Photo: tom.beetz / CC BY 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
Jim Hall was credited as a composer, jazz guitarist and recording artist. Jim Hall was born in Buffalo, New York, United States on December 4, 1930. Death is recorded on December 10, 2013, at the age of 83. Awards on record include NEA Jazz Masters.
My Take
Jim Hall is one of those musicians who made you rethink what an instrument was even capable of. Born in Buffalo in 1930, he came up during jazz's most combustible era — bebop, hard bop, all that fire — and somehow carved out a sound that was almost the opposite: spacious, lyrical, understated in the best possible sense. His work alongside Bill Evans and Sonny Rollins showed how elastic and conversational the guitar could be in the right hands. What I love most about Hall is that he never seemed to be showing off; every note felt chosen, every silence intentional. That kind of restraint is genuinely rare and genuinely hard, and he made it sound effortless for decades. An NEA Jazz Master in every sense — his death in December 2013, just days after his 83rd birthday, left a real quiet in the jazz world, and not the good kind.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Jim Hall
- Name (Japanese)
- ジム・ホール
- Reading
- じむ・ほーる
- Born
- December 4, 1930 – December 10, 2013
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Sagittarius / Horse
- Origin
- Buffalo, New York, United States
- Occupation
- composer / jazz guitarist / recording artist / jazz musician / musician
2. Background
Awards & achievements
- NEA Jazz Masters
3. Links
- Official sitehttps://www.jimhallmusic.com/
- Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim%20Hall%20(musician)
- Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B8%E3%83%A0%E3%83%BB%E3%83%9B%E3%83%BC%E3%83%AB
- Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q433054
4. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.
Frequently asked questions
When was Jim Hall born?
Born December 4, 1930.
When did Jim Hall die?
Died December 10, 2013, aged 83.
Where was Jim Hall from?
Jim Hall was from Buffalo, New York, United States.
What did Jim Hall do?
Jim Hall worked as composer, jazz guitarist, recording artist, jazz musician, musician.
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