Walter Bishop, Jr.

Walter Bishop, Jr. was a very important power pianist on many today’s jazz session through the bebop period, remaining a dynamic performer until his loss of life at age 70 in early 1998. The child of composer Walter Bishop, Sr., he was raised in Harlem’s Sugars Hill area, so when a teenager counted among his close friends Sonny Rollins, Kenny Drew, and Artwork Taylor; acknowledging Artwork Tatum, Bud Powell, and Nat Ruler Cole as essential affects, Bishop first drawn notice around the Manhattan golf club circuit around 1947, heading to play and record in rings led by Artwork Blakey, Charlie Parker, Oscar Pettiford, Kai Winding, and Kilometers Davis within the years to check out. In 1960 he performed in trombonist Curtis Fuller’s group before developing his personal trio another 12 months with bassist Jimmy Garrison and drummer G.T. Hogan. In 1964 Bishop toured with vibist Terry Gibbs, and in the past due ’60s he analyzed at Juilliard with composer/pianist Hall Overton. He relocated to LA in 1969, where he continuing to review and are a freelancer with regional organizations, including Supersax and trumpeter Blue Mitchell’s music group. From 1972 to 1975 Bishop taught jazz theory, both privately and in regional colleges. He came back to NY in 1975. Another 12 months Bishop authored an insightful if neglected publication on jazz theory, A REPORT in Fourths, where he proffered a method of chromatic improvisation in line with the usage of cycles of fourths and fifths. Bishop performed in trumpeter Clark Terry’s big and little rings in 1977. He continuing to business lead his own groupings, and in the first ’80s started teaching on the College or university of Hartford; in 1983 he performed a solo concert at Carnegie Hall. Within the middle-’90s Bishop seemed to great acclaim on the Charlie Parker Jazz Celebration on NY City’s Decrease East Side.