Jazz legend Joe Zawinul, who soared to fame as one of the creators of jazz fusion and performed and recorded with Miles Davis, died early today, a hospital official said. He was 75. Zawinul had been hospitalized since last month. A spokeswoman for Vienna’s Wilhelmina Clinic confirmed his death without giving details.

Zawinul won widespread acclaim for his keyboard work on chart-topping Davis albums such as In A Silent Way and Bitches Brew, and was a leading force behind the so-called “Electric Jazz” movement.

In 1970, Zawinul founded the band Weather Report and produced a series of albums including Heavy Weather, Black Market and I Sing the Body Electric. After that band’s breakup, he founded the Zawinul Syndicate in 1987.

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