Walter Bishop Jr.; Jazz Pianist Recorded With Parker, Davis

Walter Bishop Jr., 70, jazz pianist best remembered for his recordings with Charlie Parker and Miles Davis. The son of a Harlem songwriter, Bishop grew up among musicians and learned to play bebop at Minton’s music club there. He was greatly influenced by the terse style of pianist Bud Powell and developed his own device of holding back on the beat to increase musical tension. Bishop made his first recording in 1949 and worked with Parker from 1951 until Parker’s death in 1955. Bishop also recorded with Davis in the late 1950s, and in the 1960s began making records under his own name. He studied with composer Hall Overton at Juilliard in the late 1960s, and in the 1980s taught at the University of Hartford. On Saturday in New York City of a heart attack.