Don Ellis

Jazz Musician / Trumpeter

Don Ellis played trumpet in big bands and orchestras before leading his own bands and recording his own compositions. He experimented with odd time signatures and unusual instrumentations, and his Eastern-influenced jazz gained popularity during the psychedelic 1960s. Ellis also invented a four-valve trumpet and developed a slide/valve trombone called a "superbone."

Extra credit: Ellis won a Grammy for his soundtrack to The French Connection.