Contents
Herbie Hancock
Bringing jazz piano into new conversations with funk and electronic music.
Maiden Voyage · Head Hunters
- Born
- 12 April 1940
- Birthplace
- Chicago, Illinois, United States
More people
Herbie Hancock
Herbie Hancock is an American pianist and composer whose recordings move between acoustic jazz, funk and electronic production. He helped shape Miles Davis’s 1960s quintet before building his own bands.
Early life
Classical prodigy
Performed a Mozart concerto with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at eleven.
College interests
Studied at Grinnell College, pursuing music alongside an interest in engineering.
Career
- 1960
Professional start
Joined trumpeter Donald Byrd and began New York session work.
- 1963–1968
Miles Davis quintet
Developed an exploratory approach to accompaniment and improvisation.
- 1970s onwards
Band leadership
Built electric ensembles while continuing acoustic projects and film scoring.
Selected work
Maiden Voyage
A jazz album built around seafaring images.
Head Hunters
Combined improvisation with synthesizers and deep funk rhythms.
Rockit
Brought turntable scratching into an electronic instrumental hit.
Beyond work
Buddhist practice
Began practising Nichiren Buddhism in 1972.
Music education
Has supported jazz teaching and served as a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador.
Sources & photo credit
Biography ↗Life and work ↗Photo: Library of Congress Life. CC0 · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
