Piano, Synthesiser (1932-2016)

Born Hyman Paul Bley on 10 November 1932 in Montreal, Quebec, Paul Bley began studying violin at age five and piano at seven. He received a junior diploma from McGill Conservatory at 11 and in 1949 replaced Oscar Peterson at Montreal's Alberta Lounge aged 17. He moved to New York in 1950 to study at Juilliard and in 1952 co-founded the Montreal Jazz Workshop. In 1953, he recorded with Charlie Parker in Montreal and released his debut album Introducing Paul Bley with Charles Mingus on bass and Art Blakey on drums. He played with Lester Young and Ben Webster throughout the 1950s. In 1957, he married composer Karen Borg, who became Carla Bley, and moved to Los Angeles. In October 1958, he led a quintet at the Hillcrest Club with Ornette Coleman, Don Cherry, Billy Higgins, and Charlie Haden, pioneering free jazz. Returning to New York in 1959, he worked with Charles Mingus, George Russell, and Don Ellis.

From 1961 to 1962, Bley formed a groundbreaking trio with Jimmy Giuffre on reeds and Steve Swallow on bass. In 1963, he joined Sonny Rollins' quartet and toured Japan. His 1960s trio with Gary Peacock and Paul Motian became the standard by which other trios were measured. In 1964, he joined the Jazz Composers Guild with Carla Bley, Cecil Taylor, Archie Shepp, and Roswell Rudd. In 1968, he gave the first live synthesiser performance at Philharmonic Hall in New York, pioneering Moog and ARP synthesisers. His 1972 ECM album Open, to Love was a radical solo piano statement. He recorded extensively for ECM and Justin Time Records. In the 1990s, he taught at New England Conservatory. He received the Prix Oscar Peterson in 1994 and was made a member of the Order of Canada in 2008. His last performances were in 2010. He died in 2016, aged 83.