Dizzy Gillespie

For Dizzy Gillespie, laughter was all-important: he would begin with a joke and end with a prank. In between, he would treat the audience to his philosophy of life. From his beginnings until his death, Dizzy continuously cultivated a zany style, a blend of rhythmic acrobatics, melancholy and emotional outpourings. Proud bearer of his Afro-American heritage, he had an unsurpassed gift for the fusion of musical styles rooted in Latin America and Cuba with those of American music.