Chick Corea is gone

The great jazz pianist has died of a rare cancer at 79.

John Mayer, a regular partner, writes: ‘Chick Corea was the single greatest improvisational musician I have ever played with. Nobody was more open, more finely tuned to the moment, changing his approach with every new offering by the musicians around him. If you hit a wrong note, he’d immediately pick it up and play it as a motif so as to say ‘all of this has value, whether you see it or not.’

Born in Massachusetts of Italian parents, he started out playing with Stan Getz before becoming indispensable to Miles Davis. He played Mozart and other classical music for pleasure, and included it in his online teachings.

He was a devoted follower of the Scientology cult.

He played Chopin, too, with an inimitable audience involvement.

Chick Corea with Menahem Presler.

His recording home was Munich-based ECM Records.