George Wallington
George Wallington (born October 27, 1924 in Palermo , Sicily as Giacinto Figlia , † February 15, 1993 in Cape Coral , Miami ) was an American pianist and composer of modern jazz . Despite stylistic similarities with Bud Powell , he developed his playing style independently.
Live and act
Wallington's family migrated to the USA a year after his birth, where he received singing lessons from his father at an early age and was trained in solfeggio . Wallington played the violin and mandolin at the age of six and the piano at the age of nine.
He became a professional musician in 1940. Soon he played in the quintet of Dizzy Gillespie and Oscar Pettiford in Onyx Club (winter 1943-44); he was the first pianist to play bebop in 52nd Street jazz clubs . He then played with Joe Marsala , Charlie Parker , Serge Chaloff , Allen Eager , Stan Getz , Terry Gibbs , Brew Moore , Al Cohn , Gerry Mulligan , Zoot Sims , Red Rodney and Lionel Hampton until 1953 . He made records for Savoy and Blue Note with his own trios . Between 1954 and 1960 he led bands in New York, which included musicians such as Donald Byrd , Jackie McLean and Phil Woods ; with these he recorded records for Prestige and Atlantic . In 1960 he retired from musical life to work in the family's ventilation company. In 1983 he returned to the scene to record some albums and give concerts in Japan and the United States.
Wallington's most famous compositions include the standards Lemon Drop and Godchild . He also composed the tracks Way of There and My April Heart with Buddy Goodman .
Discography (selection)
- The George Wallington Trio (Savoy, 1949–51) with Kai Winding , Gerry Mulligan, Max Roach
- The George Wallingon Trios (OJC, 1952–53) with Charles Mingus , Oscar Pettiford, Max Roach, Curly Russell
- Trios (RCA Vogue, 1954) with Pierre Michelot
- Live At The Café Bohemia (OJC, 1955) with Donald Byrd, Jackie McLean
- Jazz For The Carriage Trade (OJC, 1956) with Phil Woods
- The New York Scene (OJC, 1957)
- Jazz At Hotchkiss (Savoy, 1957) with Donald Byrd, Phil Woods
- The Pleasure Of A Jazz Inspiration (VSOP, 1985) piano solo
- As a sideman
- Serge Chaloff : We the People Bop (Cool & Blue, 1946-49)
- Al Cohn: Cohn's Tones (Savoy, 1950, 1954)
- Stan Getz: Early Getz (OJC, 1949–53)
- Gerry Mulligan: Mulligan Plays Mulligan (OJC, 1951)
- Annie Ross : Annie Ross Sings (OJC, 1952)
- Lionel Hampton: Oh! Rock (Natasha, 1953)
- Bobby Jaspar : Bobby Jaspar with George Walligton, Idrees Sulieman (OJC, 1957)
Lexical entries
- Richard Cook : Jazz Encyclopedia. London 2007 ISBN 978-0-141-02646-6
- Richard Cook, Brian Morton : The Penguin Guide of Jazz on CD . 6th edition. Penguin, London 2002, ISBN 0-14-051521-6 .
- Leonard Feather , Ira Gitler : The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz. Oxford University Press, New York 1999, ISBN 0-19-532000-X .
Web links
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Wallington, George |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Figlia, Giacinto (maiden name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American pianist and composer of modern jazz |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 27, 1924 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Palermo , Italy |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 15, 1993 |
| Place of death | Cape Coral , Miami , Florida |