Richard Davis (born April 15, 1930) is an American double bass player who has been a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison since 1977, after establishing himself for twenty-three years in New York City. He teaches bass, jazz history, and improvisation.

In the course of his career he has worked in both the classical field and as a jazz bassist all over the world, and has recorded extensively both as a leader and sideman. He has performed with many well-known figures in music such as Don Shirley, Sarah Vaughan, Miles Davis, Lew Soloff, Andrew Hill, Eric Dolphy, Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Bruce Springsteen, and, from the classical world, Igor Stravinsky (who particularly admired his work) and Leonard Bernstein. Davis is the second African American to perform on his instrument with a professional symphony orchestra in the United States.

Davis is one of the most widely recorded bassists of all time. Among his most famous contributions to the albums of others are Dolphy's 1964 Blue Note LP Out to Lunch!, Hill's Point of Departure, and Van Morrison's legendary classic Astral Weeks.

External links

• The Richard Davis homepage.
• Japanese Jazz Pianist with Richard Davis.
• Richard Davis at All Music Guide

Donate to Wikimedia