Jan Hammer

To pop music fans, keyboardist Jan Hammer is most beneficial known for his focus on the soundtrack of the trendy ’80s cop series Miami Vice. But Hammer also accomplished considerable achievement in the jazz fusion globe, both by himself so that as a charter person in John McLaughlin’s famous Mahavishnu Orchestra. Though jazz purists frequently decry major servings of his single work, Hammer offers undeniably remaining his tag, both musically and commercially. A indigenous of Prague, in that which was after that Czechoslovakia, Hammer was created right into a musical family members (on Apr 17, 1948) and began monitoring piano at age group four. By age group 14, he was dealing with a touring and documenting jazz ensemble that also included potential Weather Record member Miroslav Vitous. Hammer researched theory and structure in the Prague Academy of Muse Arts, however when the Soviet Union invaded Czechoslovakia in 1968, he emigrated towards the U.S. After going to the Berklee College of Music, he got a year-long touring engagement with Sarah Vaughan as both keyboardist and conductor. In 1970, Hammer resolved in Manhattan and documented like a sideman with Elvin Jones and Jeremy Steig. The next year, he became a member of the Mahavishnu Orchestra, showing up on landmark fusion albums just like the Inner Mounting Fire and Parrots of Fire. Following the group disbanded by the end of 1973, Hammer reunited with Mahavishnu violinist Jerry Goodman for the recording Like Kids (1974). Hammer released The First A WEEK himself in 1975, and he constructed a backing device known as the Jan Hammer Group for the assisting tour. The Hammer Group documented prolifically over another 2 yrs, including collaborations with guitarist Jeff Beck, and their make of fusion shifted towards R&B-styled grooves. After 1978’s Melodies, Hammer disbanded the group and documented a true single record, Dark Sheep, playing all of the instruments himself. Promptly, though, he produced another backing music group, this one known as simply Hammer. The first ’80s discovered Hammer dealing with, amongst others, Al DiMeola (Electric powered Rendezvous) and Trip guitarist Neal Schon (Untold Passions and Right here to remain), aswell as helping Jeff Beck in the studio room. Hammer was becoming more and more involved with pop/rock program collaborations, and by 1984, he previously already transferred into structure for tv and film aswell, debuting being a soundtrack composer using the film A Evening in Heaven. His big break in this area emerged when the manufacturers of a fresh MTV-style law enforcement series known as Miami Vice tapped him as every week score composer. Whenever a soundtrack record premiered in 1985, including many Hammer compositions aswell as rock tracks highlighted in the series, Hammer’s generating starting theme music strike number one for the pop singles graphs, the first Television theme to take action since 1976. The record was an internationally achievement, and “Miami Vice Theme” earned Hammer two Grammys (Greatest Pop Instrumental Efficiency and Greatest Instrumental Structure). Hammer continued to be associated with Miami Vice until 1988, when he retired to upstate NY to create a home studio room and go back to single documenting. The initial result was Snapshots, released in 1989, another accurate single recording which Hammer performed every notice himself. Subsequently, Hammer rededicated himself to soundtrack structure, including 1992’s acclaimed computer-animation task Beyond the Mind’s Vision. 1994’s Drive became Hammer’s 1st non-soundtrack documenting in five years; for the rest of the 10 years, Hammer continuing his profitable function for Television, film, commercials, as well as video games.