Gary Burton

Gary Burton (born January 23, 1943) is an American retired jazz vibraphonist, composer, and educator. He developed a pianistic style of four-mallet technique as an alternative to the prevailing two-mallet technique. This approach caused him to be heralded as an innovator, and his sound and technique are widely imitated. He is also known for pioneering jazz fusion and popularizing the duet format in jazz, as well as being a major figure in music education from his 30 years teaching at the Berklee College of Music.

Biography Burton was born in Anderson, Indiana, United States. He began studying piano at age sixteen while finishing high school at Princeton Community High School in Princeton, Indiana (1956–60). He has cited jazz pianist Bill Evans as the inspiration for his approach to the vibraphone.

Burton attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts,

Early in his career, at the behest of Nashville saxophonist Boots Randolph, Shearing asked Burton to write a whole album of compositions for him which were released as Out of the Woods in 1965. Burton described the album in his autobiography, Learning to Listen, as his "most ambitious effort at composing and arranging". Burton played with saxophonist Stan Getz from 1964 to 1966. recognized for popularizing the format of jazz duet performance. Their eight albums won Grammy Awards in 1979, 1981, 1997, 1999, 2009, and 2013.

Burton has played with a wide variety of jazz musicians, including Gato Barbieri, Carla Bley, Chick Corea, Peter Erskine, Stan Getz, Hank Garland, Stéphane Grappelli, Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett, B. B. King, Steve Lacy, Pat Metheny, Makoto Ozone, Tiger Okoshi, Astor Piazzolla, Tommy Smith, Ralph Towner, and Eberhard Weber.

Personal life Burton is openly gay. He was married to Katherine Goldwyn in the early 1980s and has two children. He was in a homosexual relationship by the mid-1980s, and he came out publicly in a 1994 radio interview with Terry Gross. In 2013, he married Jonathan Chong in Provincetown, Massachusetts. Burton's current partner is Dustin Le.

Discography As leader/co-leader

Compilations Works (ECM, 1984)[LP] Collection (GRP, 1996) Take Another Look. A Career Retrospective (Mack Avenue, 2018)[5LP]

As a member The Nashville All-Stars After the Riot at Newport (RCA Victor, 1960)

Mack Avenue Superband Live from the Detroit Jazz Festival – 2013 (Mack Avenue, 2014) – live rec. 2013

As sideman With Thomas Clausen Café Noir (Intermusic, 1991) Flowers and Trees (MA Music, 1992)

With Hank Garland Jazz Winds from a New Direction (Columbia, 1961) – also released as Hank Garland & Gary Burton's Three-Four The Blues (CBS, 1961) The Unforgettable Guitar of Hank Garland (Columbia, 1962)

With Stan Getz Getz Au Go Go (Verve, 1964) – live Getz/Gilberto No. 2 (Verve, 1966) – live rec. 1964 The Stan Getz Quartet in Paris (Verve, 1967) – live rec. 1966 The Canadian Concert of Stan Getz (Can-Am, 1983) – rec. 1965 Nobody Else But Me (Verve, 1994) – rec. 1964

With George Shearing Jazz Concert (Capitol, 1963) – live Out of the Woods (Capitol, 1965) – rec. 1964 Rare Form! (Capitol, 1966) – live rec. 1963

With Eberhard Weber Fluid Rustle (ECM, 1979) Hommage à Eberhard Weber (ECM, 2015) – live

With others Chet Atkins, After the Riot at Newport with the Nashville Allstars (RCA, 1960) – live Bob Brookmeyer, Bob Brookmeyer and Friends (Columbia, 1965) Eric Clapton, Journeyman (Reprise, 1989) Bruce Cockburn, The Charity of Night (True North, 1996) Floyd Cramer, Last Date (RCA Victor, 1960) Eddie Daniels, Benny Rides Again (GRP, 1992) Tim Hardin, Tim Hardin 1 (Verve, 1966) Howard Jones, One to One (Elektra, 1986) Quincy Jones, Quincy Jones Explores the Music of Henry Mancini (Mercury, 1964) k.d. lang, Ingénue (Sire, 1992) Livingston Taylor, There You Are Again (Coconut Bay, 2006) Jay Leonhart, Four Duke (Absolute Spain, 1995) Arif Mardin, Journey (Atlantic, 1974) Steve Swallow, Swallow (Xtra Watt, 1992) Jon Weber, Simple Complex (2nd Century Jazz, 2004)

Grammy Awards 1972 Alone at Last |Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a Soloist 1979 Duet (with Chick Corea) Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group 1982 In Concert, Zürich, October 28, 1979 (with Chick Corea) Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group 1998 "Rhumbata", Native Sense (with Chick Corea) Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Solo 2000 Like Minds (with Chick Corea, Pat Metheny, Roy Haynes and Dave Holland) Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group 2009 The New Crystal Silence (with Chick Corea) Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance 2012 Hot House (with Chick Corea) Grammy Award for Best Improvised Jazz Solo