1936 in jazz

This is a timeline documenting events of Jazz in the year 1936
A book called Bud not Buddy is a great recourse for this topic.

Events

The Duke Ellington Band makes the classic recording of Caravan.

Deaths

; June27 – Mike Bernard, ragtime pianist.
; August5 – Mitja Nikisch, German pianist and band leader.
; Unknown date

Sam Morgan, New Orleans jazz trumpet player and bandleader.

Births

; January1 – Sonny Greenwich, Canadian guitarist.3 – Joe Haider, German pianist.7 – Eldee Young, American upright bass and cello player.19 – Hod O'Brien, American pianist.20 – Erwin Helfer, American pianist.21 – Snooks Eaglin, American guitarist and singer.24 – Bobby Wellins, Scottish tenor saxophonist.31 – Garnett Brown, American trombonist.
; February4 – Claude Nobs, Swiss founder and general manager of the Montreux Jazz Festival.5 – June Tyson, American singer.13 – Takashi Furuya, Japanese saxophonist and vocalist.26 – Colin Purbrook, English pianist, upright bassist, and trumpeter.
; March2 – Buell Neidlinger, American upright bassist and cellist.4 – Eric Allandale, Dominican-English trombonist, songwriter, and bandleader.8 – Gábor Szabó, Hungarian guitarist.19 – Amancio D'Silva, Indian guitarist and composer.20 – Harold Mabern, American pianist and composer.21

* Brian Dee, British pianist.
* Mike Westbrook, English pianist and composer.24 – Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre, American tenor saxophonist.25 – Larry Gales, American upright bassist.27 – Jan Ptaszyn Wróblewski, Polish saxophonist, composer, and arranger.

; April3

* Harold Vick, American saxophonist and flautist.
* Jimmy McGriff, American organist.
* Luiz Eça, Brazilian pianist.
* Scott LaFaro, American upright bassist.6 – Manfred Schoof, German trumpeter.13 – Stan Robinson, English tenor saxophonist.20
* Beaver Harris, American drummer.
* Billy James, American drummer.22 – Don Menza, American saxophonist, arranger, and composer.28 – John Tchicai, Danish saxophonist.

; May11 – Carla Bley, American composer, pianist, organist and bandleader.12 – Klaus Doldinger, German saxophonist.13 – Manfredo Fest, Brazilian pianist and keyboardist.14 – Bobby Darin, American singer.20 – Rufus Harley, American saxophonist.26 – Charles Turner, American trumpeter.
; June4' – Alan Branscombe, English pianist, vibraphonist, and alto saxophonist.6 – Maysa Matarazzo, Brazilian singer.12 – Marcus Belgrave, American trumpet player.14 – Wilson das Neves, Brazilian bossa nova singer and percussionist.15 – Jan Byrczek, Polish upright bassist, jazz critic, and jazz magazine editor.16 – Lin Halliday, American saxophonist.22 – Hermeto Pascoal, Brazilian flautist, composer, and multi-instrumentalist.30 – Dave Van Ronk, American singer.
; July3 – Corky Hale, American harpist, pianist, flautist, and singer.5 – Tommy LiPuma, American music producer.6 – Chris White, American upright bassist.13 – Albert Ayler, American saxophonist, singer and composer.17 – Nick Brignola, American baritone saxophonist.19 – Carmell Jones, American trumpet player.22 – Don Patterson, American organist.28 – Jim Galloway, Scottish clarinetist and saxophonist.
; August3 – Jack Wilson, American pianist and composer.6 – Joe Diorio, American guitarist.10 – Chuck Israels, American composer, arranger, and upright bassist.22 – Lex Humphries, American drummer.
; September6 – Clifford Thornton, American trumpeter and trombonist.7 - George Cassidy, Northern Irish saxophonist, music teacher to Van Morrison.17 – Rolv Wesenlund, Norwegian comedian, singer, clarinetist, and saxophonist.21 – Sunny Murray, American drummer.27 – Lars Erstrand, Swedish vibraphonist.28 – Emmett Chapman, American guitar and Chapman Stick player.
; October7 – Sonny Bravo, Afro-Cuban pianist.11 – Billy Higgins, American drummer.12 – Melvin Rhyne, American organist.13

* Shirley Bunnie Foy, American singer, songwriter, and percussionist.
* Tom Vaughn, American pianist.17 – Sathima Bea Benjamin, South African vocalist.18 – J. C. Moses, American drummer.25 – Alfredo Rodríguez, Cuban pianist.

; November18 – Don Cherry, American trumpeter.28 – Roy McCurdy, American drummer.
; December6 – Bill Ashton, British saxophonist and composer.7

* Arthur Jenkins, American keyboardist and percussionist.
* Sonny Phillips, American keyboardist.10
* John Boudreaux, American drummer.
* Martha Mier, American pianist, piano teacher, and composer.15 – Eddie Palmieri, Puerto Rican-American pianist and bandleader.17 – Tommy Banks, Canadian pianist.23 – Muhammad Ali, American drummer.24 – Chris McGregor, South African pianist, bandleader and composer.27 – Mike Barone, American trombonist and big band leader.

; Unknown date

Byrdie Green, American singer.
Cynthia Crane, American singer.
Salah Ragab, Egyptian drummer and called the founder Egyptian jazz.