angeles area, started playing some piano as a child but was inspired to play vibes after hearing a Milt Jackson record. He knew Dexter Gordon and Eric Dolphy from around L.A. He briefly studied with...