贝西伯爵(1904～1984年)

Basie, Count，原名William Basie。

美国爵士乐钢琴家和乐队领队，他的乐队是摇摆乐最杰出的代表。受哈林区钢琴家约翰逊（J. P. Johnson）和沃勒的影响，并接受後者非正规的训练，学习管风琴。1936年在堪萨斯城自组乐队，队员包括吉他手格林（F. Green）、低音管手佩基（W. Page）和鼓手琼斯（Jo Jones），其伴奏部分很快以轻快、精准和令人放松而驰名。在这种基础上，铜管和簧乐器部分发展为一种反覆乐节和乐旨的词汇，如唱片《一点钟的跳跃》和《在林边跳跃》。贝西伯爵的钢琴风格也变得更加简朴，为「漫步」式音乐传统的精华及简练风格的典型。其乐队独奏者包括歌手罗辛、小号手克莱顿（B. Clayton）和爱迪生（H. Edison），以及萨克管手杨（L.Young）。贝西伯爵在1950年代改组其乐队，以更强调合奏作品取代先前的风格，如编曲家赫夫提（N. Hefti）和威尔金兹（E. Wilkins）把较早时期乐队的反复乐节和轻快节奏改编成一种更强力的风格。此乐队因出唱片（以歌手威廉斯为号召）而再度走红，并被公认是爵士乐的典型代表。

English version：

1904～1984年

Basie, Count

U.S. jazz pianist and bandleader, whose band became the most refined exponent of swing. Born in Red Bank, N.J., Basie was influenced by the Harlem pianists James P. Johnson and Fats Waller, receiving informal tutelage on the organ from the latter. He formed his band in Kansas City in 1936. Its rhythm section, including guitarist Freddie Green, bassist Walter Page, and drummer Jo Jones, quickly became noted for its lightness, precision, and relaxation; on this foundation, the brass and reed sections developed a vocabulary of riffs and motifs on such recordings as “One o'Clock Jump” and “Jumpin' at the Woodside.” Basie's piano style became increasingly spare, a distillation of the stride tradition and a model of economy. His soloists included singer Jimmy Rushing, trumpeters Buck Clayton and Harry “Sweets” Edison, and saxophonist Lester Young. Basie's reorganized band of the 1950s placed greater emphasis on ensemble work, as arrangers such as Neal Hefti and Ernie Wilkins codified a more powerful style built from the riffs and buoyant rhythm of the earlier group. The band achieved renewed popularity for recordings featuring vocalist Joe Williams and became recognized as a jazz institution.