Harold Mabern

An excellent hard bop pianist, Harold Mabern was a highly regarded performer who emerged from the Memphis jazz and R&B scene of the 1950s. Mabern developed a commanding style that combined harmonic and modal sophistication with an impressive technical virtuosity. Born in Memphis in 1936, Mabern initially started out on the drums before switching to piano. By his teens he was playing locally, often sharing the stage with such fellow up-and-comers as George Coleman, Charles Lloyd, and Booker Little. Although largely self-taught, he moved to Chicago after high school, where he ...