Gil Evans

Gil Evans (13 May, 1912, Toronto, Canada ? 20 March, 1988, Cuernavaca, Mexico) was a jazz-musician and important innovator of big band jazz in USA: arranger and composer, bandleader, pianist. Born as Ian Ernest Gilmore Green, he took the family name from his stepfather (non musician). After early years in California, from 1946 he lived and worked in NYC.

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13 May - 1912 - Toronto - 20 March - 1988 - Jazz - Musician - Big band - Arranger - Composer - Bandleader - Pianist

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His period with Miles Davis:

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Miles Davis was a noted American trumpet player, with whom Gil Evans worked during their early careers. Their collaboration started in 1948, with the formation of a nonet; the resultant recordings were later collected and issued on the LP The Birth of the Cool. Later, the two men collaborated more extensively: first with Miles Ahead, then with Porgy and Bess, Sketches of Spain, and lastly with the under-appreciated Quiet Nights. It is widely accepted that although these four records were marketed primarily under the name of Davis (often credited as Miles Davis and the Gil Evans Big Band) Evans's contribution was just as important. Their work was a companionship of classic big band jazz with a skillful soloist. All their work featured arrangements written by Evans for big band--which Evans rehearsed--onto which Davis played with extraordinary melodic and stylistic skill. Though perhaps not as groundbreaking as Davis's Kind of Blue, Evans's and Davis's work can be appreciated as monumental to jazz.

Related Topics:
1948 - Miles Ahead - Porgy and Bess - Sketches of Spain - Quiet Nights

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