{"type":"doc","content":[{"type":"apm_custom_html","attrs":{"html":"

Collecting the names of musicians who die in any single span of time, as NPR does at the end of each year, can be an occasion for tribute or reflection or an exercise in collapsing days, a gateway to a specific moment of pain or gratitude. The truth at the end of 2020 is that the tremendous and overwhelming volume of loss nearly renders the need for that kind of reminder irrelevant. Throughout this relentless year it has been constantly renewed.

We lost icons in every genre: founders and innovators and steadfast traditionalists. The world of jazz, so reliant upon elders to anchor its constantly developing notion of history and legacy, bore an especially heavy burden. (Our colleagues at Jazz Night In America have spent much time already remembering and paying tribute to those lost this year.) What follows is a memorial to musicians we lost in 2020. They are listed below in chronological order by the date they left us.

Jaap Schroder

Dutch violinist, conductor, pedagogue, and specialist in the historically informed performance movement

Dec. 31, 1925 - Jan. 1, 2020

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Neil Peart

Rush drummer, Canadian rock deity

Sept. 12, 1952 - Jan. 7, 2020

Steve Martin Caro

The sweet-voiced singer for baroque-pop band The Left Banke

Oct. 12, 1948 - Jan. 14, 2020

Barry Tuckwell

Australia-born principle French horn of the London Symphony Orchestra

March 5, 1931 - Jan. 16, 2020

Claudio Roditi

Brazilian jazz trumpeter and composer

May 28, 1946 - Jan. 17, 2020

David Olney

Beloved Nashville singer-songwriter

March 23, 1948 - Jan. 18, 2020

Jimmy Heath

Saxophonist and big band leader nicknamed \"Little Bird\"

Oct. 25, 1926 - Jan. 19, 2020

Nedda Casei

American mezzo-soprano and Met Opera regular turned labor leader

Sept. 9, 1932 - Jan. 20, 2020

Sean Reinert

Metal drummer who explored unknown worlds with Cynic and Death

May 27, 1971 - Jan. 24, 2020

Bob Gulotti

Endlessly creative jazz drummer and educator, charter member of The Fringe

Nov. 28, 1949 - Jan. 25, 2020

Bob Shane

Founding member of the Kingston Trio

Feb. 1, 1934 - Jan. 26, 2020

Reed Mullin

Founder and drummer for metal/punk band Corrosion of Conformity

Feb. 12, 1966 - Jan. 27, 2020

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Lucien Barbarin

Suave and playful trombonist, scion and upholder of New Orleans jazz traditions

July 17, 1956 - Jan. 30, 2020

Peter Serkin

Classical pianist studied in traditional repertoire but drawn to new sounds

July 24, 1947 - Feb. 1, 2020

Andy Gill

Gang of Four guitarist, whose style helped define post-punk

Jan. 1, 1956 - Feb. 1, 2020

Lynn Evans Mand

Voice behind hit songs \"Mr. Sandman\" and \"Lollipop\"

May 2, 1924 - Feb. 6, 2020

Nello Santi

The most authoritative interpreter of Italian Opera

Sept. 22, 1931 - Feb. 6, 2020

Mirella Freni

Italian soprano, known for embodying Mimi in Puccini's La Boheme

Feb. 27, 1935 - Feb. 9, 2020

Lyle Mays

Jazz keyboardist, longtime anchor of Pat Metheny Group

Nov. 27, 1953 - Feb. 10, 2020

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Joseph Shabalala

Founder of Africa's vocal ambassadors Ladysmith Black Mambazo

Aug. 28, 1940 - Feb. 11, 2020

Reinbert de Leeuw

Dutch conductor and pianist who fought to bring contemporary classical music into the spotlight

Sept. 8, 1938 - Feb. 14, 2020

Ja'Net Dubois

Emmy Award-winning actress, singer and composer who co-wrote and sang \"The Jeffersons\" theme

Aug. 5, 1932 - Feb. 17, 2020

Andrew Weatherall

Genre-defying musician who was an instrumental DJ in England's acid house scene

April 6, 1963 - Feb 17, 2020

Jon Christensen

Norwegian jazz drummer, member of Keith Jarrett's Belonging Quartet

March 20, 1943 - Feb. 18, 2020

\n $\"American$ \n

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Pop Smoke

The stop-in-your-tracks voice of Brooklyn drill and a new and commanding hip-hop star

July 20, 1999 - Feb. 19, 2020

Elyse Weinberg

A late '60s singer-songwriter and guitarist once lost to time and later rediscovered by crate-diggers

Oct. 25, 1945 - Feb. 20, 2020

David Roback

Founder of Rain Parade, Opal and Mazzy Star, psychedelic adventurer

April 4, 1958 - Feb. 24, 2020

\n $\"Pianist$ \n

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McCoy Tyner

Pianist who revolutionized jazz harmony, in and out of the John Coltrane Quartet

Dec. 11, 1938 - March 6, 2020

Charles Wuorinen

Pulitzer Prize-winning avant-garde composer

June 9, 1938 - March 11, 2020

Danny Ray Thompson

Manager, saxophonist and key creative force of the Sun Ra Arkestra

Oct. 1, 1947 - March 12, 2020

Doriot Anthony Dwyer

One of the first women to be awarded principal chair for a major American orchestra

March 6, 1922 - March 14, 2020

\n $\"Genesis$ \n

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Genesis Breyer P-Orridge

Lead vocalist of seminal industrial band Throbbing Gristle.

Feb. 22, 1950 - March 14, 2020

Suzy Delair

French star of music halls and mid-century films

Dec. 31, 1917 - March 15, 2020

DJ Black N Mild

News Orleans bounce DJ and radio personality

1976 - March 19, 2020

Aurlus Mabele

The Congolese king of soukous music

Oct. 26, 1953 - March 19, 2020

\n $\"American$ \n

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Kenny Rogers

Country-pop superstar

Aug. 21, 1938 - March 20, 2020

Ray Mantilla

Percussionist and leader of bands that played \"Latin Jazz with authentic Latino rhythms\"

June 22, 1934 - March 21, 2020

Mike Longo

Jazz pianist, composer, advocate and longtime associate of Dizzy Gillespie

March 19, 1937 - March 22, 2020

Eric Weissberg

Banjo virtuoso known for the surprise hit song \"Dueling Banjos\"

Aug. 16, 1937 - March 22, 2020

Nashom Wooden

Fixture of New York's gay club scene, the drag queen known as Mona Foot

1969 - Mach 23, 2020

Manu Dibango

Cameroonian saxophonist who brought African pop to the West

Dec. 12, 1933 - March 24, 2020

Jan Howard

Country singer and songwriter, author and Grand Ole Opry mainstay

March 13, 1929 - March 28, 2020

\n $\"Polish$ \n

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Krzysztof Penderecki

Prolific Polish composer best known for his work Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima

Nov. 23, 1933 - March 29, 2020

Joe Diffie

1990s country icon

Dec. 28, 1958 - March 29, 2020

\n $\"Bill$ \n

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Bill Withers

Prolific, genre-defying singer-songwriter and bluesman

July 4, 1938 - March 30, 2020

Alby Kass

Yiddish folk singer and community leader

1930 - March 31, 2020

Wallace Roney

Trumpeter, bandleader at the forward edge of hard bop

May 25, 1960 - March 31, 2020

Cristina

Self-aware pioneer of '80s new wave aesthetics, excess and irony

Jan. 17, 1956 - March 31, 2020

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Ellis Marsalis

New Orleans jazz pianist, educator and patriarch of the Marsalis Jazz Family

Nov. 14, 1934 - April 1, 2020

Bucky Pizzarelli

Prolific session guitarist, jazz legend

Jan. 9, 1926 - April 1, 2020

Adam Schlesinger

Founding member of the bands Fountains of Wayne, Ivy and Tinted Windows and champion of power pop

Oct. 31, 1967 - April 1, 2020

Onaje Allan Gumbs

Pianist whose playing spanned hard-bop and smooth jazz

Sept. 9, 1949 - April 6, 2020

Eddy Davis

Banjo virtuoso and trad-jazz bandleader

Sept. 26, 1940 - April 7, 2020

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John Prine

Grammy-winning country singer-songwriter, recording artist, live performer and occasional actor who transformed Chicago's folk scene

Oct. 10, 1946 - April 7, 2020

Hal Willner

Singer-songwriter and Nashville patron saint

April 6, 1956 - April 7, 2020

Chynna

Rising Philadelphia rapper

Aug. 19, 1994 - April 8, 2020

Andy Gonzalez

Double bassist who bridged the gap between Latin music and jazz

Jan. 1, 1951 - April 9, 2020

Richard Teitelbaum

Experimental American composer and electronic musician

May 19, 1939 - April 9, 2020

Jymie Merritt

American jazz double-bassist, electric-bass pioneer, band leader and composer

May 3, 1926 - April 10, 2020

Professor Joe Torres

Pianist who played on many of salsa's greatest hits

Nov. 29, 1943 - April 13, 2020

Henry Grimes

Jazz bassist whose early promise was curtailed by a decades-long absence, before returning as an avant-garde hero

Nov. 3, 1935 - April 15, 2020

Lee Konitz

Alto saxophonist, incorrigible jazz original and the last surviving player on Miles Davis's Birth of the Cool

Oct. 13, 1927 - April 15, 2020

Kenneth Gilbert

Canadian harpsichordist, organist and musicologist

Dec. 16, 1931 - April 16, 2020

Giuseppi Logan

Iconclastic free-jazz multi-instrumentalist

May 22, 1935 - April 17, 2020

Matthew Seligman

New wave bassist for The Soft Boys and David Bowie

July 14, 1955 - April 17, 2020

Michael Cogswell

Jazz archivist and historian

Sept. 30, 1953 - April 20, 2020

Ronan O'Rahilly

Creator of offshore pirate rock station Radio Caroline

May 21, 1940 - April 20, 2020

Florian Schneider

Kraftwerk cofounder and electronic music titan

April 7, 1947 - April 21, 2020

Bootsie Barnes

Saxophonist, pillar of Philadelphia jazz

Nov. 27, 1937 - April 22, 2020

Fred the Godson

Wordsmith from the Bronx and fixture of hip-hop radio

Jan. 1, 1985 - April 23, 2020

Harold Reid

Co-founder of country music stalwarts the Statler Brothers

Aug. 21, 1939 - April 24, 2020

Lynn Harrell

Cellist known as one of the most prominent American classical musicians of his generation

Jan. 30, 1944 - April 27, 2020

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Tony Allen

Master drummer and co-creator of Afrobeat

July 20, 1940 - April 30, 2020

Richie Cole

Saxophonist who tirelessly tended a bebop flame

Feb. 29, 1948 - May 2, 2020

Rosalind Elias

Mezzo-soprano who was a Met Opera mainstay and late-in-life Broadway star

Mach 13, 1930 - May 3, 2020

\n $\"Millie$ \n

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Millie Small

Jamaican singer behind hit U.K. single \"My Boy Lollipop\"

Oct. 6, 1947 - May 5, 2020

Andre Harrell

Founder of Uptown Records, music executive who bridged the gap between hip-hop and R&B

Sept. 26, 1960 - May 7, 2020

\n $\"Rock$ \n

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Little Richard

Rock and roll architect and auteur of outrageousness

Dec. 5, 1932 - May 9, 2020

\n $\"Betty$ \n

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Betty Wright

Funk-soul-disco singer, songwriter and producer

Dec. 21, 1953 - May 10, 2020

Astrid Kirchherr

Photographer and artist who helped shape The Beatles' style

May 20, 1938 - May 12, 2020

Phil May

Lead singer for the English rock band the Pretty Things

Nov. 9, 1944 - May 12, 2020

Jorge Santana

Guitarist known for playing with Latin rock favorite Malo, the Fania All-Stars and his brother Carlos

June 13, 1951 - May 14, 2020

Lucky Peterson

Bluesman who began as a child prodigy on organ, later adding electric guitar to his arsenal

Dec. 13, 1964 - May 17, 2020

Mory Kante

Guinean griot whose \"Yeke Yeke\" was the first African single to sell over 1 million copies

March 29, 1950 - May 22, 2020

\n $\"Jimmy$ \n

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Jimmy Cobb

Paragon of modern jazz drumming, and the last surviving musician to play on Miles Davis' 'Kind of Blue'

Jan. 20, 1929 - May 24, 2020

Bucky Baxter

Steel guitarist known for his work with Steve Earle and as a member of Bob Dylan's Never Ending Tour

1955 - May 25, 2020

Joel Revzen

Met Opera staff conductor who also graced regional stages from the Berkshires to Prague

1945 - May 25, 2020

\n $\"The$ \n

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Bonnie Pointer

Singer and songwriter, founding sibling of the Pointer Sisters

July 11, 1950 - June 8, 2020

Vera Lynn

English vocalist known as the \"Forces Sweetheart\" during World War II

March 20, 1917 - June 18, 2020

Huey

St. Louis \"Pop, Lock & Drop It\" rapper

Sept. 12, 1987 - June 25, 2020

Freddy Cole

Casually debonair jazz singer and pianist who emerged from the shadow of his brother, Nat

Oct. 15, 1931 - June 27, 2020

Johnny Mandel

Oscar- and Grammy-winning composer and songwriter

Nov. 23, 1925 - June 29, 2020

Jordan Groggs

Rapper in the Arizona group Injury Reserve

1988 - June 29, 2020

Ida Haendel

Polish-born child prodigy who flourished in adulthood as one of the few women concert violinists of her generation

Dec. 15, 1928 - July 1, 2020

Nick Cordero

Tony-nominated multi-talent whose struggle with COVID-19 captured (and broke) America's hearts

Sept. 17, 1978 - July 5, 2020

Charlie Daniels

Country Music Hall of Fame fiddler and bandleader behind \"The Devil Went Down to Georgia\"

Oct. 28, 1936 - July 6, 2020

\n $\"Ennio$ \n

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Ennio Morricone

Italian composer who created the spaghetti Western sound

Nov. 10, 1928 - July 6, 2020

\n $\"Naya$ \n

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Naya Rivera

Actor and singer known for the revolutionary role of Santana on the TV series Glee

Jan. 12, 1987 - July 8, 2020

Eddie Gale

Trumpeter-bandleader who exemplified the spirit of an Afrocentric soul-jazz underground

Aug. 15, 1941 - July 10, 2020

Patrick Ellis

\"Gospel Spirit\" host, longest running on-air personality in Washington radio history

May 30, 1943 - July 16, 2020

Annie Ross

Jazz vocalese pioneer and member of Lambert, Hendricks and Ross

July 25, 1930 - July 21, 2020

Peter Green

Blues rock singer and guitarist, founder of Fleetwood Mac

Oct. 29, 1946 - July 25, 2020

Helen Jones Woods

Trombonist with the groundbreaking all-women big band The International Sweethearts of Rhythm

Oct. 9, 1923 - July 25, 2020

Malik B.

Early member of The Roots

Nov. 14, 1972 - July 29, 2020

Leon Fleisher

Exacting pianist who overcame injury through creative thinking and musical devotion

July 23, 1928 - Aug. 2, 2020

Michael Peter Smith

Beloved Chicago-based singer-songwriter

Sept. 7, 1941 - Aug. 3, 2020

Vern Rumsey

Founding Unwound member whose melodic bass lines rang with noise and distortion

Jan. 24, 1973 - Aug. 6, 2020

\n $\"Salome$ \n

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Salome Bey

Singer and playwright known as Canada's \"first lady of the blues\"

Oct. 10, 1933 - Aug. 8, 2020

Trini Lopez

Boundary-breaking performer whose music connected the folk revival to Latin music and rock and roll

May 15, 1937 - Aug. 11, 2020

Steve Grossman

Saxophonist who took John Coltrane's lessons into new areas, including the jazz-rock of the 1970s

Jan. 18, 1951 - Aug. 13, 2020

Willie Torres

Widely recorded salsa singer, best known as the voice of the groundbreaking Joe Cuba Sextet

Oct. 30, 1929 - Aug. 13, 2020

Julian Bream

Classical guitarist and lutenist who expanded his instruments' repertoire

July 15, 1933 - Aug. 14, 2020

\n $\"Justin$ \n

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Justin Townes Earle

Millennial Americana music's favorite son

Jan. 4, 1982 - Aug. 20, 2020

Charli Persip

Pacesetting modern jazz drummer best known for his tenure with Dizzy Gillespie

July 26, 1929 - Aug. 23, 2020

Riley Gale

Throat-shredding vocalist for the Texas-based metal band Power Trip

Feb. 5, 1985 - Aug. 24, 2020

Gary Peacock

Bassist who straddled avant-garde and straight-ahead jazz, notably in a long association with Keith Jarrett

May 12, 1935 - Sept. 4, 2020

Yen Yung-neng

Taiwanese singer and founder of the group Takao Run, which gave contemporary voice to his homeland's rural traditions

Jan. 23, 1970 - Sept. 5, 2020

Christiane Eda-Pierre

Martiniquan-French lyric coloratura who led the way in interpreting the music of Rameau and the French Baroque period

March 24, 1932 - Sept. 6, 2020

Bruce Williamson Jr.

Gospel music prodigy who later sang with the Temptations

Sept. 29, 1970 - Sept. 6, 2020

Simeon Coxe

The synthesizer half of the innovative electronic music duo Silver Apples

June 4, 1938 - Sept. 8, 2020

Ronald Khalis Bell

Founding member of Kool & the Gang

Nov. 1, 1951 - Sept. 9, 2020

\n $\"Toots$ \n

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Toots Hibbert

Soulful singer, songwriter and patriarch of reggae music

Dec. 8, 1942 - Sept. 11, 2020

Stanley Crouch

Iconoclastic cultural critic and jazz champion

Dec. 14, 1945 - Sept. 16, 2020

Gaetano \"Tommy\" DeVito

Founding member, vocalist and lead guitarist of rock band the Four Seasons

June 19, 1928 - Sept. 21, 2020

Roy Head

Pioneering rock and roll wild man

Jan. 9, 1941 - Sept. 21, 2020

Jacques-Louis Monod

French composer, conductor and pianist who furthered the ideas of the 20th century avant-garde

Feb. 25, 1927 - Sept. 21, 2020

Ira Sullivan

Chicago jazz hero who distinguished himself on both trumpet and saxophone

May 1, 1931 - Sept. 21, 2020

Juliette Greco

Vocalist and standard-bearer for chanson Francaise

Feb. 7, 1927 - Sept. 23, 2020

Maynard Solomon

Musicologist, critically acclaimed biographer and co-founder of Vanguard Records

Jan. 5, 1930 - Sept. 28, 2020

Mac Davis

Texan singer-songwriter who helped define crossover country music

Jan 21, 1942 - Sept. 29, 2020

\n $\"Helen$ \n

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Helen Reddy

Singer behind '70s feminist anthem \"I Am Woman\"

Oct. 25, 1941 - Sept. 29, 2020

Johnny Nash

Reggae-soul artist whose song \"I Can See Clearly Now\" is an enduring signifier of optimism

Aug. 19, 1940 - Oct. 6, 2020

\n $\"Eddie$ \n

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Eddie Van Halen

Heavy metal's most congenial guitar god

Jan. 26, 1955 - Oct. 6, 2020

Mohammad Reza Shajarian

Master of traditional Persian music, vocalist widely considered one of the greatest Iranian artists of all time

Sept. 23, 1940 - Oct. 8, 2020

Jon Gibson

Minimalist composer, founding member of the Philip Glass Ensemble

March 11, 1940 - Oct. 11, 2020

Toshinori Kondo

Japanese trumpeter whose output spanned abrasive experimentalism and coolly ambient music

Dec. 15, 1948 - Oct. 17, 2020

Jose Padilla

Ambient music producer, best known for his DJ work in the Cafe del Mar bar on the island of Ibiza

Dec. 4, 1955 - Oct. 18, 2020

Spencer Davis

Founder of British rock band The Spencer Davis Group

July 17, 1939 - Oct. 19, 2020

Viola Smith

One of the first professional female drummers, known for her five-decade career in orchestras, swing bands and popular music

Nov. 29, 1912 - Oct. 21, 2020

Jerry Jeff Walker

Leading figure in the outlaw country music movement, writer behind 1968 hit song \"Mr. Bojangles\"

March 16, 1942 - Oct. 23, 2020

\n $\"Billy$ \n

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Billy Joe Shaver

Endorsed as the greatest country music songwriter by Willie Nelson

Aug. 16, 1939 - Oct. 28, 2020

Baron Wolman

Rolling Stone magazine's first chief photographer

June 25, 1937 - Nov. 2, 2020

King Von

Emerging rapper best known for his contributions to Chicago's drill scene and sinister hit \"Took Her to the O\"

Aug. 9, 1994 - Nov. 6, 2020

\n $\"Candido$ \n

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Candido Camero

Pioneer of Afro-Cuban jazz and innovator of conga drumming

April 22, 1921 - Nov. 7, 2020

Hal Ketchum

Rock-wise '90s country hitmaker

April 9, 1953 - Nov. 23, 2020

LD Beghtol

Bon vivant and collaborator with Magnetic Fields

1964 - Dec. 7, 2020

Harold Budd

Pianist and composer of minimalist, meditational music

May 24, 1936 - Dec. 8, 2020

Sean Malone

Longtime bassist for metal band Cynic, as well as a Glenn Gould scholar

Jan. 1, 1970 - Dec. 9, 2020

\n $\"Charley$ \n

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Charley Pride

The first Black country music superstar

March 18, 1934 - Dec. 12, 2020

\"Blue\" Gene Tyranny

Pianist and composer equally at home in the avant-garde and rock and roll

Jan. 1, 1945 - Dec. 12, 2020

Pauline Anna Strom

Blind composer who surfed celestial skywaves with synths

1946 - 2020

Sam Jayne

Founder of favorite Pacific Northwest bands Love as Laughter and Lync

1974 - Dec. 18, 2020

K.T. Oslin

Midlife country music success story who spoke for ladies of the '80s

May 15, 1942 - Dec. 21, 2020

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Leslie West

Mountain bandleader whose earthshaking guitar sound inspired many a metal player

Oct. 22, 1945 - Dec. 22, 2020

John \"Ecstasy\" Fletcher

Charismatic Whodini MC, brought flair and sexiness to early rap

June 7, 1964 - Dec. 23, 2020

Rebecca Luker

Crystalline-voiced star of many Broadway revivals including The Sound of Music and The Music Man

April 17, 1961 - Dec. 23, 2020

Tony Rice

Acoustic guitarist, singer and bluegrass paradigm shifter

June 8, 1951 - Dec. 25, 2020

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Armando Manzanero

Composer and performer known as \"the romantic soul of Mexico\"

Dec. 7, 1935 - Dec. 28, 2020

Claude Bolling

French pianist, composer and big band leader

April 10, 1930 - Dec. 29, 2020

Frank Kimbrough

Pianist and educator with a distinguished solo career, and a charter member of the Maria Schneider Orchestra

Nov. 2, 1956 - Dec. 30, 2020

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In memoriam 2020: A salute to the musicians we lost