Jazz trio

Organists Jimmy Smith, Richard "Groove" Homes and Jack McDuff and guitarists Grant Green and Wes Montgomery are among the musicians who have worked in this format.

In 1948, pianist Herman Blount (later known as Sun Ra) briefly played in a trio with Coleman Hawkins (saxophone) and Stuff Smith (violin), dispensing with a conventional rhythm section.

In the 1960s, saxophonist Anthony Braxton led a trio featuring Leroy Jenkins (violin) and Wadada Leo Smith (trumpet).

In 1949, Red Norvo formed a trio consisting of himself on vibraphone, plus guitar and bass; the best-known line-up featured Tal Farlow and a young Charles Mingus.

In the 2000s and since, three members of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM), pianist Muhal Richard Abrams, trombonist George E. Lewis and saxophonist Roscoe Mitchell, have concertized and recorded together.