Not to be confused with Harry Barris.
For the Canadian record producer, singer and songwriter, see Barry Harris (Canadian musician).
Barry Harris
Landscapeyes
Birth nameBarry Doyle Harris
Birth dateDecember 15, 1929
Birth placeDetroit, Michigan, U.S.
Death dateDecember 8, 2021 (aged 91)
Death placeNorth Bergen, New Jersey, U.S.
GenreJazz
OccupationMusician, bandleader, composer, teacher
InstrumentPiano
Years active1950s–2021
LabelPrestige, Riverside, Xanadu
Past member ofCannonball Adderley, Dexter Gordon, Coleman Hawkins, Illinois Jacquet, Yusef Lateef, Thelonious Monk, Lee Morgan, Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, Max Roach, Ryo Fukui
Websitebarryharris.com

Barry Doyle Harris (December 15, 1929 – December 8, 2021) was an American jazz pianist, bandleader, composer, arranger, and educator. He was an exponent of the bebop style.[1][2] Influenced by Thelonious Monk and Bud Powell,[3] Harris in turn influenced and mentored bebop musicians including Donald Byrd, Paul Chambers, Curtis Fuller, Joe Henderson, Charles McPherson, and Michael Weiss.[4]

Early life

Harris was born on December 15, 1929, in Detroit, Michigan, to Melvin and Bessie Harris as the fourth of their five children.[3][1] Harris took piano lessons from his mother at the age of four.[3] His mother, a church pianist, asked him if he was interested in playing church music or jazz, and he chose the latter.[3] In his teens, he performed for dances at his high school, local clubs and ballrooms.[5]

Harris's family home became a popular jam session destination for young jazz musicians including Roland Hanna, Sonny Red, Donald Byrd, and Harold McKenny. Many Motown pioneers, including Berry Gordy, were friends of Harris in his youth.[6]

Career

1946–1960: Detroit

Harris, who described Bud Powell's style as the "epitome" of jazz, learned bebop largely by ear,[5] starting with Powell's recording of "Webb City" with Sonny Stitt and Fats Navarro. Harris made one of his first recordings in Toledo, Ohio, in 1950, and made another in Detroit in 1952 with trombonist Frank Rosolino.[7] Harris said in a later interview that he also recorded a musical for Willie "Face" Smith around this time, but the album was lost.[8]

Harris remained in Detroit through the 1950s and worked with Miles Davis, Sonny Stitt, and Thad Jones,[3] and substituted for Junior Mance in Gene Ammons' band. In 1956, he toured briefly with Max Roach,[3] after Richie Powell, the band's pianist and younger brother of Bud Powell, died in a car crash.[9] Harris left Detroit in 1960 to tour with the Cannonball Adderley quintet.[4]

1960–1982: New York

Harris performed with Cannonball Adderley's quintet and on television with them.[9] After moving to New York City, he worked as an educator and performed with Dexter Gordon, Illinois Jacquet, Yusef Lateef and Hank Mobley.[9] Harris was a sideman on Lee Morgan's famous album The Sidewinder and returned to recording as leader following his move to New York.[10]

Between 1965 and 1969, Harris worked extensively with Coleman Hawkins at the Village Vanguard[11] and was one of the few musicians who continued to play bebop in Harlem during the shift toward jazz fusion in the late 1960s.[6]

During the 1970s, Harris lived with Monk at the Weehawken, New Jersey, home of the jazz patron Baroness Pannonica de Koenigswarter.[12] He substituted for Monk in rehearsals at the New York Jazz Repertory Company in 1974.[13]

In Japan, Harris performed at the Yubin Chokin concert hall in Tokyo over two days, and his performances were recorded and compiled into an album released by Xanadu Records.[11]

1982–2021: Jazz educator

Between 1982 and 1987, he was responsible for the Jazz Cultural Theatre on 8th Avenue in New York. As a co-manager with promoters Jim Harrison and Frank Fuentes, Harris brought jazz artists to the club, including Jaki Byard, Bill Hardman, Junior Cook, Vernel Fournier, Walter Bishop Jr., Michael Weiss, and Chris Anderson, before closing the club due to increased rent.[14]

From the 1990s onwards, Harris collaborated with Howard Rees on videos and workbooks documenting his harmonic and improvisational systems and teaching process.[15][16] He held music workshop sessions in New York City for vocalists, students of piano and other instruments.[17]

Harris received an honorary doctorate from Northeastern University and a joint award with Oscar Peterson and Hank Jones from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.[6]

Harris appeared in the 1989 documentary film Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser (made by Clint Eastwood's production company), performing duets with Tommy Flanagan. In 1999, he was profiled in the film Barry Harris: Spirit of Bebop.[5][7]

Although Harris took his weekly workshops onto Zoom during the COVID-19 pandemic,[4] he died from complications of the virus at a hospital in North Bergen, New Jersey, on December 8, 2021, a week before his 92nd birthday.[1][4] Harris taught his last music class less than three weeks before his death.[4]

Personal life

Harris married Christine Brown in 1953; they remained married until her death in 2017. He suffered a stroke in 1993, but was able to continue his career and play in public after recovering.[10]

Awards and honors

Discography

As leader

Recording dateTitleLabelYear releasedPersonnel/Notes
1958–07Breakin' It UpArgo1959Trio, with William Austin (bass), Frank Gant (drums)
1960–05Barry Harris at the Jazz WorkshopRiverside1960Trio, with Sam Jones (bass), Louis Hayes (drums); in concert
1960–12Listen to Barry HarrisRiverside1961Solo piano
1960–12,
1961-01		PreminadoRiverside1961One track solo piano; other tracks trio, with Joe Benjamin (bass), Elvin Jones (drums)
1961–09Newer Than NewRiverside1961Quintet, with Lonnie Hillyer (trumpet), Charles McPherson (alto sax), Ernie Farrow (bass), Clifford Jarvis (drums)
1962–05,
1962-08		Chasin' the BirdRiverside1962Trio, with Bob Cranshaw, (bass), Clifford Jarvis (drums)
1967–04Luminescence!Prestige1967Sextet, with Slide Hampton (trombone), Junior Cook (tenor sax), Pepper Adams (baritone sax), Bob Cranshaw (bass), Lenny McBrowne (drums)
1968–06Bull's Eye!Prestige1968Some tracks trio, with Paul Chambers (bass), Billy Higgins (drums); some tracks quintet, with Kenny Dorham (trumpet), Charles McPherson (tenor sax), Pepper Adams (baritone sax) added
1969–11Magnificent!Prestige1970Trio, with Ron Carter (bass), Leroy Williams (drums)
1972VicissitudesMPS1975Trio, with George Duvivier (bass), Leroy Williams (drums)
1975–06Barry Harris Plays Tadd DameronXanadu1975Trio, with Gene Taylor (bass), Leroy Williams (drums)
1976–04Live in TokyoXanadu1976Trio, with Sam Jones (bass), Leroy Williams (drums); in concert
1978–01Barry Harris Plays Barry HarrisXanadu1978Trio, with George Duvivier (bass), Leroy Williams (drums)
1979–09The Bird of Red and GoldXanadu1982Solo piano; Harris also sings on one track
1984–03For the MomentUptown1985Trio, with Rufus Reid (bass), Leroy Williams (drums); in concert
1990–03Live at Maybeck Recital Hall, Volume TwelveConcord1991Solo piano; in concert
1991Post Master Class ConcertBlue Jack Jazz Records2005Trio, with Jacques Schols (bass), Eric Ineke (drums); in concert
1991–09ConfirmationCandid1992Quartet, with Kenny Barron (piano), Ray Drummond (bass), Ben Riley (drums); in concert
1991–12Barry Harris in SpainNuba1992Trio, with Chuck Israels (bass), Leroy Williams (drums); in concert
1995–05Live at "Dug"Enja1997Trio, with Kunimitsu Inaba (bass), Fumio Watanabe (drums); in concert
1996–10First Time EverAlfa Jazz1997Trio, with George Mraz (bass), Leroy Williams (drums)
1998–04I'm Old FashionedAlfa Jazz1998Most tracks trio, with George Mraz (bass), Leroy Williams (drums); two tracks with Barry Harris Family Chorus (vocals) added
2000–06The Last Time I Saw ParisVenus2000Trio, with George Mraz (bass), Leroy Williams (drums)
2002–08Live in New YorkReservoir2003Quintet, with Charles Davis (tenor sax), Roni Ben-Hur (guitar), Paul West (bass), Leroy Williams (drums); in concert
2004–05Live from New York!, Vol. OneLineage2006Trio, with John Webber (bass), Leroy Williams (drums); in concert
2009–11Live in RennesPlus Loin2010Trio, with Mathias Allamane (bass), Philippe Soirat (drums); in concert

Source:[20]

As sideman

With Al Cohn

With Dexter Gordon

With Johnny Griffin

With Coleman Hawkins

With Buck Hill

With Sam Jones

With Yusef Lateef

With Charles McPherson

With Hank Mobley

With Lee Morgan

With Sonny Red

With Red Rodney

With Sonny Stitt

With others

See also

  • Bebop scale or 6th Diminished Scale, jazz education tool pioneered by Harris

References

  1. ^ Russonello, Giovanni (2021-12-09). "Barry Harris, Pianist and Devoted Scholar of Bebop, Dies at 91". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
  2. ^ Milkowski, Bill (1998). "Barry Harris: Young-hearted elder". Jazz Times Updated May 26, 2024.
  3. ^ Larkin, Colin (1992). The Guinness Who's Who of Jazz. First ed. Guinness Publishing. pp. 190–91. ISBN 0-85112-580-8.
  4. ^ Stryker, Mark (2021-12-08). "Barry Harris, beloved jazz pianist devoted to bebop, dies at 91". NPR. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
  5. ^ Barry Harris: Spirit of Bebop. Efor Films. 2004.
  6. ^ Dwyer, Tom (2006-03-16). "Barry Harris in New York". All About Jazz. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
  7. ^ "Barry Harris Spirit of Bebop". Library of Congress. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  8. ^ Schermer, Victor L. (2021-12-11). "Barry Harris: Iconic Jazz Pianist and Keeper of the Flame". All About Jazz. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
  9. ^ Kernfeld, Barry (ed.) (2002). The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz Second edition. London, England: Macmillan. p. 177. ISBN 033369189X.
  10. ^ Schudel, Matt (December 10, 2021). "Barry Harris, jazz pianist who kept the spirit of bebop alive, dies at 91". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  11. ^ Thomas, Greg (July 16, 2012). "Bebop legend Barry Harris set to burn up Village Vanguard with 2-week gig". New York Daily News. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
  12. ^ Watrous, Peter (May 28, 1994). "Be-Bop's Generous Romantic", The New York Times. Retrieved June 2, 2008. "Mr. Harris moved to New York in the early 1960s and became friends with Thelonious Monk and Baroness Pannonica de Koenigswarter, Mr. Monk's patron. Eventually, Mr. Harris moved to her estate in Weehawken, N.J., where he still lives."
  13. ^ Carr, Ian; Digby Fairweather; Brian Priestley (1988). Jazz The Essential Companion. New York: Prentice Hall Press. ISBN 0-13-509274-4.
  14. ^ Myers, Marc (2017-04-28). "Jazz news: Jazz Cultural Theatre Lives!". JazzWax. Retrieved 2024-02-24. – via All About Jazz.
  15. ^ "Evolutionary Voicings, Part 1 – Howard Rees' Jazz Workshops". Jazzworkshops.com. Retrieved 2017-04-27.
  16. ^ "About Howard Rees – Howard Rees' Jazz Workshops". Jazzworkshops.com. Retrieved 2017-04-27.
  17. ^ "Barry Harris Residency April 7 through 10". Brown.edu. Retrieved 2017-04-27.
  18. ^ "Recognition Awards to Barry Harris for Outstanding Devotion to Music and Education". Barryharris.com. 2014. Archived from the original on 2015-07-14. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  19. ^ "Barry Harris facts, information, pictures". Encyclopedia.com. May 18, 2018. Retrieved 2017-04-27.
  20. ^ "Barry Harris Discography". Jazzdisco.org. Retrieved December 20, 2018.