Wayne Shorter : biography
Wayne Shorter (born August 25, 1933) is an American jazz saxophonist and composer.
Jazz critic Ben Ratliff of the New York Times has described Shorter as "probably jazz’s greatest living small-group composer and a contender for greatest living improviser."Ratliff, Ben. . The New York Times. December 3, 2008. Retrieved 2013-06-04. Many of Shorter’s compositions have become jazz standards. His output has earned worldwide recognition, critical praise and various commendations, including multiple Grammy Awards.. GRAMMY.com. Retrieved 2013-06-04. He has also received acclaim for his mastery of the soprano saxophone (after switching his focus from the tenor in the late 1960s), beginning an extended reign in 1970 as Down Beat’s annual poll-winner on that instrument, winning the critics’ poll for 10 consecutive years and the readers’ for eighteen.. DownBeat.com. Retrieved 2013-06-02
Shorter first came to wide prominence in the late 1950s as a member of, and eventually primary composer for, Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. In the 1960s, he went on to join Miles Davis’s Second Great Quintet, and from there he co-founded the jazz fusion band Weather Report. He has recorded over 20 albums as a bandleader.
Personal life
Shorter met Teruka (Irene) Nakagami in 1961. They were later married and had a daughter, Miyako. Some of his compositions are copyrighted as "Miyako Music". Shorter dedicated some pieces to his daughter: "Miyako" and "Infant Eyes". The couple separated in 1964.
Shorter met Ana Maria Patricio in 1964 and they were married in 1970. In 1985, their daughter Iska died of a grand mal seizure at age 14. Ana Maria and the couple’s niece Dalila were both killed on July 17, 1996, on TWA Flight 800, while en route to see him in Italy. The New York Times. Retrieved 4 June 2013. Dalila was the daughter of Ana Maria Shorter’s sister and her husband, jazz vocalist Jon Lucien. In 1999, Shorter married Carolina Dos Santos, a close friend of Ana Maria. He is a Nichiren Buddhist and a member of Sōka Gakkai.
Discography
Title | Year | Label | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Introducing Wayne Shorter | 1959 | Vee-Jay | ||
Second Genesis | 1960 | Vee-Jay | ||
Wayning Moments | 1962 | Vee-Jay | ||
Night Dreamer | 1964 | Blue Note | ||
JuJu | 1964 | Blue Note | ||
Speak No Evil | 1965 | Blue Note | ||
The Soothsayer | 1965 | Blue Note | ||
Et Cetera | 1965 | Blue Note | ||
The All Seeing Eye | 1965 | Blue Note | ||
Adam’s Apple | 1966 | Blue Note | ||
Schizophrenia | 1967 | Blue Note | ||
Super Nova | 1969 | Blue Note | ||
Moto Grosso Feio | 1970 | Blue Note | ||
Odyssey of Iska | 1970 | Blue Note | ||
Native Dancer with Milton Nascimento | 1974 | Columbia | ||
Atlantis | 1985 | Columbia | ||
Phantom Navigator | 1986 | Columbia | ||
Joy Ryder | 1988 | Columbia | ||
Carlos Santana and Wayne Shorter – Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1988 with Carlos Santana | 1988 | Image Entertainment | ||
High Life | 1995 | Verve | ||
1 + 1 with Herbie Hancock | 1997 | Verve | ||
Footprints Live! | 2002 | Verve | ||
Alegría | 2003 | Verve | ||
Beyond the Sound Barrier | 2005 | Verve | ||
Without a Net | 2013 | Blue Note |