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Overview: Jazz music has a rich history of versatile pianists who have shaped jazz through their innovation and skill. Early pioneers such as Jelly Roll Morton and James P. Johnson laid the foundation for jazz piano with their stride techniques and improvisational skills. The swing era brought icons like Count Basie and Duke Ellington, whose sophisticated compositions and arrangements elevated the role of the piano in jazz ensembles. The bebop revolution introduced virtuosos like Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk, who pushed harmonic boundaries and redefined jazz piano's expressive potential. Later, artists such as Bill Evans brought a lyrical and introspective quality to the instrument, influencing generations of musicians. Modern jazz pianists like Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, and Brad Mehldau continue to innovate, blending traditional elements with contemporary styles. Each pianist has contributed uniquely, ensuring the enduring legacy of jazz piano as a cornerstone of the genre's evolution.
Criteria: These Jazz pianists were chosen for their originality, versatility, compositional skill, impact and influence in addition to their technical and improvisational playing of the instrument.
Jazz has had the broadest perspective of all genre's in music since it's first note to the present day. It is for that reason that this list is presented in the same manner, with respect to all the myriad forms & interpretations of Jazz that exist today.
Edited By: Rick Varner
Last Updated: 2011-09-12
Newly added names are in Red
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