Cecil Taylor Biography
| Born as | Cecil Percival Taylor |
| Occup. | Musician |
| From | USA |
| Born | March 25, 1929
Long Island City, New York, USA |
| Died | April 5, 2018
Brooklyn, New York, USA |
| Aged | 89 years |
Early Life and Education
Cecil Percival Taylor was born on March 25, 1929, in New York City, USA. His family acknowledged his talent for music from an early age, and he started studying classical piano at the age of six. Growing up in a musical family in Queens, Taylor's mother, Almeida Ragland Taylor, was a classically skilled pianist and a public school music instructor. She exposed Taylor to a wide range of music and helped lay the foundation for his future profession.
After finishing high school, Taylor studied at the New York College of Music, where he took classes in music theory and structure. He continued his studies at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, where he learnt piano and structure, concentrating on classical music.
Increase to Fame and Musical Style
Taylor's professional music career started in the early 1950s when he started playing with various jazz ensembles around New York City. Throughout this time, Taylor began differing the requirements of conventional jazz, rather, exploring more experimental improvisational methods.
Cecil Taylor's huge break was available in 1956 when he launched his launching album, "Jazz Advance", featuring saxophonist
Steve Lacy, bassist Buell Neidlinger, and drummer Dennis Charles. The album showcased Taylor's special design of playing, which often included complicated chords, progressive improvisations, and uncommon time signatures. This ingenious technique to jazz, later on described as "totally free jazz", was not immediately accepted by critics and audiences, but it would ultimately make him one of the most prominent jazz pianists of his time.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Taylor's prominence in the avant-garde jazz scene grew as he continued to release vibrant and tough albums such as "Unit Structures", "Conquistador!", and "The World of Cecil Taylor". His partners during this period consisted of artists such as saxophonists Jimmy Lyons and Albert Ayler, drummers Sunny Murray and Andrew Cyrille, and trumpeter
Bill Dixon.
Later On Career and Legacy
In spite of dealing with difficulties, including a lack of business success and resistance from standard jazz circles, Taylor continued to push the boundaries of jazz throughout his prolonged career. In the 1980s and 1990s, he performed with larger ensembles, consisting of a huge band and an orchestra, and released albums such as "For Olim" (1987) and "Garden" (1982).
The significance of Cecil Taylor's influence on allure scene was recognized by numerous awards and honors he received in his later life. In 1990, he was granted a Guggenheim Fellowship for Music Composition, and in 2013, he got the prestigious Kyoto Prize for his contributions to the world of music.
Cecil Taylor's music continues to inspire and challenge generations of musicians and listeners alike. He passed away on April 5, 2018, leaving a legacy as one of the most ingenious and bold artists of the 20th century.
Personal Life
Throughout his life, Cecil Taylor was a personal person, hardly ever going over aspects of his personal life with the general public or journalism. Though he never married, Taylor was understood to have a close circle of buddies, a number of whom were fellow musicians and artists. He was likewise a poet, often incorporating spoken word into his efficiencies.
In conclusion, Cecil Percival Taylor's innovative operate in the world of totally free jazz made him a legendary figure in the history of music. His distinct style, ingenious compositions, and undeviating dedication to pressing the limits of jazz continue to inspire and influence musicians all over the world.
Our collection contains 7 quotes who is written / told by Cecil.
Related authors: Bill Dixon (Musician), Lawrence Taylor (Athlete), Steve Lacy (Musician)
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