New York's pianist Erroll Garner (1921) was another master of melody, penning Laura (september 1945), Fantasy on Frankie and Johnny (june 1947), the pop hit Misty (july 1954) and a Concert by the Sea (september 1955). While still rooted in swing music and gentle to the point of sounding superficial, Garner's flowing style represented a meeting of the jazz tradition and the impressionistic tradition of classical music, evoking Claude Debussy more than the jazz pioneers.

Garner died in 1977.