This is a timeline documenting events of

Jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

in the year 1981.

Events

April

* 10 – The 8th

Vossajazz Vossajazz or Vossa Jazz (established 19 December 1973) is an international jazz festival in Voss, Norway, which takes place annually during the week before Easter, and which also includes concerts throughout the year. The festival has been led by ...

started in Voss, Norway (April 10 – 12).

May

* 20 – 9th Nattjazz started in

Bergen, Norway Bergen (, ) is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 2025 the population is 294 029 according to Statistics Norway. The municipali ...

(May 20 – June 3).

June

* 2 – The 2nd

Montreal International Jazz Festival The Festival international de Jazz de Montréal is an annual jazz festival held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Montreal Jazz Fest holds the 2004 Guinness World Record as the world's largest jazz festival. Every year it features roughly 3,000 ar ...

started in

Montreal, Quebec Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Canada (July 2 – 10). * 5 – 10th

Moers Festival The Moers Festival is an annual international music festival in Moers, Moers, Germany. The festival has changed from concentrating on free jazz to including world music, world and pop music, though it still invites many avant-garde jazz musicians. ...

started in

Moers, Germany Moers (; older form: ''Mörs''; Dutch: ''Murse'', ''Murs'' or ''Meurs'') is a German city on the western bank of the Rhine, close to Duisburg. Moers belongs to the district of Wesel. History Known earliest from 1186, the county of Moers w ...

(June 5 – 8).

July

* 3 – The 15th

Montreux Jazz Festival The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annu ...

started in

Montreux, Switzerland Montreux (, ; ; ) is a Swiss municipality and town on the shoreline of Lake Geneva at the foot of the Alps. It belongs to the Riviera-Pays-d'Enhaut district in the canton of Vaud, having a population of approximately 26,500, with about 85,00 ...

(July 3 – 19). * 10 – The 6th

North Sea Jazz Festival The North Sea Jazz Festival is a festival held annually on the second weekend of July in the Netherlands at the Ahoy venue. The festival moved to Rotterdam in 2006 after the demolition of the Statenhal in The Hague where it was originally held. ...

started in The Hague, Netherlands (July 10 – 12).

September

* 18 – The 24th

Monterey Jazz Festival The Monterey Jazz Festival is an annual music festival that takes place in Monterey, California, United States. It debuted on October 3, 1958, championed by Dave Brubeck and co-founded by jazz and popular music critic Ralph J. Gleason and jazz ...

started in

Monterey, California Monterey ( ; ) is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, California, Monterey County, the city occupies a land area of and recorded a popu ...

(September 18 – 20).

Album releases

Stanley Clarke Stanley Clarke (born June 30, 1951) is an American bassist, composer and founding member of Return to Forever, one of the first jazz fusion bands. Clarke gave the bass guitar a prominence it lacked in jazz-related music. He is the first jazz-fus ...

and

George Duke George Martin Duke (January 12, 1946 – August 5, 2013) was an American keyboardist, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer. He worked with numerous artists as arranger, music director, writer and co-writer, record producer and as ...

: '' The Clarke/Duke Project'' *

Al Jarreau Alwin Lopez Jarreau (March 12, 1940 – February 12, 2017) was an American singer and songwriter. His 1981 album '' Breakin' Away'' spent two years on the ''Billboard'' 200 and is considered one of the finest examples of the Los Angeles pop and ...

: '' Breakin' Away'' *

Lee Ritenour Lee Mack Ritenour ( ; born January 11, 1952) is an American jazz guitarist who has been active since the late 1960s. Biography Ritenour was born in 1952, in Los Angeles, California. At the age of eight he started playing guitar and four years l ...

: ''Rit'' *

Ronald Shannon Jackson Ronald Shannon Jackson (January 12, 1940 – October 19, 2013) was an American jazz drummer from Fort Worth, Texas. A pioneer of avant-garde jazz, free funk, and jazz fusion, he appeared on over 50 albums as a bandleader, sideman, arranger, and ...

: ''Street Priest'' *

Jan Garbarek Jan Garbarek () (born 4 March 1947) is a Norwegian jazz saxophonist, who is also active in classical music and world music. Garbarek was born in Mysen, Østfold, southeastern Norway, the only child of a former Polish prisoner of war, Czesław Gar ...

: ''

Paths, Prints ''Paths, Prints'' is an album by Norwegian jazz saxophonist Jan Garbarek, recorded in December 1981 and released on ECM 6 September 1982. The quartet features rhythm section Bill Frisell, Eberhard Weber and Jon Christensen.Anthony Davis Anthony Marshon Davis Jr. (born March 11, 1993), nicknamed "AD" and "the Brow", is an American professional basketball player for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Davis, a Power forward (basketball), power f ...

: ''Episteme'' * Joe McPhee: ''

Topology Topology (from the Greek language, Greek words , and ) is the branch of mathematics concerned with the properties of a Mathematical object, geometric object that are preserved under Continuous function, continuous Deformation theory, deformat ...

'' *

Paul Motian Stephen Paul Motian (March 25, 1931 – November 22, 2011) was an American jazz drummer, percussionist, and composer of Armenian descent. He played an important role in freeing jazz drummers from strict time-keeping duties. Motian first came t ...

: ''

Psalm The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament. The book is an anthology of H ...

'' *

Rova Saxophone Quartet Rova Saxophone Quartet is an American, San Francisco–based saxophone quartet, formed in October 1977. The name "Rova" is an acronym formed from the last initials of the founding members: , Larry Ochs, Andrew Voigt, and Bruce Ackley. When Voig ...

: ''As Was'' * Marilyn Crispell: '' Spirit Music'' *

Muhal Richard Abrams Muhal Richard Abrams (born Richard Lewis Abrams; September 19, 1930 – October 29, 2017) was an American educator, administrator, composer, arranger, clarinetist, cellist, and jazz pianist in the free jazz medium. He recorded and toured the Uni ...

: '' Blues Forever'' * Henry Kaiser: ''Aloha'' *

Sergey Kuryokhin Sergey Anatolyevich Kuryokhin (16 June 19549 July 1996, nicknamed The Captain) was a Russian composer, pianist, music director, experimental artist, film actor and writer, based in St. Petersburg, Russia. He was an influential fig ...

: '' The Ways of Freedom'' * David Moss: ''Terrain'' * David Murray: ''

Home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...

'' *

Frank Lowe Frank Lowe (June 24, 1943 – September 19, 2003) was an American avant-garde jazz saxophonist and composer. Biography Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Lowe took up the tenor saxophone at the age of 12. As an adult he moved to San Francisco, where h ...

: ''Skizoke'' *

Willem Breuker Willem Breuker (4 November 1944 – 23 July 2010) was a Dutch bandleader, composer, arranger, saxophonist, and clarinet The clarinet is a Single-reed instrument, single-reed musical instrument in the woodwind family, with a nearly cylindri ...

: ''In Holland'' *

: ''Nasty'' *

Billy Bang Billy Bang (September 20, 1947 – April 11, 2011), born William Vincent Walker, was an American free jazz violinist and composer. Biography Bang's family moved to New York City's Bronx neighborhood while he was still an infant, and as a ...

: '' Rainbow Gladiator'' * Don Moye: '' Black Paladins'' * Frederic Hand: ''Heart's Song'' *

Jaco Pastorius John Francis Anthony Pastorius III, also known as Jaco Pastorius (; December 1, 1951 – September 21, 1987), was an American jazz bassist, composer, and producer. Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential bassists of all time, ...

: ''

Word of Mouth Word of mouth is the passing of information from person to person using oral communication, which could be as simple as telling someone the time of day. Storytelling is a common form of word-of-mouth communication where one person tells others a ...

'' * Joanne Brackeen: '' Special Identity'' *

Hal Russell Hal Russell (born Harold Russell Luttenbacher, August 28, 1926 – September 5, 1992) was an American free jazz composer, band leader and multi-instrumentalist who performed mainly on saxophone and drums but occasionally on trumpet or vibrapho ...

: '' NRG Ensemble'' * Marvin Peterson: ''The Angels of Atlanta'' *

Oscar Peterson Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian jazz pianist and composer. As a virtuoso who is considered to be one of the greatest Jazz piano, jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordin ...

: '' Nigerian Marketplace'' * Saheb Sarbib: ''Aisha'' * Steve Douglas: ''Rainbow Suite'' *

Steve Khan Steve Khan (born Steven Harris Cahn; April 28, 1947) is an American jazz guitarist. Career Steven Harris Cahn was born in Los Angeles. His father, lyricist Sammy Cahn, "loved to hear any and all versions of his songs". He took piano lessons as a ...

: ''Eyewitness'' *

Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, and music instructor, who is currently the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has been active in promoting classical and jazz music, often to young ...

: ''

'' *

Keith Tippett Keith Graham Tippetts (25 August 1947 – 14 June 2020), known professionally as Keith Tippett, was a British jazz pianist and composer. According to AllMusic, Tippett's career "...spanned jazz-rock, progressive rock, improvised and contemporar ...

: ''Mujician'' *

Larry Carlton Larry Eugene Carlton (born March 2, 1948) is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts including Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. One of the most sought after guitarists of his era, Carlton has ...

: '' Strikes Twice'' *

Pharoah Sanders Pharoah Sanders (born Ferrell Lee Sanders; October 13, 1940 – September 24, 2022) was an American jazz saxophonist. Known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on the saxophone, as well as his use of "sheets of sound", San ...

: '' Rejoice''

Deaths

; January * 9 –

Cozy Cole William Randolph "Cozy" Cole (October 17, 1909 – January 9, 1981) was an American jazz drummer who worked with Cab Calloway and Louis Armstrong among others and led his own groups. Life and career William Randolph Cole was born in East Ora ...

, American drummer (born 1909). * 21 –

Russell Procope Russell Keith Procope (August 11, 1908 – January 21, 1981) was an American clarinetist and alto saxophonist who was a member of the Duke Ellington orchestra. Before Ellington Procope was born in New York City, United States, and grew up in ...

, American clarinettist and alto saxophonist (born

1908 This is the longest year in either the Julian or Gregorian calendars, having a duration of 31622401.38 seconds of Terrestrial Time (or ephemeris time), measured according to the definition of mean solar time. Events January * January ...

). ; February * 23 –

Shep Fields Shep Fields (born Saul Feldman, September 12, 1910 – February 23, 1981) was an American bandleader who led the Shep Fields and His Rippling Rhythm orchestra during the 1930s. His distinctive Rippling Rhythm sound was featured on big band remo ...

, American bandleader, clarinetist, and tenor saxophonist (born

1910 Events January * January 6 – Abé people in the French West Africa colony of Côte d'Ivoire rise against the colonial administration; the rebellion is brutally suppressed by the military. * January 8 – By the Treaty of Punakha, t ...

). * 28 – Jean Robert, Belgian saxophonist (born

). ; March * 5 – Red Saunders, American drummer and bandleader (born

1912 This year is notable for Sinking of the Titanic, the sinking of the ''Titanic'', which occurred on April 15. In Albania, this leap year runs with only 353 days as the country achieved switching from the Julian to Gregorian Calendar by skippin ...

). * 20 –

Sonny Red Sylvester Kyner Jr. (December 17, 1932 – March 20, 1981), known as Sonny Red, was an American jazz alto saxophonist, flutist and composer associated with the hard bop idiom among other styles. Sonny Red played with Art Blakey, Curtis Fuller, ...

, American alto saxophonist (born

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

). ; April * 3 –

Polo Barnes Paul D. "Polo" Barnes (November 22, 1901 – April 3, 1981, New Orleans) was an American jazz clarinetist and saxophonist. He was the brother of Emile Barnes and was a mainstay of the New Orleans jazz scene of the 1920s and 1930s. Career Bar ...

, American clarinetist and saxophonist (born

1901 December 13 of this year is the beginning of signed 32-bit Unix time, and is scheduled to end in January 19, 2038. Summary Political and military 1901 started with the unification of multiple British colonies in Australia on January ...

). * 29 –

Cat Anderson William Alonzo "Cat" Anderson (September 12, 1916 – April 29, 1981) was an American jazz trumpeter known for his long period as a member of Duke Ellington's orchestra and for his wide range, especially his ability to play in the altissimo regis ...

, American trumpeter (born

1916 Events Below, the events of the First World War have the "WWI" prefix. January * January 1 – The British Empire, British Royal Army Medical Corps carries out the first successful blood transfusion, using blood that has been stored ...

). ; May * 12 – Frank Weir, British orchestra leader and saxophonist (born

1911 Events January * January 1 – A decade after federation, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory are added to the Commonwealth of Australia. * January 3 ** 1911 Kebin earthquake: An earthquake of 7.7 m ...

). * 25 –

Georg Malmstén Georg Malmstén (27 June 1902 – 25 May 1981) was a Finnish singer, musician, composer, orchestra conductor and actor. He was one of the most prolific entertainers in Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic cou ...

, Finnish singer, musician, composer, orchestra conductor, and actor (born

1902 Events January * January 1 ** The Nurses Registration Act 1901 comes into effect in New Zealand, making it the first country in the world to require state registration of nurses. On January 10, Ellen Dougherty becomes the world's ...

). * 28 –

Mary Lou Williams Mary Lou Williams (born Mary Elfrieda Scruggs; May 8, 1910 – May 28, 1981) was an American jazz pianist, arranger, and composer. She wrote hundreds of compositions and arrangements and recorded more than one hundred records (in 78, 45, and ...

, African-American pianist and composer (born

). ; July * 21 – Snub Mosley, American trombonist (born

1905 As the second year of the massive Russo-Japanese War begins, more than 100,000 die in the largest world battles of that era, and the war chaos leads to the 1905 Russian Revolution against Nicholas II of Russia (Shostakovich's 11th Symphony i ...

). ; August * 3 – Seymour Österwall, Swedish tenor saxophonist, bandleader, and composer (born

). * 4 – Tommy Turk, American trombonist (born

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the BBC, British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith, 1st Baron Reith, John Reith becomes the first ...

). * 24 – Bill Coleman, American trumpeter (born

1904 Events January * January 7 – The distress signal ''CQD'' is established, only to be replaced 2 years later by ''SOS''. * January 8 – The Blackstone Library is dedicated, marking the beginning of the Chicago Public Library system. * ...

). ; September * 9 ** Fernand Coppieters, Belgian pianist and organist (born

). ** Helen Humes, American singer (born

1913 Events January * January – Joseph Stalin travels to Vienna to research his ''Marxism and the National Question''. This means that, during this month, Stalin, Hitler, Trotsky and Tito are all living in the city. * January 3 &ndash ...

). * 13 –

Bob Bates Robert Bates (born December 11, 1953) is an American video game designer. One of the early designers of interactive fiction games, he was co-founder of Challenge, Inc., which created games in the 1980s for the pioneering company Infocom. After ...

, American upright bassist (born

1923 In Greece, this year contained only 352 days as 13 days was skipped to achieve the calendrical switch from Julian to Gregorian Calendar. It happened there that Wednesday, 15 February ''(Julian Calendar)'' was followed by Thursday, 1 March ' ...

). ; December * 15 – Samuel Jones, American upright bassist, cellist and composer (born

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20–January 30, 30 – Kuomintang in Ch ...

). * 17 – Roy McCloud, American cornetist (born 1909). * 27 –

Hoagy Carmichael Hoagland Howard "Hoagy" Carmichael (November 22, 1899 – December 27, 1981) was an American musician, composer, songwriter, actor, author and lawyer. Carmichael was one of the most successful Tin Pan Alley songwriters of the 1930s and 1940s, a ...

, American composer, pianist, singer, actor, and bandleader (born 1899).

Births

; January * 18 – Martin Taxt, Norwegian tubist. ; February * 18 – Kamasi Washington, American saxophonist, composer, producer, and bandleader. * 20 –

Chris Thile Christopher Scott Thile (; born February 20, 1981) is an American mandolinist, singer, songwriter, composer, and radio personality, best known for his work in the progressive acoustic trio Nickel Creek and the acoustic folk and progressive blue ...

, American mandolinist, singer, songwriter, composer, and radio personality. * 24 – Gwilym Simcock, British pianist and composer. ; March * 10 ** Elina Duni, Albanian singer and composer. **

Lars Horntveth Lars Horntveth (born 10 March 1980 in Tønsberg, Norway) is a Norwegian musician (saxophones, clarinet, percussion and guitar), band leader, and composer. He is the younger brother of tubaist Line Horntveth, but best known as a key member of t ...

, Norwegian multi-instrumentalist, band leader, and composer. * 13 –

Ivo Neame Ivo Michael Beale Neame (born 13 March 1981) is a British jazz pianist and composer. In addition to leading his own bands he is a member of several European jazz groups including Phronesis, the Marius Neset Quintet, and the Kairos 4Tet. H ...

, British pianist, saxophonist, and composer,

Phronesis In ancient Greek philosophy, () refers to the type of wisdom or intelligence concerned with practical action. It implies good judgment and excellence of character and habits. In Aristotelian ethics, the concept is distinguished from other words ...

. ; April * 3 –

Erik Nylander Johan Erik Nylander (born 3 April 1981 in Norberg, Sweden) is a Swedish jazz musician (drums), improviser and composer, working in Norway since 2002. He plays in several bands, among them Ola Kvernberg Trio, "Kobert", Kirsti Huke Quartet, T ...

, Swedish drummer, improviser, and composer, Magic Pocket. * 27 – Hilde Marie Kjersem, Norwegian singer and songwriter. ; May * 3 – Alexander Hawkins, British pianist, bandleader, and composer. * 19 –

Dan Forshaw Dan Forshaw (born 19 May 1981) is an English jazz musician and music educator who started his career aged sixteen. He plays the tenor saxophone, tenor, soprano saxophone, soprano and alto saxophone and has also recorded on bass clarinet and the ...

, English saxophonist and educator. * 20 – Carmen Souza, Portuguese singer and songwriter of Cape Verdean heritage. ; June * 3 –

Sam Amidon Samuel Tear Amidon (born June 3, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Early life Amidon's parents are folk artists Peter Amidon and Mary Alice Amidon. They were members of Bread and Puppet Theater in the 1970s ...

, American singer and songwriter. * 16 –

Ola Kvernberg Ola Kvernberg (born 16 June 1981) is a Norwegian jazz musician known for his virtuosic string swing violin playing and his international performances. He is the son of traditional musicians Liv Rypdal Kvernberg and Torbjørn Kvernberg, and the br ...

, Norwegian violinist and composer. ; July * 13 ** Olavi Louhivuori, Finnish drummer and composer. ** Sigurd Hole, Norwegian upright bassist, Eple Trio. * 21 –

Paloma Faith Paloma Faith Blomfield (born 21 July 1981) is an English singer, songwriter, and actress. After signing with Epic Records in 2008, Faith released her debut album, '' Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?'' (2009), which produced the UK ...

, English singer, songwriter, and actress. ; August * 8 –

Maria Ylipää Maria Mikaela Markuntytär Ylipää (born 8 August 1981) is a Finnish singer and actress, who has starred in the musical ''Kristina från Duvemåla'' (Helsinki 2012, Göteborg 2014, Stockholm 2015) and acted in the films ''Keisarikunta'' (2004) an ...

, Finnish singer and actress. * 14 – Thomas Morgan, American upright bassist and cellist. * 16 – Øystein Moen, Norwegian pianist and keyboarder. * 26 –

Gwyneth Herbert Gwyneth Herbert (born 26 August 1981) is a British singer-songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. Initially known for her interpretation of jazz and swing standards, she is now established as a writer of original compo ...

, British singer-songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. ; September * 3 –

Jørgen Munkeby Jørgen Munkeby (born 3 September 1980 in Oslo, Norway) is a Norwegians, Norwegian jazz rock and Heavy metal music, heavy metal musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, known as the frontman in the band Shining (Norwegian band), Shining ...

, Norwegian multi-instrumentalist and singer. ; October * 18 – Sarah Buechi, Swiss singer. * 20 – Kaori Kobayashi, Japanese saxophonist and flautist. * 24 – Fredrik Mikkelsen, Norwegian guitarist and composer. * 26 – Erlend Slettevoll, Norwegian pianist, Grand General. ; December * 17 – Kim Myhr, Norwegian guitarist and composer, Trondheim Jazz Orchestra. * 18 – Maciej Obara, Polish saxophonist. ; Unknown date * Anders Thorén, Swedish drummer. * Andy Davies, Welsh trumpeter. * Ivar Loe Bjørnstad, Norwegian drummer.

References

External links

History Of Jazz Timeline: 1981
at

All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...

{{Jazz

Jazz by year

Events

April

May

June

July

September

Album releases

Deaths

Births

See also

References

External links