Polish Jazz Trumpeter Dies At 76
Tomasz Stańko, one of the foremost European jazz musicians of his time, died on July 29, 2018, in Warsaw, Poland. Born in the 1940s, Stańko lived through both German and Communist-occupied Poland and was heavily influenced from his first attended jazz concert – a performance by the Dave Brubeck Quartet in 1956. After that concert, Stańko began listening to all forms of jazz and became inspired by the music of Chet Baker, Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman, and Don Cheery.
If one word could describe Stańko’s sound, it would be “freedom.” Stańko loved the jazz of the Western world and successfully brought his own style to the genre performing in venues across the world. Eventually forming his own quartet, Stańko used younger jazz musicians to continue the legacy of jazz. With many recordings to his name, Stańko was able to achieve lasting greatness by having his track “Suspended Variation VIII,” be added the boxed set Jazz: The Smithsonian Anthology.
Although Stańko considered Poland to be home, he was proud of his achievement of having a residence on the Upper West Side of New York City. Click here to read more about the life and legacy of Tomasz Stańko, and then take a listen below to his beautiful, signature sound.
