Episode Information

A Birthday Tribute to Jackie McLean

In the '60s, McLean was a mainstay of the Blue Note label, where he liberalized his concept, even recording with Ornette Coleman. In later years his bands often included his former students at the University of Hartford, where he'd taught for decades.

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A Profile of Gerry Mulligan

Jean-Pierre Muller / AFP/Getty Images

Gerry Mulligan, pictured here in 1993, also tried his hand at collaborations with string orchestras later in life.

NPR.org, April 16, 2008 - Arguably the most influential baritone saxophonist in jazz, Gerry Mulligan was also a commanding composer, arranger and bandleader, and played a pivotal role in developing the "cool jazz" sound and the West Coast jazz community. Mulligan extended his unwieldy instrument's vocabulary with his soft tone, rhythmic agility and harmonic brilliance, and established the "bari" sax as a solo instrument in small group settings

Gerry Mulligan died in January 1996, at the age of 68.