# 1969 in jazz

This is a timeline documenting events of Jazz in the year 1969.

## Events

The New England Conservatory becomes the first traditional music conservatory to offer a jazz studies course.

### June

* 18
** The 3rd Montreux Jazz Festival started in Montreux, Switzerland (June 18 – 22).

### July

* 3 – The 16th Newport Jazz Festival started in Newport, Rhode Island (July 3 – 6).
** The 1st day featured Sun Ra and Space Arkestra, Bill Evans / Jeremy Steig, and George Benson
** The 2nd day featured Jeff Beck Group, Ten Years After, and Jethro Tull (Recorded)
** The 3rd day featured Frank Zappa & The Mothers Of Invention, John Mayall, and Miles Davis Quintet (Recorded)
** The 4th day featured Sly & The Family Stone, O.C. Smith, and Dave Brubeck.

### August

* 18 – The 9th National Jazz and Blues Festival started in Plumpton, East Sussex, England (August 8 – 10).
* 19 – Trumpeter Miles Davis uses a wah-wah pedal on Bitches Brew (August 19 – 21).

### September

* 19 – The 12th Monterey Jazz Festival started in Monterey, California (September 19 – 21).

## Album releases

* Bill Evans: Quiet Now
* Don Cherry: Mu
* Pharoah Sanders: Karma
* Miles Davis: In a Silent Way
* Art Ensemble of Chicago: People in Sorrow
* George Russell: Electronic Sonata For Souls Loved By Nature
* Art Ensemble of Chicago: Reese and the Smooth Ones
* Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre: Humility in the Light of the Creator
* Charlie Haden: Liberation Music Orchestra
* Dollar Brand: African Piano
* Gunter Hampel: The 8th of July 1969
* Roland Kirk: Rahsaan Rahsaan
* Pharoah Sanders: Jewels of Thought
* Archie Shepp: Yasmina, a Black Woman
* Art Ensemble of Chicago: A Jackson In Your House
* Charles Tolliver: The Ringer
* Joe McPhee: Underground Railroad
* Jan Garbarek: Esoteric Circle
* Ornette Coleman: Crisis
* Pharoah Sanders: Izipho Zam (My Gifts)
* Sunny Murray: Homage to Africa
* Chick Corea: Is
* Dewey Redman: Tarik
* Willem Breuker: Lunchconcert For Three Barrel-organs
* Joe Harriott: Hum-Dono
* Peter Brötzmann: Nipples
* Charles Earland: Black Talk!
* Wolfgang Dauner: Fuer
* Eric Kloss: To Hear Is To See!
* Leon Thomas: Spirits Known and Unknown
* Miroslav Vitous: Mountain in the Clouds
* Tony Williams: Emergency!
* Archie Shepp: Blasé
* Dollar Brand: African Sketchbook
* John McLaughlin: Extrapolation
* Wayne Shorter: Super Nova
* Stanley Cowell: Blues for the Viet Cong
* Stanley Cowell: Brilliant Circles
* Wolfgang Dauner: The Oimels
* Horace Tapscott: West Coast Hot
* Liberation Music Orchestra: Liberation Music Orchestra

## Deaths
### January

* 4 – Paul Chambers, American bassist (born 1935).
* 19 – Alcide Pavageau, American upright bassist (born 1888).

### February

* 15 – Pee Wee Russell, American clarinetist (born 1906).
* 17 – Paul Barbarin, New Orleans drummer (born 1899).

### March

* 25 – Billy Cotton, English bandleader (born 1899).

### April

* 23 – Krzysztof Komeda, Polish film music composer and jazz pianist (haematoma) (born 1931).
* 24 – René Compère, Belgian trumpeter (born 1906).

### May

* 19 – Coleman Hawkins, American tenor saxophonist (born 1904).

### June

* 1 – Stan Brenders, Belgian jazz pianist and bandleader (born 1904).
* 2 – Albert Stinson, American upright bassist (born 1944).
* 10 – Wilbur Harden, American trumpeter, flugelhornist and composer (born 1924).
* 14
** Roberto Firpo, Argentine tango pianist (born 1884).
** Wynonie Harris, American blues shouter and rhythm and blues singer (born 1915).

### July

* 14 – Ernie Farrow, American pianist, bassist, and drummer (born 1928).

### August

* 7 – Russ Morgan, American big band orchestra leader (born 1904).
* 14 – Tony Fruscella, American trumpeter (born 1927).

### September

* 9 – Cedric Haywood, American pianist (born 1914).

### October

* 10 – Manuel Manetta, American multi-instrumentalist (born 1889).
* 14 – Bill McKinney, American drummer (born 1895).
* 19 – Booker Pittman, American clarinetist (born 1909).
* 22 – Nate Kazebier, American trumpeter (born 1912).
* 29 – Pops Foster, American string bassist, who also played tuba and trumpet (born 1892).
* 30 – Tony Sbarbaro, American drummer (born 1897).
* 31 – Tony Pastor, Italian-American novelty singer and tenor saxophonist (born 1907).

### November

* 2 – Slick Jones, American drummer (born 1907).
* 14 – Johnny Bayersdorffer, New Orleans cornetist and bandleader (born 1899).
* 18 – Ted Heath, English trombonist and big-band leader (born 1902).

### December

* 9 – Bobby Henderson, American pianist and trumpeter (born 1920).
* 16 – Leo Mathisen, Danish pianist, composer, arranger, singer, and bandleader (born 1906).
* 26 – Jiří Šlitr, Czech songwriter, pianist, singer, actor, and painter (born 1924).

## Births
### January

* 3 – James Carter, American saxophonist, flautist, and bass clarinetist.
* 24 – Duane Eubanks, American trumeter and flugelhornist.

### February

* 1 – Joshua Redman, American saxophonist.
* 6 – Scott Amendola, American drummer.
* 7 – Chris Minh Doky, Danish bassist.
* 14 – Stefano di Battista, Italian saxophonist.
* 22 – Ståle Storløkken, Norwegian organist and keyboardist.

### March

* 10 – Travis Shook, American pianist and songwriter.
* 13 – Stephen Scott, American pianist.
* 22 – Asaf Sirkis, Israeli drummer, composer, and educator.
* 25 – Marcin Jahr, Polish drummer.
* 29 – Jason Rebello, British pianist, songwriter, and record producer.

### April

* 9 – Giovanni Allevi, Italian pianist and composer.
* 23 – Trude Eick, Norwegian hornist.
* 24 – Rebecca Martin, American singer and songwriter.
* 29 – Thomas Winther Andersen, Norwegian bassist.
* 30 – Michel Delville, Belgian guitarist, writer, and critic.

### May

* 6 – Mathilde Grooss Viddal, Norwegian saxophonist.
* 12 – Erlend Skomsvoll, Norwegian pianist, composer, and orchestra leader, Come Shine.
* 22 – Carl Craig, American producer of techno music.
* 23 – Mindi Abair, American saxophonist, vocalist, and author.

### June

* 2 – Kate Michaels, American singer.
* 11
** Assif Tsahar, Israeli avant-garde tenor saxophonist and bass clarinetist.
** Michael Lington, American saxophonist.
* 22 – Régis Huby, French violinist, composer, and arranger.

### July

* 4 – Carolyn Breuer, German saxophonist.
* 7 – Svein Olav Herstad, Norwegian pianist.
* 27 – Edward Simon, Venezuelan pianist and composer.

### August

* 4 – Dylan Howe, English drummer, bandleader, session musician, and composer, The Blockheads.
* 16 – Kate Higgins, American voice actress, singer, and pianist.
* 25
** Olga Konkova, Russian-Norwegian pianist and composer.
** Øyvind Brække (August 25), Norwegian trombonist.
* 28 – Na Yoon-sun, South Korean singer.

### September

* 14 – Denys Baptiste, British tenor and soprano saxophonist.
* 16
** Ayako Shirasaki, Japanese pianist and composer.
** Roy Paci, Italian trumpeter, singer, composer, and arranger.
* 19
** Cuong Vu, Vietnam-born avant-garde fusion trumpeter.
** Candy Dulfer, Dutch alto saxophonist and singer.
* 26 – Peter Asplund, Swedish trumpeter, singer, and composer.

### October

* 1 – Ori Kaplan, Israeli avant-garde saxophonist.
* 4 – Mat Maneri, American composer, improviser, and jazz violin and viola player
* 7
** Francesco Buzzurro, Italian guitarist and composer.
** Per Mathisen, Norwegian bassist and composer.
* 8 – Gulleiv Wee, Norwegian bassist, The September When.
* 16 – Roy Hargrove, American trumpeter (died 2018).
* 27
** Marek Napiórkowski, Polish guitarist and composer.
** Stéphane Galland, Belgian drummer.
* 31 – Catherine Delaunay, French clarinetist and composer.

### November

* 25 – Kim Ofstad, Norwegian drummer, D'Sound.
* 29 – Fredrik Ljungkvist, Swedish saxophonist and clarinetist, Atomic.

### December

* 6 – Daniel Tinte, Argentinian pianist and composer.
* 19 – Aziza Mustafa Zadeh, Azerbaijani scat singer, pianist and composer.
* 31 – Joyce Cooling, American guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter.

### Unknown date

* Adrian Fry, British trombonist.
* Alon Yavnai, Israel-born pianist and composer.
* Guillermo Klein, Argentine pianist and composer.
* Lelo Nika, Serbian-born Romanian-Romani accordionist.
* Lucian Ban, Romanian jazz pianist.
* Per "Ruskträsk" Johansson, Swedish saxophonist, flautist, and clarinettist.
* Per «Texas» Johansson, Swedish saxophonist and clarinettist.
* Ricardo Martinez, Venezuelan bass guitarist.
* Thomas Fryland, Danish trumpeter.