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Buck Clayton
Buck Clayton
American jazz trumpeter
1
Fletcher Henderson
Fletcher Henderson
American pianist, bandleader, arranger and composer
2
Teddy Wilson
Teddy Wilson
American pianist (1912-1986)
3
Benny Goodman
Benny Goodman
American jazz musician, band leader
4
Enoch Light
Enoch Light
American musician
5
Lionel Hampton
Lionel Hampton
American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, bandleader and actor (1908-2002)
6
Irving Mills
Irving Mills
American music publisher, singer, lyricist, and jazz artist promoter
7
Original Dixieland Jass Band
Original Dixieland Jass Band
American jazz band
8
Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
American jazz musician, composer and band leader
9
Barney Bigard
Barney Bigard
American jazz clarinetist, jazz musician
10
Dexter Gordon
Dexter Gordon
American jazz tenor saxophonist
11
Willie Ruff
Willie Ruff
American musician
12
Bobby Hackett
Bobby Hackett
American jazz musician
13
Bob Thiele
Bob Thiele
American record producer, music executive (1922-1996)
14
Taft Jordan
Taft Jordan
Jazz trumpeter
15
Bob Wilber
Bob Wilber
jazz clarinetist, composer and saxophonist from United States
16
Alan Hovhaness
Alan Hovhaness
Armenian-American composer
17
Keith Jarrett
Keith Jarrett
American jazz and classical music pianist and composer
18
Coleman Hawkins
Coleman Hawkins
American jazz saxophonist
19
Bucky Pizzarelli
Bucky Pizzarelli
American Jazz guitarist
20
John Hammond
John Hammond
American record producer, civil rights activist and music critic
21
The Jazz Messengers
The Jazz Messengers
American jazz band
22
Joe Wilder
Joe Wilder
American trumpeter
23
Harry Carney
Harry Carney
American jazz musician
24
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong
American jazz trumpeter, composer and singer
25
Alvin Stoller
Alvin Stoller
American musician
26
Trummy Young
Trummy Young
American jazz trombonist
27
John Dankworth
John Dankworth
British musician (1927-2010)
28
J. C. Heard
J. C. Heard
American musician
29
Billy Taylor
Billy Taylor
American jazz pianist, composer, broadcaster, and educator
30
Cat Anderson
Cat Anderson
American jazz trumpeter
31
Milt Hinton
Milt Hinton
American musician and photographer
32
Gerald Wilson
Gerald Wilson
American trumpetist (1918-2014)
33
Salvatore Camarata
Salvatore Camarata
American composer, arranger, trumpeter, and record producer
34
Red Callender
Red Callender
American string bass and tuba player, member of The Wrecking Crew
35
Kid Ory
Kid Ory
American jazz trombonist
36
Peanuts Hucko
Peanuts Hucko
American jazz musician
37
Teo Macero
Teo Macero
American jazz saxophonist, composer, and record producer
38
Tyree Glenn
Tyree Glenn
American recording artist; trombonist
39
Earl Hines
Earl Hines
American jazz pianist
40
Maceo Pinkard
Maceo Pinkard
American composer, lyricist, and music publisher
41
Count Basie
Count Basie
American jazz musician, bandleader, and composer (1904-1984)
42
Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong
Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong
American musical duo, collaboration
43
Ben Webster
Ben Webster
American saxophonist
44
Sid Catlett
Sid Catlett
American musician
45
Bud Freeman
Bud Freeman
American musician
46
Jon Hendricks
Jon Hendricks
American jazz singer, lyricist, jazz critic and historian
47
Cozy Cole
Cozy Cole
American musician
48
Mary Lou Williams
Mary Lou Williams
American jazz pianist, arranger, and composer
49
Jimmy Owens
Jimmy Owens
jazz trumpeter, composer, arranger, lecturer, and educator
50
Charlie Christian
Charlie Christian
American swing and jazz guitarist
51
Stan Tracey
Stan Tracey
British pianist
52
Chuck Israels
Chuck Israels
American jazz musician
George Avakian
American record producer of Armenian descent

George Avakian

Intro
American record producer of Armenian descent
Genres
Record Labels
Awards Received
Order of Lenin
Grammy Trustees Award
Promotional photo of George Avakian for Hot Jazz Classics Series, 1946

George Mesrop Avakian (Armenian: Գեւորգ Աւագեան; Russian: Геворк Авакян; March 15, 1919 – November 22, 2017) was an American record producer, artist manager, writer, educator and executive. Best known for his work from 1939 to the early 1960s at Decca Records, Columbia Records, World Pacific Records, Warner Bros. Records, and RCA Records, he was a major force in the expansion and development of the U.S. recording industry. Avakian functioned as an independent producer and manager from the 1960s to the early 2000s and worked with artists such as Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Dave Brubeck, Eddie Condon, Keith Jarrett, Erroll Garner, Buck Clayton, Sonny Rollins, Paul Desmond, Edith Piaf, Bob Newhart, Johnny Mathis, John Cage, Alan Hovhaness, Ravi Shankar, and many other notable jazz musicians and composers.