Bill Evans – Live in Switzerland (1975 Album) with Jazz transcriptions sheet music
0:00 Sugar Plum 7:25 Midnight Mood 15:48 Turn out The Stars 20:44 Gloria’s Step 27:53 Up With The Lark 34:13 Twele Toned Tune 41:23 Morning Glory 45:48 Sareen Jurer 52:47 Time Remembered 58:25 My Romance 1:06:20 Waltz For Debby 1:12:17 Yesterday i Heard The Rain
Browse in the Library:
and subscribe to our social channels for news and music updates:
William J. Evans
William John Evans, known as Bill Evans, was an American jazz pianist. His use of impressionist harmony, inventive interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, and trademark rhythmically independent, “singing” melodic lines influenced a generation of pianists. He is considered by some to be the most influential post-World War II jazz pianist. Evans had a distinct playing posture in which his neck would often be stooped very low, and his face parallel to the piano.
Bill Evans was born in Plainfield, New Jersey.He received his first musical training at his mother’s church. Evans’ mother was an amateur pianist with an interest in modern classical composers, and Evans began classical piano lessons at age six. He also became a proficient flautist by age 13 and could play the violin.
At age 12, Evans filled in for his older brother Harry in Buddy Valentino’s band. At this age he was able to interpret classical music, but he couldn’t improvise. In the beginning, he played exactly what was written in the sheet, but soon started trying to improvise, while learning about harmonies in the songs and how to alter them.
Meanwhile, he was playing dance music and jazz in a recording studio he built in his family’s basement. In the late 1940’s, Evans played boogie woogie in various New Jersey clubs. He attended Southeastern Louisiana University on a music scholarship, and in 1950 performed Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto on his senior recital there, graduating with a degree in piano performance and teaching. He was also among the founding members of Southeastern’s Delta Omega Chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and played quarterback for the fraternity’s football team, helping them win the school’s 1949 intramural tournament.
In 1958, Evans was hired by Miles Davis, becoming the only white member of Davis’ famed sextet. Though his time with the band was brief (no more than eight months), it was one of the most fruitful collaborations in the history of jazz, as Evans’ introspective approach to improvisation deeply influenced Davis’ style. Davis wrote in his autobiography, “Bill had this quiet fire that I loved on piano. The way he approached it, the sound he got, was like crystal notes or sparkling water cascading down from some clear waterfall.” Additionally, Davis said, “I’ve sure learned a lot from Bill Evans. He plays the piano the way it should be played.”
In 1974, Bill Evans recorded a multimovement jazz concerto specifically written for him by Claus Ogerman entitled Symbiosis, originally released on the MPS Records label. The 1970s also saw Evans collaborate with singer Tony Bennett on 1975’s “The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album” and 1977’s “Together Again”.
Many of Evans’ tunes, such as “Waltz for Debby,” “Turn Out the Stars,” “Very Early,” and “Funkallero,” have become often-recorded jazz standards. Many tribute recordings featuring his compositions and favorite tunes have been released in the years following his passing as well as tribute compositions. Pat Metheny’s “September 15th” is one such recording.
During his lifetime, Evans was honored with 31 Grammy nominations and seven awards. In 1994, he was posthumously honored with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In addition to the Southeastern Music Hall of Fame and the Alumni Association’s Alumnus of the Year, Evans is an inductee of the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame.