Gerry Mulligan's role in the history of jazz is that of a renaissance man. For most, he is considered one of, if not the, greatest baritone saxophonist the music has seen. In addition to his prowess as an instrumentalist, his skills as a composer and arranger are also viewed as being among the top in the art form. Perhaps less frequently acknowledged is his creativity as a bandleader, having been one of the pioneers of using a rhythm section without chordal accompaniment in several different formats.

Born in Queens, NY on April 6, 1927, Mulligan found himself frequently moving around as a child due to his father's work as an engineer. From an early age, Mulligan's father instilled a pronounced sense of organization and discipline into the youngest of his four sons, traits that would serve an integral role in the young Mulligan's musical education. Starting on the piano, he eventually took up the clarinet and eventually the alto saxophone. It was not long before Mulligan became interested in composition and arranging, intensely studying scores of classical composers as well as making several early attempts at writing his own dance band charts.

By age 16, Mulligan was already submitting arrangements to be performed by professional organizations such as the house band for Philadelphia radio station WCAU. Dropping out of high school and moving to New York, Mulligan became associated with the bands of Gene Krupa and Claude Thornhill, working as a staff arranger and occasional saxophonist. It was with these two bands that Mulligan's arranging style began to take shape: light and breezy, but rich with counterpoint and full harmonies, and always relentlessly swinging.

Mulligan's notoriety began to rapidly expand in the early 1950s due to his involvement in two key groups. First was Miles Davis' "Birth Of The Cool" nonet. These recordings featured several Mulligan original compositions and arrangements as well as some of Mulligan's first notable solos on baritone saxophone. Next was Mulligan's now-famous piano-less quartet with trumpeter Chet Baker. Baker's movie star looks and mannerisms would lead him to more widespread popular success than Mulligan, but in musical circles the latter was acknowledged as the brains of this organization, his compositions making such brilliant use of counterpoint that it was easy to overlook the lack of chordal accompaniment.

This chordless combo context would serve as Mulligan's primary musical vehicle for the rest of the 1950s. Although personal conflicts would cause Mulligan and Baker to go their separate ways mere months after the formation of the band, Mulligan would replace Baker with such other fine front line musicians as trumpeters Art Farmer and Jon Eardley, valve trombonist Bob Brookmeyer and tenor saxophonist Zoot Sims.

1960 saw Mulligan return to the big band format he musically grew up with, albeit with his own unique twist. Dubbed the Concert Jazz Band, this group continued Mulligan's trend of featuring a chordless rhythm section. The ensemble itself was slightly smaller than a typical big band (featuring 5 woodwinds and 6 brass), but as usual for Mulligan, his arrangements were able to create the illusion of a much larger group than it actually was.

Mulligan's later years saw him exploring several different contexts. In addition to continuing to lead various versions of his Concert Jazz Band and small groups, he formed a fruitful relationship with pianist Dave Brubeck, with whom he would perform on-and-off for the rest of his life. His lifelong love of classical music culminated with 1984's completion and performance of "Entente for Baritone Saxophone and Orchestra." Mulligan would also revisit the Birth Of The Cool era in the early 1990s, featuring either Art Farmer or Wallace Roney in the role of the recently departed Miles Davis.

Mulligan passed away on January 20, 1996. His music library and several personal effects, including his baritone saxophone, were donated to the Library of Congress. His widow Franca has since established the Gerry and Franca Mulligan Foundation, which is actively involved in providing funds for awards and scholarships for a wide variety of musical endeavors, as well as providing ready access to Mulligan's legendary catalog of music.