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Clare Fischer
Clare Fischer
American keyboardist, composer, arranger, and bandleader
1
David Axelrod
David Axelrod
American musician, record producer, composer and arranger
2
Paul Motian
Paul Motian
American jazz drummer, percussionist, and composer
3
Lou Busch
Lou Busch
American record producer, musician and songwriter (1910-1979)
4
Ian Carr
Ian Carr
British trumpeter
5
Benny Golson
Benny Golson
American bebop/hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and arranger (born 1929)
6
Gerald Wilson
Gerald Wilson
American trumpetist (1918-2014)
7
Mino Cinelu
Mino Cinelu
French musician
8
Lester Bowie
Lester Bowie
American jazz trumpet player and composer (1941-1999)
9
Jim Hall
Jim Hall
American jazz guitarist, composer
10
Arif Mardin
Arif Mardin
Turkish-American songwriter & record producer
11
Sonny Lester
Sonny Lester
American record producer
12
Woody Shaw
Woody Shaw
American musician
13
Henry Cosby
Henry Cosby
American Motown songwriter and record producer
14
Joe Osborn
Joe Osborn
American bassist
15
Colin Bailey
Colin Bailey
British musician
16
Thad Jones
Thad Jones
American jazz trumpeter
17
John Hammond
John Hammond
American record producer, civil rights activist and music critic
18
Hal Galper
Hal Galper
American pianist
19
Mat Mathews
Mat Mathews
Dutch musician
20
Clifford Thornton
Clifford Thornton
American musician
21
J. J. Johnson
J. J. Johnson
American jazz trombonist, composer and arranger (1924-2001)
22
Horace Ott
Horace Ott
American musician
23
Cannonball Adderley
Cannonball Adderley
American jazz alto saxophonist
24
Count Basie
Count Basie
American jazz musician, bandleader, and composer (1904-1984)
25
Benny Carter
Benny Carter
American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter, composer, arranger, and bandleader (1907-2003)
26
Andrew Hill
Andrew Hill
American jazz pianist and composer
27
Wild Bill Davis
Wild Bill Davis
American jazz pianist, organist, and arranger
28
Shelly Manne
Shelly Manne
American jazz drummer
29
Jimmy Bond
Jimmy Bond
American jazz bassist
30
Frank Foster
Frank Foster
American jazz musician and bandleader
31
Lincoln Mayorga
Lincoln Mayorga
American musician
32
Wilton Felder
Wilton Felder
American musician
33
Gil Evans
Gil Evans
American pianist
34
Gigi Gryce
Gigi Gryce
American recording artist; jazz saxophonist, flutist, clarinetist, composer, arranger, and educator
35
Hank Mobley
Hank Mobley
American saxophonist
36
Ben Webster
Ben Webster
American saxophonist
37
Alvin Fielder
Alvin Fielder
American drummer
38
Cal Tjader
Cal Tjader
American Latin jazz musician, recording artist
39
Hank Jones
Hank Jones
American jazz pianist, bandleader, arranger and composer (1918-2010)
40
Mal Waldron
Mal Waldron
American jazz pianist and composer
41
Bill Cunliffe
Bill Cunliffe
American musician
42
Elvin Jones
Elvin Jones
American jazz drummer
43
Fletcher Henderson
Fletcher Henderson
American pianist, bandleader, arranger and composer
44
Harold Battiste
Harold Battiste
American music composer, arranger, performer, and teacher
45
Mike Melvoin
Mike Melvoin
American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger (1937-2012)
46
Helen Merrill
Helen Merrill
American recording artist; jazz vocalist
47
George Avakian
George Avakian
American record producer of Armenian descent
48
Charles Stepney
Charles Stepney
American record producer
49
Carlos Malcolm
Carlos Malcolm
Jamaican musician
50
Nelson Riddle
Nelson Riddle
American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator (1921-1985)
51
Lalo Schifrin
Lalo Schifrin
Argentine-American pianist, composer, arranger and conductor (born 1932)
52
Gerry Mulligan
Gerry Mulligan
American jazz baritone saxophonist, arranger and composer
53
Kenny Wheeler
Kenny Wheeler
Canadian composer and trumpet and flugelhorn player
54
Nat Pierce
Nat Pierce
American musician
55
Paul Riser
Paul Riser
American musician
56
Harold McNair
Harold McNair
Jamaican musician
57
Dave Holland
Dave Holland
British musician
58
Harry Lookofsky
Harry Lookofsky
American musician
59
Spud Murphy
Spud Murphy
American musician
60
John Hicks
John Hicks
American jazz pianist and composer
61
Toots Thielemans
Toots Thielemans
Belgian jazz musician
62
Stan Kenton
Stan Kenton
American pianist, composer, arranger and band leader
63
Kenny Graham
Kenny Graham
British musician
64
Bill Laswell
Bill Laswell
American musician
65
Joe Williams
Joe Williams
American jazz singer
66
Miles Davis
Miles Davis
American jazz musician (1926-1991)
67
Oliver Nelson
Oliver Nelson
American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, arranger, composer, and bandleader (1932-1975)
68
Jesper Lundgaard
Jesper Lundgaard
Danish musician
69
Carmen Mastren
Carmen Mastren
American musician
70
Walter Davis
Walter Davis
American pianist
71
Theo Jörgensmann
Theo Jörgensmann
German musician
72
Jaki Byard
Jaki Byard
American musician
73
Elmo Hope
Elmo Hope
American musician
74
Ira Sullivan
Ira Sullivan
American jazz musician
75
Dave MacRae
Dave MacRae
New Zealand musician
76
Allen Toussaint
Allen Toussaint
American musician
77
Bobby Scott
Bobby Scott
American musician, record producer, and songwriter (1937-1990)
William S. Fischer
American composer

William S. Fischer

Intro
American composer

William S. Fischer (born March 5, 1935, Shelby, Mississippi) is an American keyboardist, saxophonist, arranger, and composer.

Fischer worked early in his career with blues and R&B musicians, playing in the 1950s with Ray Charles, Guitar Slim, Big Joe Turner, and Muddy Waters. He took a bachelor's degree at Xavier University in 1956 and a master's in Colorado College in 1962, after which he returned to Xavier as a teacher. He also studied at the Vienna Academy of Music and Performance in 1965–66. From 1967 to 1975, he taught in New York public schools.

He worked extensively as an arranger and session musician for jazz and popular music recordings, working with Joe Zawinul, Herbie Mann, and Les McCann in the 1960s. In the 1970s, he was associated with Yusef Lateef, Roberta Flack, Gene Ammons, and Junior Mance among others. He led his own group in the 1970s (which recorded an album in 1970) and recorded with Roland Kirk in 1977 and with Pharoah Sanders in 1982.