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Cecil Taylor

The importance of remembering everything but the music

Charles Mingus, photographed at a party in New York on Aug. 4, 1976. For poet and critic Harmony Holiday, the complexities that underpin legacies like Mingus' were a constant puzzle this year. Lynn Karlin/Penske Media via Getty Images hide caption

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Lynn Karlin/Penske Media via Getty Images

The Story of Jazz in 2022

The importance of remembering everything but the music

Poet and critic Harmony Holiday spent her year interviewing descendants and torchbearers, finding that the soul of jazz needs preserving offstage and outside of the booth.

In Memoriam 2018: The Musicians We Lost

Soul singer Aretha Franklin poses for a portrait in 1964. Michael Ochs Archives/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images hide caption

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Michael Ochs Archives/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

All Songs Considered

In Memoriam 2018: The Musicians We Lost

A look back at the extraordinary creative souls we lost in 2018, from producer Richard Swift and opera singer Montserrat Caballé to rapper Mac Miller and Aretha Franklin.

In Memoriam 2018: The Musicians We Lost

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'Jazz Night In America' Remembers Artists We Lost In 2018

Grammy-winning trumpeter Roy Hargrove passed away at age 49. Courtesy of The Roy Hargrove Estate hide caption

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Courtesy of The Roy Hargrove Estate

Jazz Night In America: The Radio Program

'Jazz Night In America' Remembers Artists We Lost In 2018

WBGO and Jazz At Lincoln Center

Friends of the show offer memories and music of pianist Cecil Taylor, Village Vanguard owner Lorraine Gordon, South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela and trumpeter Roy Hargrove.

'Jazz Night In America' Remembers Artists We Lost In 2018

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Cecil Taylor On Piano Jazz

Cecil Taylor performs at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall in 2002. Jack Vartoogian/Getty Images hide caption

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Jack Vartoogian/Getty Images

Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz

Cecil Taylor On Piano Jazz

Cecil Taylor encompasses a never-ending range of sound and emotion. Hear an archival session with Marian McPartland from 1994.

Cecil Taylor On Piano Jazz

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Cecil Taylor, Jazz Icon Of The Avant-Garde, Dies At 89

Cecil Taylor performs at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall in 2002. Jack Vartoogian/Getty Images hide caption

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Jack Vartoogian/Getty Images

The Record

Cecil Taylor, Jazz Icon Of The Avant-Garde, Dies At 89

Taylor stretched the beats in a measure and played notes outside the chords of a song. A pioneer of free jazz, the pianist and composer remained true to his vision even through financial struggle.

Cecil Taylor, Jazz Icon Of The Avant-Garde, Dies At 89

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Cecil Taylor: The Pianist Who's Also An Orchestra

Cecil Taylor, 83, is being feted in a two-week celebration of his music in New York City. Peter Gannushkin/downtownmusic.net hide caption

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Peter Gannushkin/downtownmusic.net

Music News

Cecil Taylor: The Pianist Who's Also An Orchestra

He broke all the rules of jazz and improvised music — and that was in the 1950s. Now 83 and idolized by musicians, the great improviser is celebrated for developing a unique language at the keyboard.

Cecil Taylor: The Pianist Who's Also An Orchestra

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