In today's world, Ron Carter has become a topic of great relevance and interest to a wide spectrum of the population. Whether due to its impact on society, the economy or culture, Ron Carter has positioned itself as a central point of debate and reflection today. Its implications and consequences cover various areas, from politics to technology, including education and the environment. In this article, we will explore the different facets of Ron Carter and analyze its influence on the world we live in.
Ronald Levin Carter (born May 4, 1937) is an American jazzdouble bassist. His appearances on 2,221 recording sessions make him the most-recorded jazz bassist in history. He has won three Grammy Awards, and is also a cellist who has recorded numerous times on that instrument. In addition to a solo career of more than 60 years, Carter is well-known for playing on numerous iconic Blue Note albums in the 1960s, as well as being the anchor of trumpeter Miles Davis's "Second Great Quintet" from 1963-1968.
Carter was a member of the second Miles Davis Quintet in the mid 1960s, which also included Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter and drummer Tony Williams. Carter joined Davis's group in 1963, appearing on the album Seven Steps to Heaven, and the follow-up E.S.P., the latter being the first album to feature only the full quintet. It also featured three of Carter's compositions (the only time he contributed compositions to Davis's group). He stayed with Davis until 1968 (when he was replaced by Dave Holland), and participated in a couple of studio sessions with Davis in 1969 and 1970. Although he played electric bass occasionally during this era of early jazz-rock fusion, he has subsequently stopped playing that instrument, and in the 2000s plays only double bass.
Carter is a Distinguished Professor Emeritus of the music department of City College of New York, having taught there for 20 years, and received an honorary doctorate from the Berklee College of Music in spring 2005. He joined the faculty of the Juilliard School in New York City in 2008, teaching bass in the school's Jazz Studies program. Carter made an appearance in Robert Altman's 1996 film, Kansas City, at the center of which is a jazz club called the Hey Hey Club. The film's end credits feature Carter and fellow bassist Christian McBride duetting on "Solitude" at the club, owned by a black gangster called Seldom Seen, who was played by a "show-stealing" Harry Belafonte. (In a 2023 tribute, Carter would reveal how it came about that Belafonte had been his landlord.)
Carter sits on the advisory committee of the board of directors of The Jazz Foundation of America and on the Honorary Founder's Committee. Carter has worked with the Jazz Foundation since its inception to save the homes and the lives of America's elderly jazz and blues musicians including musicians that survived Hurricane Katrina.
Carter appeared as himself in an episode of the HBO series Treme entitled "What Is New Orleans". His authorized biography, Ron Carter: Finding the Right Notes (ISBN978-0989982511), by Dan Ouellette, was published by ArtistShare in 2008.
2010s and later
In 2010, Carter was honored with France's premier cultural award, the medallion and title of Commander of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. Carter was elected to the DownBeat Jazz Hall of Fame in 2012.
In August 2021, Carter was the featured guest in a 47-minute video interview with YouTuber and musician Rick Beato. In November 2021, the Japanese government honored Carter with The Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette. Japanese officials credited Carter with helping to popularize jazz in Japan and facilitating cultural exchange. In April 2022 Carter sat in with Bob Weir at Radio City Music Hall. In May 2022, Carter celebrated his birthday by releasing a Tiny Desk Concert recorded at the Blue Note Jazz Club featuring Russell Malone and Donald Vega.
Carter continues to record as a sideman, most recently appearing on Daniele Cordisco's 2023 album "Bitter Head."
Ron Carter: Finding the Right Notes is a documentary film about Carter's career, produced and directed by Peter Schnall. It was released in November of 2022 on PBS.
^ abcdFeather, Leonard; Gitler, Ira (1999). "Carter, Ron (Ronald Levin)". The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 115.