Ben Webster

Kansas City native Ben Webster was, alongside Coleman Hawkins and Lester Young, one of the three foundational titans of the pre-modern swing tenor saxophone. After mastering the horn under Budd Johnson, Webster achieved legendary stature when he joined Duke Ellington's Orchestra in 1940, becoming Ellington's first featured tenor soloist.

In the famous Blanton-Webster era of the Ellington orchestra, Webster delivered fiery, growling stomp solos on fast tunes like 'Cottontail' and incomparably tender, breathy, romantic phrasing on ballads. Relocating to Copenhagen in 1964, he became a beloved father figure to the European jazz community.