How did Ahmad Jamal learn piano?

Ahmad Jamal, an American jazz pianist and composer began playing the piano at the age of three when his uncle Lawrence challenged him to duplicate what he was doing on the piano.

Jamal began formal piano training at the age of seven with Mary Cardwell Dawson, whom he describes as greatly influencing him.

Ahmad Jamal also studied with pianist James Miller and began playing professionally at the age of fourteen, when he was identified as a “coming great” by pianist Art Tatum.

Jamal began touring with George Hudson’s Orchestra after graduating from George Westinghouse High School in 1948.

He formed his own trio in 1951 and recorded his first album, “Ahmad Jamal Trio: Volume 1,” in 1955. Jamal’s unique style of playing the piano, which emphasized space and silence, rather than virtuosic displays of technique, was revolutionary.

His most famous album, “At the Pershing: But Not for Me,” was recorded live at the Pershing Hotel in Chicago in 1958 and became a huge commercial success, making him one of the best-selling jazz pianists of all time.

Ahmad Jamal was a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Jazz Master and won a Lifetime Achievement Grammy for his contributions to music history.