Pianist and composer Thelonious Monk
at Minton’s Playhouse in Harlem, c. 1947.

Courtesy of William P. Gottlieb.

 

“Round Midnight”

Thelonious Monk Quintet

1947

Monk once said, “A genius is one who is most like himself,” and by this standard, his genius was unmatched. He was an original on the piano with a distinctive palette of tonal colors and harmonies, and was equally unique as a composer, as evidenced by his most famous composition, “Round Midnight.”