Jazz/Classical crossover type stuff

his solo concerts, which over the years have been publicized as fully improvised performances, are what he is most known and at times notorious for...

Granted, he is known for his improvised solo concerts...but he's just a well known for the standards trio, and even his classical stuff.

For someone with such a vast discography - only a fraction of which is wholly improvised, it's silly to say 'most' of his stuff is fully improvised...

ok ok i think you only misinterpreted me wrong at first, I know he had his trio stuff and classical of course, I was just saying he is most famous as an improviser...nonetheless he's a genius

Someone else I've been listening to is Michael Brecker

Michael Brecker is the man. Many famous jazz musicians including Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea, all said his music was the hardest music they have played. The fusion band I'm in right now is playing African Skies by Michael Brecker.

I wouldn't say classical music had a big influence on jazz in the beginning considering where it originated. As it evolved more techniques came into composition like when Benny Goodman composed for big band and then later when Duke Ellington composed for big band with strings and voice. I think the classical element has come into jazz more with its rise in popularity in Europe. If you take a look and compare the jazz real book with the European jazz real book, the European jazz real book is much more composed. Its good stuff though, I use the European jazz real book all the time.

I'd call Gordian Knot a nice fusion of jazz and classical, although both make up about 25% of the music, with metal taking up 40% and world taking up 10% (all bullshit quantifications).

Claude Bolling's 'Concerto for Classical Guitar and Jazz Ensemble' is amazing :D I love the seemless way he mixes jazz feel and style with perfect Baroque style counterpoint. His guitar writing is also very good, which for a non-guitarist is rare.

Check out the videos on the tube of Mart