凯斯·杰瑞

Keith Jarrett (born May 8, 1945) is an American pianist and composer. Jarrett started his career with Art Blakey and later moved on to play with Charles Lloyd and Miles Davis. Since the early 1970s, he has also been a group leader and solo performer in jazz, jazz fusion, and classical music. His improvisations draw from the traditions of jazz and other genres, including Western classical music, gospel, blues, and ethnic folk music.

His album The Köln Concert, released in 1975, is the best-selling piano recording in history. In 2008, he was inducted into the DownBeat Jazz Hall of Fame in the magazine's 73rd Annual Readers' Poll.

In 2003, Jarrett received the Polar Music Prize and was the first recipient to be recognized with the prizes for both contemporary and classical music. In 2004, he received the Léonie Sonning Music Prize.

In February 2018, Jarrett suffered a stroke and has been unable to perform since. A second stroke in May 2018 left him partially paralyzed and unable to play with his left hand.

Early life and education

Jarrett was born on May 8, 1945, in Allentown, Pennsylvania, to a mother of Slovenian descent. Jarrett's grandmother was born in Segovci, near Apače in Slovenia. Jarrett's father was of mostly German descent. He grew up in suburban Allentown with significant early exposure to music.

Jarrett possesses absolute pitch and displayed prodigious musical talents as a young child. He began piano lessons before his third birthday. At age five, he appeared on a television talent program hosted by swing bandleader Paul Whiteman.……

Career

The Jazz Messengers

In 1964, Jarrett moved to New York City, where he played at the Village Vanguard in Greenwich Village. Art Blakey hired Jarrett to play with The Jazz Messengers. Jarrett's appearance on the Messengers' live album Buttercorn Lady (1966) marked his commercial recording debut. However, there was friction between Blakey and Jarrett, and Jarrett left after four months of touring.

Charles Lloyd Quartet

During a show, he was noticed by Jack DeJohnette, who recommended Jarrett to his band leader Charles Lloyd.……

Miles Davis

The Charles Lloyd Quartet with Jarrett, Ron McClure, and DeJohnette came to an end in 1968 after their recording of Soundtrack because of money disputes and artistic differences.……

Lawsuit against Steely Dan

Following the release of the album Gaucho in 1980 by the U.S. rock band Steely Dan, Jarrett sued the band for copyright infringement. Gaucho's title track, credited to Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, bore a resemblance to Jarrett's "Long As You Know You're Living Yours" from Jarrett's 1974 album Belonging.……

Idiosyncrasies

Jarrett frequently emits loud vocalizations, sometimes characterized as moaning, during his playing. Jarrett is also physically active while playing jazz and improvised solo performances, but the vocalizations are generally absent whenever he plays classical repertoire. Jarrett has noted his vocalizations are based on involvement, not content, and are more of an interaction than a reaction.……

Cultural references

A 2025 feature film, Köln 75, tells the story of Jarrett's 1975 concert at the Köln Opera House.

Jarrett was referred to in Season 5, Episode 6, of HBO's The Sopranos in 2004, titled "Sentimental Education"; in the episode, Tony Blundetto mentions "piping in a little Keith Jarrett" among his plans for the massage studio he is building.

Personal life

Jarrett lives in an 18th-century farmhouse in Oxford Township, New Jersey, in rural Warren County, where he used an adjacent barn as a recording and practice studio.

Jarrett was a follower of the teachings of mystic George Gurdjieff for many years, and in 1980 recorded an album of Gurdjieff's compositions, called Sacred Hymns, for ECM. His forebears were Christian Scientists, and though he endorses the core of the faith, he does not follow all its precepts, and also identifies with the Sufi tradition and mystical Islam.