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William Vacchiano
The trumpeter and teacher William Vacchiano has died aged
93.
Report By Ben Mattison
22 Sep 2005
William Vacchiano, principal trumpeter of the New York
Philharmonic from 1942 to 1973, died on September 19.
According to a statement from the Juilliard School, where
he taught for many years, he died at Cabrini Medical Center
in New York City of natural causes. He was 93.
Vacchiano was born in Portland, Maine, and took up the
trumpet at age 12. Two years later, he joined the Portland
Symphony, and also played with the 242nd Coast Artillery
Band. He studied at Juilliard, then called the Institute
of Musical Art, from 1931 to 1935.
In 1935, he joined the New York Philharmonic, having turned
down a simultaneous job offer from the Metropolitan Opera;
he was made principal trumpeter seven years later. During
his 38 years with the orchestra, he performed and recorded
with conductors Leonard Bernstein, Leopold Stokowski, Igor
Stravinsky, George Szell, and Bruno Walter, among others.
Vacchiano was one of the first important American trumpet
players to use an instrument tuned to the key of C (the
standard trumpet is in B-flat), and according to Juilliard
he helped to spread the practice of using instruments transposed
to fit various works of music.
He also wrote a series of textbooks and designed a line
of trumpet mouthpieces.
Vacchiano was a member of Juilliard's faculty from 1935
to 1998 and an emeritus professor from 1998 to 2002. He
taught about 2,000 students, according to his own estimate;
they included Wynton Marsalis, Miles Davis, Gerard Schwarz,
and Philip Smith, the Philharmonic's current principal trumpeter.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Philharmonic said,
"William Vacchiano was a highly respected and beloved
member of the New York Philharmonic over the course of several
decades. His presence is still felt here, and will live
on in the memory of the musicians, board and staff."
Juilliard president Joseph W. Polisi and chairman Bruce
Kovner said, "The entire Juilliard community mourns
the passing of William Vacchiano, one of the longest-serving
faculty members in the history of the school. A person of
impeccable musical integrity and great humanity, he was
revered and loved by his students and friends. He will be
deeply missed."
Maine
Today
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Photo by The Julliard School |
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Steve Marcus
The tenor saxohonist Steve Marcus has died on 25th September,
2005 in New Hope, Pennsylvania, aged 66.
Steve
Voce in The Independent
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Alan Downey
The trumpeter, composer, arranger Alan Downey has died in
London aged 60.
Colin
Stuart
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Charles Rowland
Good news for a change. The trumpeter Charles Rowland has
been found, alive and well in Dapto, New South Wales, Australia.
Ask the Webmaster
for contact details. Remove the brackets
[@] |
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Rob Pronk
The trumpeter, composer, arranger Rob Pronk has been taken
to hospital with severe heart problems and is now in Intensive
Care.
A NOTE FROM BABS PRONK
Dear Friends,
I am Babs Pronk, Rob's sister.
At the moment I'm staying at his home in Grunwald, Munich,
Germany.
Thanks to Rene Laanen's kind mediation, word of my brother's
illness has quickly spread.
Rob wishes to express his heartfelt gratitude for your concern.
We love you all dearly and he assures you that he is: "hanging
in there!"
Fondest regards, Babs Pronk
Colleagues and friends can write to him at: Rob Pronk,
Krankenhaus Harlaching, Sanatoriumplatz 2,
81545 München, Germany
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| Francy
Boland
The pianist, arranger and bandleader Francy Boland has
died in Geneva, Switzerland on August 12th, aged 75.
Boland became famous through his coöperation
- initiated by producer Gigi Campi - with the legendary
Kenny Clarke, with whom he founded the famous Kenny Clarke/Francy
Boland Orchestra, probably the best big band that in Europe
ever existed. Boland wrote all the arrangements and had
a line-up of the best European jazzplayers and the best
Americans living in the sixties and the seventies in Europe.
Kenny
Clarke/Francy Boland
Jazz
in Belgium
Telegraph
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| Keter
Betts
The bassist Keter Betts has died in Silver Spring on Saturday,
August 6th, 2005 aged 77.
Keter played in bands with Oscar Peterson,
Tommy Flanagan, Woody Herman, Nat Adderley, Joe Pass, Clifford
Brown and Vince Guaraldi.He was heard
on more than 200 recordings, notably with guitarist Charlie
Byrd and singers Dinah Washington and Ella Fitzgerald. Trumpeter
Clark Terry, formerly with the Duke Ellington and Tonight
Show orchestras, said Keter Betts was "on the top
plateau of all the bass players."
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| Al
McKibbon
The bassist Al McKibbon has died in Los Angeles on 29th
July, 2005 aged 88. His superb tone and beat marked him
as one of the best bassists to come to prominence in the
late '40s. Al recorded and toured with Dizzy, Basie, Shearing,
etc. Also recorded with Miles (Birth of the Cool) on Capitol.
Bassland
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Irene
Miller 
The singer Irene Miller has died in London on July 31st,
2005, aged 77.
Real name Rene Wilson, Irene was very much in demand as
a band vocalist in the 1950s and 60s. She worked with, among
others, the Tito Burns Sextet and the big bands of Ken Mackintosh
and Jack Parnell. She died as the result of a fire in her
London house.
The
Ken Mackintosh Band of 1963. Bobby Pratt and Irene Miller
at the microphone.
icSouthLondon
News
Shopper
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| Albert
Mangelsdorff
The trombonist Albert Mangelsdorff has died in Frankfurt
am Main, Germany on 25th July, 2005 aged 76.
...probably the most important jazz musician
in post- war Germany. Wolfram Knauer
...Albert was very famous for his one-man
shows where he played all alone for a couple of hours on
the trombone, getting double notes by groaning into the
horn or something and actually playing in harmony with himself.
On this particular concert in Wiesbaden he was in the trombone
section, but also had a solo spot where he amazed everybody
with a spectacular rendering of Creole Love Call
in two-part harmony. At one stage of the rehearsal, which
was for a TV show, the sound engineer asked the five trombones
to play a built-up chord, commonly known as a pyramid, where
each player holds on to a note, one after the other, until
a full chord is heard. The trombones duly obliged. There
was a short silence and then Derek Watkins said, into the
microphone: "That was only Albert. Would you like to
hear the others now?" Ron Simmonds
Tribute
- Trombone Page of the World
The
Jazz Pages
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Photo: Ron Simmonds
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| Jackie
Armstrong
The trombonist Jackie Armstrong has died in London on 16th
July, 2005 aged 85. He played with Lou Preager, Ted Heath
from 1947-52, Woolf Philips at the London Palladium, The
BBC Show Band and Jack Parnell's ATV Orchestra.
Telegraph
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| John
Stubblefield
The saxophonist John Stubblefield has died in New York,
on July 4th, 2005, aged 60.
Roberto's
Woodwind
Tribute
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| Pierre
Michelot
The bassist Pierre Michelot has died in Paris, on July
3rd, 2005, aged 77.
National
Post
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| Chris
Griffin
The trumpeter Gordon Chris Griffin has died, on June 21st,
2005, aged 89.
In my mind's eye, I can still see Goodman's
great band of 1937-'38 with the "Biting Brass' trumpet
section with Chris Griffin sitting between Harry James and
Ziggy Elman. Murray Pfeffer
All
About Jazz
Griffin
House
Chris Griffin
RIP
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| Billy
Bauer
The guitarist Billy Bauer has died in New York on 17th
June 2005, aged 89.
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| Basil
Kirchin
The bandleader, drummer and film composer Basil Kirchin
has died, on June 18th, 2005, aged 77, after a long illness.
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| The news has reached us of the passing
away of Bridget, beloved wife of the tenor saxophonist, composer
and songwriter Duncan Lamont, after a long illness, on May
27th, 2005. The thoughts and prayers of all of us will be
with Duncan in these sad and trying times. |
Percy Heath has died on 29th April, 2005, aged 81.
Jimmy
Woode has died in New Jersey, aged 76
| Niels-Henning
Niels-Henning
Ørsted Pedersen has died, aged 58
Telegraph
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Larry Bunker,
a drummer who worked with such film composers as Henry
Mancini, Alfred Newman, Miklos Rosza, Jerry Goldsmith,
Johnny Mandel and John Williams, as well as jazz legends
Bill Evans, Stan Getz, Art Pepper, Gerry Mulligan
and Barney Kessel, died March 8 at Queen of Angels-Hollywood
Presbyterian Medical Center of complications from
a stroke. He was 76. He also served as a timpanist
for the Los Angeles Philharmonic and performed on
more than 30 Academy Awards programs, including the
77th in February. A native of Long Beach, Calif.,
he started playing with bassist Howard Rumsey at the
famous Lighthouse Cafe in Hermosa Beach in the early
1950s.He was a member of Peggy Lee's band before making
his way into film work with "Stalag 17"
in 1953. His last film credit was "The Incredibles"
last year.
Photo: Music
Farm
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Larry with Terry Gibbs |
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| Stan
Levey
The drummer Stan Levey has died in Van Nuys, California,
aged 79.
Los
Angeles Times
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Photo
courtesy of Bernhard Castiglioni Drummerworld
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Ronnie
Horler
The
trumpeter Ronnie Horler has died in Hampshire, aged 84.
Top
trumpet
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Wolfgang
Kowatsch
The
composer, arranger, pianist and bandleader Wolfgang Kowatsch
has died in Neunkirchen, Germany, aged 78.
Tribute
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Jimmy
Smith
The
jazz organist Jimmy Smith has died, aged 79.
Reuters
BETCom
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Bob Efford reports on Ken Posten's series of Maynard
Ferguson concerts in Los Angeles.
...he was probably the only trumpet player
in the world that could do what he did then. Now on this
concert we had four or five trumpet men who each played
his solos, and on the other concerts there were quite a
few more who did likewise, made all the tougher by the fact
that Maynard was sitting in the front row of the audience
all the time.
Bob
Efford Newsletter
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The
drummer Frank Isola has died in Detroit, aged 79.
Dobbin's
Den
The trumpeter Danny Hayes has died in New York, aged 58.
Tribute
The
bassist Bob Maize has died in Burbank, aged 59.
Jazz
Review
Composer Cy Coleman has died, aged 75.
Chicago
Sun Times
Alasdair
Steven in The Scotsman
Film
scorer Michel Colombier has died, aged 65
Scifilm
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Pete Jolly
The
pianist Pete Jolly has died in Pasadena, California,
on November 10th, 2004 aged 72.
Bruce
Crowther Tribute
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Tony Mottola
The guitarist Tony Mottola has died in Denville, New Jersey,
aged 86.
Newsday
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Illinois
Jacquet
The
tenor saxophonist Illinois Jacquet has died on 22nd
July, 2004 in New York, aged 81.
CBS
News
Down
Beat
Interview
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James
Williams
The
pianist James Williams has died on July 2oth, 2004
in New York, aged 51.
Jazz
Corner
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Sasha
Distel
The
French singer Sacha Distel has died in Rayol-Canadel
aged 71.
BBC
News
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Lennie
Bush
The
British bass player Lennie Bush has died on June 15th,
2004, aged 77.
Lennie
Bush, master of the correct, steadfast timekeeping
and melodic support (I am constantly reminded of
the great Ray Brown)
Ken Rattenbury
Profile
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Red
Kelly
The
bassist Red Kelly has died of cancer on the 9th June,
2004, in Tacoma, aged 76.
Thomas
"Red" Kelly played bass in the 1950s
and '60s with Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, Harry James,
Doc Severinsen and Maynard Ferguson; worked with Frank
Sinatra, Charlie Parker and Billie Holiday, among
many others.
The
Olympian
Tacoma
News Tribune
Seattle
Times
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Red
Kelly with bassist
Pancho Angiano
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Elvin
Jones
The
drummer Elvin Jones has died, on the 18th May, 2004,
of heart failure in New York, aged 76.
His
main achievement was the creation of what might
be called a circle of sound, a continuum in which
no beat of the bar was necessarily indicated by
any specific accent, yet the overall feeling became
a tremendously dynamic and rhythmically important
part of the whole group. Leonard Feather
San
Diego Union Tribune
Reuters
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Photo:
Associated Press |
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Lloyd
Ulyate
The
trombonist Lloyd Ulyate has died, on May 13th, 2004,
in Westwood, California, aged 77. Prolific studio
musician Lloyd played with Nelson Riddle, Billy May,
David Rose, Percy Faith, Jerry Fielding, Max Steiner,
Alfred Newman, John Williams, Victor Young, Jerry
Goldsmith, Bernard Hermann, Elmer Bernstein, Franz
Waxman, Henry Mancini and Igor Stravinsky, among others.
Trombone
Page of the World
International
Trombone Association
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Photo:
Debbie Boltinghouse
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John LaPorta
The saxophonist, arranger, composer and educator John LaPorta
has died, on May 12, 2004 in Sarasota, Florida, aged 84.
John
was revered by musicians everywhere. During his career he
played and recorded with Woody Herman, Herb Pomeroy, Kenny
Clarke, Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, Lester Young, Dizzy
Gillespie, Miles Davis, Buddy Rich, Max Roach, Fats Navarro,
Oscar Pettiford, Lennie Tristano
and Gunther Schuller. Classically trained, he has performed
with Leonard Bernstein, Igor Stravinsky, Leopold Stokowski
and many times with the Boston Pops.
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Claude
(Fiddler) Williams
The
jazz violinist Claude Williams has died in Kansas
City, aged 96
Williams
began his professional career playing with greats
like Ben Webster and Lester Young as he explored the
possibilities of the jazz violin in the late 1920s.
In 1936, he preceded Freddie Green as Basie's first
recorded guitarist and was voted Best Guitarist of
the Year in a Downbeat national readers' poll. --
NEW YORK TIMES
The
New York Times
Hot
Jazz NYC
All
About Jazz
Jazz
Times
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Harry
Babbitt
Harry
Babbitt, the Kay Kyser orchestra lead vocalist who sang
on such Kyser hits as "Three Little Fishies,"
"On A Slow Boat to China" and "Who Wouldn't
Love You," has died. He was 90.
Blog
of Death
Kay
Kyser Net
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March
24th 2004. A report has just been received that the saxophonist
George Hunter has died. No details are available at the moment.
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Max
Harris
The
pianist/composer Max Harris has died in London, aged
85.
Arguably
the best-remembered TV series for which he provided
the music is the sit-com Open All Hours; but Bombay
Duckling (the Kipling Theme, from BBC TV's feature
Kipling) and the Gurney Slade theme and Hat and Cane,
both from The Strange World of Gurney Slade all achieved
publication in piano versions. Philip L. Scowcroft,
Classical Music Web
Read
about Max in Ron's
Pages
Tribute
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Jack
Sperling
The
drummer Jack Sperling has died on Thursday 26th February,
2004 in Los Angeles. He was 81.
The
best drummer? Jack Sperling. He did maybe 40 albums
with me, in California and New York. Just a fantastic
drummer. He's kinda semi-retired. Jack was almost
ten years older than me - I'm going on 72, Jack would
be 82 now. He did a lot of stuff with a lot of big
bands around the country - Les Brown for years. He
did a lot of studio work. His stuff with me is just
phenomenal. Pete Fountain in an interview with
Bunny Matthews
Los
Angeles Times
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With
Tex Beneke in 1946
Photo courtesy of Garry Stevens |
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Billy
May
Pinky Winters tells of a lovely afternoon at
the Los Angeles Musicians Union where a horde of fellow musicians
and friends paid tribute to Billy May.
Tribute |
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Photo:
Frank Mantooth Website |
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Billy
May
The
trumpeter, composer and bandleader Billy May has
died on Wednesday, January 21st, 2004 in San Juan
Capistrano, aged 87.
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John
Guerin
The great jazz-rock drummer, John
Guerin, formerly of the BYRDS,has died on Wednesday,
January 7th, 2004 aged 64.
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Photo:
BYRDS News
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Hans
Koller
The
tenor saxophonist Hans Koller, who rose to world
fame and played with some of America's jazz legends,
has died on Monday, 22nd December 2003 in Vienna.
He was 82.
Koller,
who also made his mark as a jazz composer, played
with such jazz greats as Dizzy Gillespie, Lee Konitz,
Zoot Sims and Stan Kenton.
All
About Jazz
Jazz
Thing
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Photo
by Michael Gillispie
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Copyright ©2000
Jazz Professional. All rights reserved.
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