Gary Burton (born January 23, 1943) is an American jazz

vibraphonist The vibraphone is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using mallets to strike the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone is called a ''vibraphonist,'' ''vibraharpist,' ...

, composer, and educator. Burton developed a pianistic style of four-mallet technique as an alternative to the prevailing two-mallet technique. This approach caused him to be heralded as an innovator, and his sound and technique are widely imitated.Corley, Cheryl (May 8, 2004)
"Gary Burton Steps Down, Out: Jazz Vibraphonist Moves On After Three Decades at Berklee"
. ''NPR''. He is also known for pioneering fusion jazz and popularizing the duet format in jazz, as well as being a major figure in music education from his 30 years at the Berklee College of Music.

Biography

Burton was born in

Anderson Anderson or Andersson may refer to: Companies * Anderson (Carriage), a company that manufactured automobiles from 1907 to 1910 * Anderson Electric, an early 20th-century electric car * Anderson Greenwood, an industrial manufacturer * Anderson ...

, Indiana, United States. Beginning music at six years old, he mostly taught himself to play marimba and vibraphone. He began studying piano at age sixteen while finishing high school at Princeton Community High School in Princeton, Indiana (1956–60). He has cited jazz pianist Bill Evans as the inspiration for his approach to the

vibraphone The vibraphone is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using mallets to strike the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone is called a ''vibraphonist,'' ''vibraharpist ...

. Burton attended Berklee College of Music in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

, in 1960–61 and the Stan Kenton Clinic at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...

in 1960. He studied with

Herb Pomeroy Irving Herbert Pomeroy III (April 15, 1930 – August 11, 2007) was an American jazz trumpeter, teacher, and the founder of the MIT Festival Jazz Ensemble. Early life Pomeroy was born in Gloucester, Massachusetts, United States. He began playing ...

and soon befriended composer and arranger Michael Gibbs. After establishing his career during the 1960s, he returned to join the staff of Berklee from 1971–2004, serving first as professor, then dean, and executive vice president, during his last decade at the college. In 1989, Burton received an Honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee. Early in his career, at the behest of Nashville saxophonist Boots Randolph, Burton moved to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

and recorded with several musicians from the area, including guitarist Hank Garland, pianist Floyd Cramer and guitarist

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music ...

. Burton toured the U.S. and Japan with pianist

George Shearing Sir George Albert Shearing, (13 August 1919 14 February 2011) was a British jazz pianist who for many years led a popular jazz group that recorded for Discovery Records, MGM Records and Capitol Records. Shearing was the composer of over 300 ...

.Yanow, Scott
"Gary Burton , Biography & History"
. ''AllMusic''. Retrieved December 25, 2017. Shearing asked Burton to write a whole album of compositions for him which were released as '' Out of the Woods'' in 1965. Burton described the album in his autobiography, ''Learning to Listen'', as his "most ambitious effort at composing and arranging". Burton played with saxophonist Stan Getz from 1964 to 1966. It was during this time that he appeared with the band in the movie '' Get Yourself a College Girl'', playing " Girl from Ipanema" with Astrud Gilberto. In 1967, he formed the Gary Burton Quartet with guitarist Larry Coryell, drummer

Roy Haynes Roy Owen Haynes (born March 13, 1925) is an American jazz drummer. He is among the most recorded drummers in jazz. In a career lasting over 80 years, he has played swing, bebop, jazz fusion, avant-garde jazz and is considered a pioneer of jaz ...

, and bassist

Steve Swallow Steve Swallow (born October 4, 1940) is an American jazz bassist and composer, known for his collaborations with Jimmy Giuffre, Gary Burton, and Carla Bley. He was one of the first jazz double bassists to switch entirely to electric bass guitar. ...

. Predating the

jazz-rock fusion Jazz fusion (also known as fusion and progressive jazz) is a music genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric guitars, amplifiers, and keyb ...

craze of the 1970s, the group's first album, '' Duster'', combined jazz,

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...

, and rock. However, some of Burton's previous albums (notably '' Tennessee Firebird'' and ''

The Time Machine ''The Time Machine'' is a science fiction novella by H. G. Wells, published in 1895. The work is generally credited with the popularization of the concept of time travel by using a vehicle or device to travel purposely and selectively for ...

'', both from 1966) had already shown his inclination toward such experimentation. After Coryell left the quartet in the late 1960s, Burton worked with guitarists Jerry Hahn, David Pritchard,

Mick Goodrick Mick Goodrick (June 9, 1945 – November 16, 2022) was an American jazz guitarist who spent most of his career as a teacher. In the early 1970s, he worked with Gary Burton and Pat Metheny. Biography An Elvis fan, Goodrick began studying guitar ...

Pat Metheny Patrick Bruce Metheny ( ; born August 12, 1954) is an American jazz guitarist and composer. He is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works, and other side projects. His style incorporates elements of progre ...

John Scofield John Scofield (born December 26, 1951), sometimes referred to as "Sco", is an American guitarist and composer whose music over a long career has blended jazz, jazz fusion, funk, blues, soul and rock. He first came to mainstream attention in th ...

, Wolfgang Muthspiel,

Kurt Rosenwinkel Kurt Rosenwinkel (born October 28, 1970) is an American jazz guitarist, keyboardist, composer, bandleader, producer, educator and record label owner. Biography A native of Philadelphia, Rosenwinkel attended the Philadelphia High School for the ...

, and

Julian Lage Julian Lage ( ; born December 25, 1987) is an American guitarist and composer. Career A child prodigy, Lage was the subject of the 1996 short documentary film ''Jules at Eight''. At 12, he performed at the 2000 Grammy Awards. Three years later ...

. Burton was named '' DownBeat'' magazine's Jazzman of the Year in 1968 (the youngest to receive that title) and won his first Grammy Award in 1972. The following year Burton began a forty-year collaboration with pianist Chick Corea, recognized for popularizing the format of jazz duet performance. Their eight albums won Grammy Awards in 1979, 1981, 1997, 1999, 2009, and 2013. Burton has played with a wide variety of jazz musicians, including Gato Barbieri, Carla Bley, Chick Corea,

Peter Erskine Peter Erskine (born June 5, 1954) is an American jazz drummer who was a member of the jazz fusion groups Weather Report and Steps Ahead. Early life and education Erskine was born in Somers Point, New Jersey, U.S. He began playing the dru ...

, Stan Getz, Hank Garland,

Stephane Grappelli Stephane may refer to: * Stéphane, a French given name * Stephane (Ancient Greece), a vestment in ancient Greece * Stephane (Paphlagonia) Stephane ( grc, Στεφάνη) was a small port town on the coast of ancient Paphlagonia, according to Arr ...

, Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett, B. B. King, Steve Lacy,

Makoto Ozone is a Japanese jazz pianist. Career He was born in Kobe, Japan. He began playing organ at two and by seven was an improviser. He appeared on Japanese television with his father from 1968 to 1970. At twelve he switched to piano after being impre ...

, Tiger Okoshi,

Astor Piazzolla Astor Pantaleón Piazzolla (, ; March 11, 1921 – July 4, 1992) was an Argentine tango composer, bandoneon player, and arranger. His works revolutionized the traditional tango into a new style termed '' nuevo tango'', incorporating elements fro ...

, Tommy Smith,

Ralph Towner Ralph Towner (born March 1, 1940) is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger and bandleader. He plays the twelve-string guitar, classical guitar, piano, synthesizer, percussion, trumpet and French horn. Biography Towner was born i ...

, and

Eberhard Weber Eberhard Weber (born 22 January 1940, in Stuttgart, Germany) is a German double bassist and composer. As a bass player, he is known for his highly distinctive tone and phrasing. Weber's compositions blend chamber jazz, European classical music, m ...

. Burton is known for his variation of traditional four-mallet grip which has come to be known as "Burton Grip," and is popular among jazz vibraphonists, as well as some concert marimbists, including

Pius Cheung Pius Cheung () is a percussionist and composer, called "a young Chinese-Canadian virtuoso," by ''The New York Times''. Born in China, he moved to British Columbia at age twelve. He received his bachelor's degree from the Curtis Institute of Music ...

and

Evelyn Glennie Dame Evelyn Elizabeth Ann Glennie, (born 19 July 1965) is a Scottish percussionist. She was selected as one of the two laureates for the Polar Music Prize of 2015. Early life Glennie was born in Methlick, Aberdeenshire in Scotland. The in ...

. From 2004 to 2008, Burton hosted a weekly jazz radio show on

Sirius Satellite Radio Sirius Satellite Radio was a satellite radio (SDARS) and online radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Holdings. Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially lau ...

. In 2011, he released his first album for

Mack Avenue Records Mack Avenue Records is an independent record label in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan. Background Mack Avenue was founded in 1999 by Gretchen Carhartt Valade, a jazz fan and chair of the American apparel company Carhartt. The company is a sponsor ...

, entitled ''Common Ground'', featuring the New Gary Burton Quartet (with Julian Lage, Scott Colley, and Antonio Sanchez). In 2013, the group released ''Guided Tour'', their second recording for

. Burton's autobiography, ''Learning to Listen'', was published by Berklee Press in August 2013 and was voted "Jazz Book of the Year" by the Jazz Journalists Association. Burton retired from performing in March 2017 following a farewell tour with pianist and longtime collaborator

Personal life

By the 1980s, Burton was in a gay relationship, and he came out publicly in a 1994 radio interview with

Terry Gross Terry Gross (born February 14, 1951) is an American journalist who is the host and co-executive producer of '' Fresh Air'', an interview-based radio show produced by WHYY-FM in Philadelphia and distributed nationally by NPR. Since joining N ...

, making him one of the rather few openly gay jazz musicians of prominence. In 2013, he married Jonathan Chong in

Provincetown, Massachusetts Provincetown is a New England town located at the extreme tip of Cape Cod in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, in the United States. A small coastal resort town with a year-round population of 3,664 as of the 2020 United States Census, Province ...

.Gavin, James (2001)
Homophobia in Jazz
, Jazztimes.com. Retrieved April 17, 2012 Burton's current partner is Dustin Le.

Discography

As leader/co-leader

Compilations

* ''Works'' (ECM, 1984) P* ''Collection'' (GRP, 1996) * ''Take Another Look. A Career Retrospective'' (Mack Avenue, 2018) LPref>

Collaborations

* ''Live from the Detroit Jazz Festival – 2013'' (Mack Avenue, 2014) * ''Hommage a Eberhard Weber'' (ECM, 2015)

As sideman

With

Thomas Clausen Thomas Clausen may refer to: * Thomas Clausen (educator) (1939–2002), educator from Baton Rouge, Louisiana *Thomas Clausen (musician) (born 1949), Danish jazz pianist *Thomas Clausen (mathematician) Thomas Clausen (16 January 1801, Snogbæk, ...

* ''Café Noir'' (Intermusic, 1991) * ''Flowers and Trees'' (MA Music, 1992) With Hank Garland * ''

After the Riot at Newport ''After the Riot at Newport'' is an album by the Nashville All-Stars, which was recorded live after the cancellation of their appearance at the 1960 Newport Jazz Festival. History This group of Nashville session players played a mixture of pop a ...

'' (RCA Victor, 1960) – released under the name The Nashville All-Stars) * ''Jazz Winds from a New Direction'' (Columbia, 1961) – also released as Hank Garland & Gary Burton ''Three-Four The Blues'' (1961) * ''The Unforgettable Guitar of Hank Garland'' (Columbia, 1962) With Stan Getz * '' Getz Au Go Go'' (Verve, 1964) * '' Nobody Else But Me'' (Verve, 1964) * '' Getz/Gilberto No. 2'' ( Verve, 1966) – recorded in 1964 * '' The Stan Getz Quartet in Paris'' (Verve, 1967) – live recorded in 1966 * ''The Canadian Concert of Stan Getz'' (Can-Am, 1983) – recorded in 1965 With

* 1963: '' Jazz Concert'' (

Capitol A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity. Specific capitols include: * United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. * Numerous ...

, 1963) – live * 1963: '' Out of the Woods'' (Capitol, 1965) * 1963: '' Rare Form!'' (Capitol, 1966) – live With

* '' Fluid Rustle'' (ECM, 1979) *'' Hommage à Eberhard Weber'' (ECM, 2015) With others *

, ''

'' with the Nashville Allstars (RCA, 1960) *

Bob Brookmeyer Robert Edward "Bob" Brookmeyer (December 19, 1929 – December 15, 2011) was an American jazz valve trombonist, pianist, arranger, and composer. Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Brookmeyer first gained widespread public attention as a member of G ...

, '' Bob Brookmeyer and Friends'' ( Columbia, 1962) * Eric Clapton, ''

Journeyman A journeyman, journeywoman, or journeyperson is a worker, skilled in a given building trade or craft, who has successfully completed an official apprenticeship qualification. Journeymen are considered competent and authorized to work in that fie ...

'' (Reprise Records, 1989) *

Bruce Cockburn Bruce Douglas Cockburn ( ; born May 27, 1945) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist. His song styles range from folk to jazz-influenced rock and his lyrics cover a broad range of topics including human rights, environmental issues, p ...

, ''The Charity of Night'' (True North, 1996) * Floyd Cramer, ''Last Date'' (RCA Victor, 1960) *

Eddie Daniels Eddie Daniels (born October 19, 1941) is an American musician and composer. Although he is best known as a jazz clarinetist, he has also played saxophone and flute as well as classical music on clarinet. Early life, family and education Daniel ...

, ''Benny Rides Again'' ( GRP, 1992) * Tim Hardin, ''

Tim Hardin 1 ''Tim Hardin 1'' is the debut album by folk artist Tim Hardin, released in 1966 on Verve Records. History ''Tim Hardin 1'' contains one of his most well-known and frequently covered songs, " Reason to Believe"a notable hit for Rod Stewart in 1971 ...

'' (Verve, 1966) - recorded in 1964-65 *

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

, '' Quincy Jones Explores the Music of Henry Mancini'' ( Mercury, 1964) * k.d. lang, ''

Ingénue The ''ingénue'' (, , ) is a stock character in literature, film and a role type in the theater, generally a girl or a young woman, who is endearingly innocent. ''Ingénue'' may also refer to a new young actress or one typecast in such role ...

'' ( Sire, 1992) *

Livingston Taylor Livingston Taylor (born November 21, 1950) is an American singer-songwriter and folk musician. Born in Boston and raised in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, he is the brother of singer-songwriter James Taylor, singer-songwriter Kate Taylor, singer ...

, '' There You Are Again'' (Coconut Bay, 2005) *

Jay Leonhart Jay Leonhart (born December 6, 1940) is a double bassist, singer, and songwriter who has worked in jazz and popular music. He has performed with Judy Garland, Bucky Pizzarelli, Carly Simon, Frank Sinatra, and Sting. Leonhart is noted for his cle ...

, ''Four Duke'' (Absolute Spain, 1995) *

Arif Mardin Arif Mardin (March 15, 1932 – June 25, 2006) was a Turkish-American music producer, who worked with hundreds of artists across many different styles of music, including jazz, rock, soul, disco and country. He worked at Atlantic Records for o ...

, ''

Journey Journey or journeying may refer to: * Travel, the movement of people between distant geographical locations ** Day's journey, a measurement of distance ** Road trip, a long-distance journey on the road Animals * Journey (horse), a thoroughbred ra ...

'' (Atlantic, 1974) - recorded in 1973 * Howard Jones, '' One to One'' (Elektra Records, 1986) *

, ''

Swallow The swallows, martins, and saw-wings, or Hirundinidae, are a family of passerine songbirds found around the world on all continents, including occasionally in Antarctica. Highly adapted to aerial feeding, they have a distinctive appearance. The ...

'' (Xtra Watt, 1991) * Jon Weber, '' Simple Complex'' (2nd Century Jazz, 2004)

Awards

, - ,

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...

, ''

Alone at Last ''Alone at Last'' is the first solo album by vibraphonist Gary Burton, on which he also plays piano and organ. It was recorded in 1971, and features three performances from the Montreux Jazz Festival and four performances from the studio. It rel ...

'' , , Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a Soloist , , - ,

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the '' International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the '' Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the so ...

, '' Duet'' (with Chick Corea) , Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group , , - , 1982 , ''

In Concert, Zürich, October 28, 1979 ''In Concert, Zürich, October 28, 1979'' is a live double album by pianist Chick Corea and vibraphonist Gary Burton recorded at the Limmathaus in Zürich and released on ECM Records, ECM the following year—the duo's third release for the label, ...

'' (with Chick Corea) , Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group , , - ,

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

, "Rhumbata", '' Native Sense'' (with Chick Corea) ,

Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Solo The Grammy Award for Best Improvised Jazz Solo has been awarded since 1959. Before 1979 the award title did not specify instrumental performances and was presented for instrumental or vocal performances. The award has had several minor name change ...

, , - ,

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...

, '' Like Minds'' (with Chick Corea,

and

Dave Holland David “Dave” Holland (born 1 October 1946) is an English jazz double bassist, composer and bandleader who has been performing and recording for five decades. He has lived in the United States for over 40 years. His extensive discography r ...

) , Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group , , - , 2009 , '' The New Crystal Silence'' (with Chick Corea) , Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance , , - ,

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

, ''Hot House'' (with Chick Corea) ,

Grammy Award for Best Improvised Jazz Solo The Grammy Award for Best Improvised Jazz Solo has been awarded since 1959. Before 1979 the award title did not specify instrumental performances and was presented for instrumental or vocal performances. The award has had several minor name change ...

, , -

References

External links

BBC's profile on Gary Burton

Gary Burton Interview from the NAMM Oral History Library (2008)

Gary Burton Interview from the Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burton, Gary 1943 births Living people American autobiographers American jazz composers American jazz vibraphonists American male jazz composers Avant-garde jazz musicians Berklee College of Music alumni Berklee College of Music faculty American gay musicians Grammy Award winners GRP All-Star Big Band members GRP Records artists ECM Records artists LGBT people from Indiana Mack Avenue Records artists Musicians from Anderson, Indiana 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century LGBT people

Biography

Personal life

Discography

As leader/co-leader

Compilations

Collaborations

As sideman

Awards

See also

References

External links