Keith Tippett (originally
Keith Graham Tippetts, born 25 August 1947, in
Bristol) is a
British jazz pianist and
composer.
Tippett, the son of a local police officer, went to Greenway Boys Secondary Modern school in
Southmead,
Bristol. He formed his first
jazz band called The KT7 whilst still at school and they performed numbers popular at the time by
The Temperance Seven. In the late 1960s, he led a sextet featuring
Elton Dean on saxophone,
Mark Charig on trumpet and
Nick Evans on trombone. Tippett married singer
Julie Driscoll and wrote scores for TV.
In the early 1970s, his
big band Centipede brought together much of a generation of young British jazz and rock musicians. As well as performing some concerts (limited economically by the size of the band), they recorded one double-album,
Septober Energy.
He formed, with
Harry Miller and
Louis Moholo a formidable rhythm section at the centre of some the most exciting combinations in the country, including the
Elton Dean quartet, and
Elton Dean's Ninesense. Around the same time, he was also in the vicinity of
King Crimson, contributing piano to several of their records including
Cat Food (and even appearing with them on
Top of the Pops). His own groups, such as Ovary Lodge tended towards a more contemplative form of European
free improvisation. He continues to perform with the improvising ensemble
Mujician and more recently (2006)
Work in Progress.
Tippett has appeared and recorded in a wide variety of settings, including a duet with
Stan Tracey, duets with his wife
Julie Tippetts, solo performances, and appeared on three
King Crimson Albums.
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