Lecture
Alyn Shipton
Wednesday 12.11.2025
Alyn Shipton
Jazz Piano, Part 2
Wednesday 12.11.2025
How to watch
This lecture starts on 12 November at 5:00pm (UK).
Summary
Alyn Shipton covers the development of jazz piano since World War II, starting with the bebop playing of Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk, then moving on to the soundscapes of Oscar Peterson and Dave Brubeck, as well as Ahmad Jamal. Marian McPartland’s piano playing is discussed along with other female pioneers including Lynne Arriale and Geri Allen. We come up to date by way of McCoy Tyner, Chick Corea, and Keith Jarrett, then on to Brad Mehldau, Danilo Perez, Ethan Iverson, and Hiromi.
Alyn Shipton
Alyn Shipton has worked in music for many years as a writer, editor, and player. He was the publisher of the New Grove Dictionary series in the 1980s. His own books include numerous biographies, mainly of jazz musicians, including Fats Waller, Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, Ian Carr, and Cab Calloway. His other books include the award-winning life of singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson, and a study of the relationship between visual arts and jazz. His New History of Jazz (2001, revised 2007) won awards on both sides of the Atlantic and is now well established as one of the standard works on the subject. Since 1989 he has presented and produced programs on music and history for BBC Radio. As a double bassist, he has played with many leading British jazz groups, and he currently co-leads the Buck Clayton Legacy Band.