Art Tatum biography

Arthur Tatum, Jr. (October 13, 1909 – November 5, 1956) was a famous American jazz pianist known for his virtuosic playing and creative improvisation.

Art Tatum was born in Toledo, Ohio. From birth he suffered from cataracts which left him blind in one eye, and with only very limited vision in the other. Tatum played piano from his youth, and played professionally in Ohio before moving to New York City in 1932.

Art Tatum drew inspiration from his contemporaries James P. Johnson and Fats Waller, and had a great influence on other famous jazz pianists, such as Thelonious Monk, Chick Corea, and Oscar Peterson.

Art Tatum was widely recognized among his colleagues as the most gifted jazz pianist alive, some going so far as to say he was one of the greatest pianists of any genre. Unusually for a jazz musician, Tatum rarely abandoned the original melodic lines of the songs he played, preferring innovative reharmonization (changing the chord progressions that supported the melodies). He also had a penchant for filling spaces within melodies with his trademark runs and other embellishments, which some critics considered gratuitous and "unjazzlike."

Art Tatum tended to record unaccompanied, partly because relatively few musicians could keep up with his lightning-fast tempos and advanced harmonic vocabulary. He formed a trio during the early 1940's with bassist Slam Stewart and guitarist Tiny Grimes. They recorded a number of 78 rpm discs during the short period they were together. To hear these recordings today is to marvel at the structure and interplay which are unequalled to this day. Art Tatum's playing was technically awesome, and his reharmonization concepts are still ahead of their time.

Tatum's contemporaries recognized his prowess. When Art Tatum walked into a club where Fats Waller was playing, Waller stepped away from the piano bench to make way for Tatum, announcing, "I only play the piano, but tonight God is in the house". In addition, Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff, after hearing Tatum play, claimed he was the greatest piano player in any style.

Art Tatum recorded commercially from 1932 until near his death, though the predominately solo nature of his skills meant that recording opportunities were somewhat intermittent. Tatum recorded for Decca (1934-41), Capitol (1949, 1952) and for the labels associated with Norman Granz (1953-56). For Granz he recorded an extended series of solo albums and also group recordings with among others Ben Webster, Benny Carter and Lionel Hampton.

There are no films of Art Tatum playing apart from a few fleeting seconds in the movie "The Fabulous Dorseys" and a couple of other fleeting images in a non-descript documentary. Art Tatum appeared on the Steve Allen Tonight Show in the early 1950's, and on other television shows from this era. However, all of the kinescopes of the Allen shows, which were stored in a warehouse along with other now defunct shows, were thrown into a local rubbish tip to make room for new studios by account executives of the television network. The soundtracks though were recorded off-air by Tatum enthusiasts at the time, and Storyville Records extensive series of rare Tatum recordings includes many of these.

Art Tatum died in Los Angeles, California from the complications of uraemia (as a result of kidney failure), having been a prolific beer drinker from his teenage years. Tatum is interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.

Art Tatum Jazz Heritage Festival
With The Art Tatum Jazz Heritage Festival, The Toledo Jazz Orchestra concert. Toledo native Art Tatum is universally considered to be the greatest jazz.


Art Tatum - Music at Last.fm
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Art Tatum - Biography
Biography. Art Tatum was born Oct. 13, 1909 in Toledo, Ohio and. greatest tribute to the excellence of Art Tatum lies in the opinions of his peers.


NPR's Jazz Profiles: Art Tatum
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YouTube - Art Tatum- Humouresque
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