Gordon, Tristano, Johnson voted into Jazz Hall of Fame

NEW YORK — Saxophonist Dexter Gordon and pianists James P. Johnson and Lennie Tristano are the newest inductees into Jazz at Lincoln Center's Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame.

Gordon was considered the first tenor saxophonist to adapt the new bebop style pioneered by Charlie Parker in the 1940s.

Johnson helped pioneer the Harlem stride style of jazz piano in the 1920s, while Tristano was an innovative modern pianist who in 1949 made the first freely improvised group recordings.

JALC announced the 2015 inductees Friday. They were chosen in a vote of jazz fans around the world from a list of nominees submitted by a committee of jazz musicians and scholars.

To date, JALC has inducted 48 jazz greats into the Hall of Fame since its launch in 2004. 

Online: http://academy.jazz.org/hall-of-fame

We are proud to announce this year’s Ertegun Hall of Fame Inductees, selected by public voting:

Dexter Gordon 

James P Johnson

Lennie Tristano

Dexter Gordon, James P. Johnson, and Lennie Tristano join our previous inductees, who are:

Louis Armstrong (Inducted 2004)

Count Basie (Inducted 2005)

Sidney Bechet (Inducted 2004)

Bix Beiderbecke (Inducted 2004)

Art Blakey (Inducted 2013)

Clifford Brown (Inducted 2007)

Benny Carter (Inducted 2007)

Betty Carter (Inducted 2014)

Charlie Christian (Inducted 2007)

Ornette Coleman (Inducted 2008)

John Coltrane (Inducted 2004)

Miles Davis (Inducted 2004)

Roy Eldridge (Inducted 2005)

Duke Ellington (Inducted 2004)

Bill Evans (Inducted 2010)

Gil Evans (Inducted 2008)

Ella Fitzgerald (Inducted 2005)

Dizzy Gillespie (Inducted 2004)

Benny Goodman (Inducted 2005)

Lionel Hampton (Inducted 2013)

Coleman Hawkins (Inducted 2004)

Fletcher Henderson (Inducted 2014)

Earl Hines (Inducted 2005)

Johnny Hodges (Inducted 2005)

Billie Holiday (Inducted 2004)

Elvin Jones (Inducted 2014)

Jo Jones (Inducted 2005)

Charles Mingus (Inducted 2005)

Wes Montgomery (Inducted 2014)

Jelly Roll Morton (Inducted 2004)

Thelonious Monk (Inducted 2004)

King Oliver (Inducted 2005)

Bud Powell (Inducted 2010)

Charlie Parker (Inducted 2004)

Django Reinhardt (Inducted 2007)

Max Roach (Inducted 2005)

Sonny Rollins (Inducted 2005)

Bessie Smith (Inducted 2008)

Billy Strayhorn (Inducted 2010)

Art Tatum (Inducted 2004)

Clark Terry (Inducted 2013)

Sarah Vaughan (Inducted 2010)

Fats Waller (Inducted 2005)

Mary Lou Williams (Inducted 2008)

Lester Young (Inducted 2004)

To be nominated to the Hall of Fame, an artist must have:

1 Achieved innovation in a style or a concept of playing.

2 Created an original concept with a body of music or body of arrangements.

3 Spoke/speaks across generations, unbound to his or her generation’s concept of style.

4 Originated a definitive style.

5 Popularized a style without compromising the aesthetic quality of the music.

6 Occupies a significant position within the jazz lineage.

7 Influenced musicians across time.

Stay tuned as we announce more details about their forthcoming induction ceremonies!