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Stan Kenton

 
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia:

Stanley Newcombe Kenton

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(born Feb. 19, 1912, Wichita, Kan., U.S. — died Aug. 25, 1979, Los Angeles, Calif.) U.S. pianist, composer, arranger, and leader of one of the most popular and controversial big bands in jazz. Kenton formed his first band in 1941. The group exhibited the influence of Jimmy Lunceford's precise brass and gained a reputation for a bombastic orchestral approach. His players included saxophonist Art Pepper (1925 – 82), trumpeter Maynard Ferguson, drummer Shelly Manne (1920 – 84), and singers Anita O'Day (1919 – 2006) and June Christy (1925 – 90). His efforts to organize the training of student musicians represent some of the earliest instances of formal jazz education.

For more information on Stanley Newcombe Kenton, visit Britannica.com.

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Oxford Grove Music Encyclopedia:

Stan(ley Newcomb) Kenton

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(b Wichita, ks, 15 Dec 1911; d Los Angeles, 25 Aug 1979). American jazz- band leader. He formed his 14-piece band in 1941 and in 1949 founded a new 20-piece orchestra, called Progressive Jazz after the movement it represented. He also briefly had a 43-piece band.


Gale Musician Profiles:

Stan Kenton

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Jazz pianist, arranger, composer

In 1996, 17 years after the bandleader’s death, Scott Yanow of the All-Music Guide to Jazz, stated, "There have been few jazz musicians as consistently controversial as Stan Kenton." Some critics have claimed that Kenton expanded the horizons of jazz music, while others considered him pretentious and more interested in overwhelming listeners with volume and power than with creating works of musical substance. He managed to sustain a number of large-scale bands during his more than 35 years of active performing, despite his willingness to stray from proven formulas. "The economics of maintaining a big band for nearly 40 years without pandering to fashion indicated Stan Kenton’s great organizational skills, as well as great artistic conviction," noted the Harmony Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz.

Kenton continually experimented with the big band format, dissolving his bands and reforming new ones that attempted to set new standards in jazz music. Throughout his career he had a knack for recognizing and nurturing new talent, and his sidemen over the years represented an all-star lineup of jazz greats. In fact, J. Bradford Robinson, in his profile of the bandleader in The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, asserted that Kenton’s "own considerable talents as arranger and pianist were soon overshadowed by those of his superior sidemen and staff arrangers." Among those who made their way through the Kenton assembly line included Anita O’Day, June Christy, Lee Konitz, Art Pepper, Stan Getz, Zoot Sims, Maynard Ferguson, Kai Winding, Shelly Manne, and Laurindo Almeida.

Stanley Newcomb Kenton began taking piano lessons from his mother, Stella Kenton, after she bought a used upright piano. He was ten years old at the time and two years started taking lessons with a private teacher. After hearing his musician cousins, Billy and Arthur Kenton, play jazz a few years later, he fell in love with the music and decided to pursue a career in it. "From the time I was fourteen years old, I was all music," he told Carole Easton in Straight Ahead: The Story of Stan Kenton. "Nothing else ever entered my head." As a teenager Kenton took lessons in jazz piano form an organist at a local theater, and he also learned to play a number of wind instruments. By then he was immersing himself in the latest releases of artists such as George Gershwin, Earl "Fatha" Hines, Benny Carter, and Louis Armstrong. He formed a musical group called The Beltones and performed at school dances, parties, and local clubs.

After graduating form high school in 1930, the music-crazy Kenton scraped out a living as a musician for five dollars a night playing speakeasies and gambling halls

in San Diego and Las Vegas. His talent began to develop after he joined Everett Hoagland’s band, and in the late 1930s he also tickled the ivories in the dance bands of Vido Musso and Gus Arnheim. By this time he was already developing a reputation as a skilled arranger, not to mention a cheerleader who could motivate other musicians to excel. In 1939 Kenton found himself in Hollywood as pianist and assistant conductor for the pit band at Earl Carroll’s Vanities theater. A year later he formed his first band, which in 1941 became known as the Artistry in Rhythm Orchestra.

Developed Reputation for Volume
Manned mostly by young, unknown musicians, the Artistry in Rhythm Orchestra became a hit at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa, California. From there Kenton’s band increased its popularity with a five-week stint at the Hollywood Palladium. "The group quickly gained notice for its thick, brassy voicings, staccato articulation and sheer volume," remarked Len Lyons and Don Perlo about this band in Jazz Portraits. By this time, Kenton was composing his own songs, but they were the least popular of his band’s repertoire. While the public received the Artistry in Rhythm Orchestra favorably, jazz critics for the most part did not care for his music, saying his band was too loud, too structured, and without nuance.

Kenton’s band became a mainstay on the music scene during the 1940s through steady touring and radio broadcasts. One of its first big hits was "Eager Beaver," a song composed by Kenton that became his band’s theme song. He also scored big with "Tampico," "And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine, "which featured a vocal by Anita O’Day, and "Across the Alley from the Alamo," sung by June Christy. During the 1940s Kenton helped launch the career of saxophonist Stan Getz, who signed on with the band in 1943 at the age of 16. Two years later he brought in trombonist Kai Winding, trumpeter Ray Wetzel, and bassist Eddie Safranski.

To pursue new types of music other than the jazz standards of the day, Kenton broke up his band and formed the Progressive Jazz Band in 1947. Featuring arrangements by Pete Rugolo that favored heavy brass, and performers such as drummer Shelly Manne, alto saxophonist Art Pepper, guitarist Laurindo Almeida, tenor saxophonist Bob Cooper, and trombonist Milt Bernhart, his new band provoked strong reactions both pro and con. Down Beat magazine named the group Best Big Band in 1947 and 1948, but some critics viewed his music unfavorably. "The sheer volume of the music, the screaming trumpet section, immensely structured works that slam in by section on schedule, intimidated the critics who declared Kenton’s music empty and pretentious," claimed The Harmony Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz.

Despite its popularity, Kenton’s Progressive Jazz Band broke up in 1948 because the bandleader was pushed to exhaustion by heavy touring. After emerging from temporary retirement, Kenton struck out in yet another musical direction with his Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra. This 43-piece band featured a 16-piece string section that helped Kenton fulfill his desire to merge jazz and classical styles. He was aided in his quest by a lineup of top musicians that included Bud Shank on flute and sax, Pepper, and trumpeters Shorty Rogers, Chico Alvarez, Buddy Childers, and Maynard Ferguson. Now delving into the avant garde, Kenton began performing works by composer Bob Graetinger, whose music was known for its dissonance. Many critics labeled the band as no more than a big band trying to do modern classical music. They largely panned the band’s performance of Graetinger’s City of Glass in 1948, which in a 1993 review by Yanow was referred to as "avant-garde music that still sounds futuristic 45 years later."

In the early 1950s Kenton made an about face by focusing on swing music. He also put together smaller bands and toured with singers like Nat King Cole and Sarah Vaughn. He was a big hit on his European tour in 1953, and later returned there in 1956. In 1952 he formed the first of his new series of more traditional big-band groups called the New Concepts in Artistry and Rhythm Orchestra. "Performing dance tunes, driving modern jazz, and Afro-Cuban-influenced pieces, these groups represent Kenton’s most important style and repertory of big-band music," according to Jazz Portraits. Among Kenton’s most noteworthy recordings during the 1950s were 1954’s The Kenton Era and 1956’s Cuban Fire. Kenton "creates a warm ambiance that contrasts his lush, Ellingtonian orchestral charts with his spare, evocative piano lines," noted Billboard in its review of a reissue of the 1958 album The Ballad Style of Stan Kenton.

Established First College Jazz Clinics
By 1957 Kenton was fed up with touring, which prompted him to buy the Rendezvous Ballroom as a permanent home base for his band. Then he found himself on the road again within a few months, after discovering he could not attract big enough crowds in the same location to make it pay. The versatile Kenton broadened his career once again in 1959 when he founded the first of his university "jazz clinics," at Indiana University and Michigan State University. These clinics, which he later set up in other schools as well, proved to be highly fertile training grounds, and Kenton proved to have a sharp eye for hot new talent.

As rock ‘n’ roll eroded the popularity of his band in the early 1960s, Kenton branched out again with his New Era in Modern Music Orchestra. This 23-piece ensemble included a mellophonium, a cross between a trumpet and trombone that produced a sound similar to a French horn. Unlike his bands of the past, this Kenton group relied mostly on young performers rather than highly paid established stars. The band recorded eleven albums during its two-year history and received much acclaim for its recordings of the sound track for West Side Story and another album called Adventures in Jazz.

Kenton’s next band was the highly experimental Neo-phonic Orchestra, which featured 14 brass instrumentalists among its 28 players. The bandleader’s high visibility and popularity at this time attracted some top Hollywood musicians and jazz-oriented composers, as well instrumentalists who played with his previous bands. Many critics considered this band to be Kenton’s creative peak. As was pointed out in the Christian Science Monitor in 1966, "One gets the feeling that this is what Stan Kenton has been working up to all his musical life… music that has integrity, individuality, and modernity, without bogging down in atonality, electronic gimmicks, and self-conscious abstractions." In an ironic shift from his past history of popular acceptance and critical derision, the Neophonic Orchestra was championed by the critics but lost money. Financial setbacks forced Kenton to bolster his income by performing with a pickup band, recording albums, and making guest spots on television during the late 1960s.

Active Until Death
In the 1970s Kenton devoted more attention to the educational and business ends of his music. By 1975 he was conducting over 100 music clinics a year, as well as four week-long summer clinics on college campuses. At this time he was also distributing various educational materials and stage-band charts, as well as his own albums, with his Creative World company. Still active on the performance circuit with a new band formed in 1970, Kenton toured Europe and Japan during the early and mid 1970s. Various illnesses and hospitalizations slowed him down somewhat, including an aneurysm in 1972, and a cerebral hemorrhage in 1977, before he passed away in 1979. To his dying day he remained highly critical of country music, as well as rock ’n’ roll, and had little respect for the musical tastes of people in general. "Sophistication only exists in one or two percent of the masses," he told Thomas Lyles in an interview for the Washington Star in 1975. "And that two percent is the two percent that has to support jazz, classical music and the arts. The masses can’t communicate with art."

Selected discography
City of Glass, Capitol, 1947.
Innovations in Modern Music, Capitol, 1950.
New Concepts of Artistry in Rhythm, Capitol, 1952.
The Ballad Style of Stan Kenton, Capitol, 1958.
Mellophonium Moods, Status, 1962.
Kenton ‘76, Creative World, 1975.

Sources
Books
Case, Brian, and Stann Britt, revised and updated by Chrissie Murray, The Harmony Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz, Third Edition, Harmony Books, p. 106.
Cook, Richard, and Brian Morton, The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, LP, and Cassette, Penguin Books, 1992, pp. 610-614.
Easton, Carole, Straight Ahead: The Story of Stan Kenton, Morrow, 1973.
Erlewine, Michael, Vladimir Bogdanov, Chris Woodstra, and Scott Yanow, All Music Guide to Jazz, Second Edition, Miller Freeman Books, 1996, pp. 424-430.
Feather, Leonard, and Ira Gitler, The Encyclopedia of Jazz in the Seventies, Horizon Press, 1976, pp. 211-212.
Kernfeld, Barry, editor, The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, Volume One, Macmillan, 1988, p. 648.
Larkin, Colin, editor, The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Volume 3, Guinness Publishing, 1995, pp. 2281-2282.
Lyons, Len, and Don Perlo, Jazz Portraits: The Lives and Music of the Jazz Masters, William Morrow, 1989, pp. 322-324.

Periodicals
Billboard, August 16, 1997, p. 61.
Christian Science Monitor, April 22, 1966.
Stereo Review, December 1, 1996, p. 104.
Washington Star, July 5, 1975.
AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Artists:

Stan Kenton

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  • Genres: Jazz

Biography

There have been few jazz musicians as consistently controversial as Stan Kenton. Dismissed by purists of various genres while loved by many others, Kenton ranks up there with Chet Baker and Sun Ra as jazz's top cult figure. He led a succession of highly original bands that often emphasized emotion, power, and advanced harmonies over swing, and this upset listeners who felt that all big bands should aim to sound like Count Basie. Kenton always had a different vision.

Kenton played in the 1930s in the dance bands of Vido Musso and Gus Arnheim, but he was born to be a leader. In 1941 he formed his first orchestra, which later was named after his theme song "Artistry in Rhythm." A decent Earl Hines-influenced pianist, Kenton was much more important in the early days as an arranger and inspiration for his loyal sidemen. Although there were no major names in his first band (bassist Howard Rumsey and trumpeter Chico Alvarez come the closest), Kenton spent the summer of 1941 playing regularly before a very appreciative audience at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa Beach, CA. Influenced by Jimmie Lunceford (who, like Kenton, enjoyed high-note trumpeters and thick-toned tenors), the Stan Kenton Orchestra struggled a bit after its initial success. Its Decca recordings were not big sellers and a stint as Bob Hope's backup radio band was an unhappy experience; Les Brown permanently took Kenton's place.

By late 1943 with a Capitol contract, a popular record in "Eager Beaver," and growing recognition, the Stan Kenton Orchestra was gradually catching on. Its soloists during the war years included Art Pepper, briefly Stan Getz, altoist Boots Mussulli, and singer Anita O'Day. By 1945 the band had evolved quite a bit. Pete Rugolo became the chief arranger (extending Kenton's ideas), Bob Cooper and Vido Musso offered very different tenor styles, and June Christy was Kenton's new singer; her popular hits (including "Tampico" and "Across the Alley From the Alamo") made it possible for Kenton to finance his more ambitious projects. Calling his music "progressive jazz," Kenton sought to lead a concert orchestra as opposed to a dance band at a time when most big bands were starting to break up. By 1947 Kai Winding was greatly influencing the sound of Kenton's trombonists, the trumpet section included such screamers as Buddy Childers, Ray Wetzel, and Al Porcino, Jack Costanzo's bongos were bringing Latin rhythms into Kenton's sound, and a riotous version of "The Peanut Vendor" contrasted with the somber "Elegy for Alto." Kenton had succeeded in forming a radical and very original band that gained its own audience.

In 1949 Kenton took a year off. In 1950 he put together his most advanced band, the 39-piece Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra that included 16 strings, a woodwind section, and two French horns. Its music ranged from the unique and very dense modern classical charts of Bob Graettinger to works that somehow swung despite the weight. Such major players as Maynard Ferguson (whose high-note acrobatics set new standards), Shorty Rogers, Milt Bernhart, John Graas, Art Pepper, Bud Shank, Bob Cooper, Laurindo Almeida, Shelly Manne, and June Christy were part of this remarkable project, but from a commercial standpoint, it was really impossible. Kenton managed two tours during 1950-1951 but soon reverted to his usual 19-piece lineup. Then quite unexpectedly, Kenton went through a swinging period. The charts of such arrangers as Shorty Rogers, Gerry Mulligan, Lennie Niehaus, Marty Paich, Johnny Richards, and particularly Bill Holman and Bill Russo began to dominate the repertoire. Such talented players (in addition to the ones already named) as Lee Konitz, Conte Candoli, Sal Salvador, Stan Levey, Frank Rosolino, Richie Kamuca, Zoot Sims, Sam Noto, Bill Perkins, Charlie Mariano, Mel Lewis, Pete Candoli, Lucky Thompson, Carl Fontana, Pepper Adams, and Jack Sheldon made strong contributions. The music was never predictable and could get quite bombastic, but it managed to swing while still keeping the Kenton sound.

Kenton's last successful experiment was his mellophonium band of 1960-1963. Despite the difficulties in keeping the four mellophoniums (which formed their own separate section) in tune, this particular Kenton orchestra had its exciting moments. However from 1963 on, the flavor of the Kenton big band began to change. Rather than using talented soloists, Kenton emphasized relatively inexpensive youth at the cost of originality. While the arrangements (including those of Hank Levy) continued to be quite challenging, after Gabe Baltazar's "graduation" in 1965, there were few new important Kenton alumni (other than Peter Erskine and Tim Hagans). For many of the young players, touring with Kenton would be the high point of their careers rather than just an important early step. Kenton Plays Wagner (1964) was an important project, but by then the bandleader's attention was on jazz education. By conducting a countless number of clinics and making his charts available to college and high-school stage bands, Kenton insured that there would be many bands that sounded like his, and the inverse result was that his own young orchestra sounded like a professional college band! Kenton continued leading and touring with his big band up until his death in 1979.

Kenton recorded for Capitol for 25 years (1943-1968) and in the 1970s formed his Creative World label to reissue most of his Capitol output and record his current band. In recent times Capitol has begun reissuing Kenton's legacy on CD and there have been two impressive Mosaic box sets. ~ Scott Yanow, Rovi
Wikipedia on Answers.com:

Stan Kenton

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Stan Kenton
Background information
Birth name Stanley Newcomb Kenton
Born February 19, 1912(1912-02-19)
Origin Wichita, Kansas, U.S.
Died August 25, 1979(1979-08-25) (aged 67)
Genres West Coast jazz, swing, jazz
Occupations Bandleader, pianist, composer, arranger
Instruments Piano
Years active 1930s–1970s
Labels Capitol, Decca, Creative World
Associated acts Maynard Ferguson, Zoot Sims, Anita O'Day, June Christy, Chris Connor, Art Pepper, Pete Rugolo, Eddie Safranski

Stanley Newcomb "Stan" Kenton (February 19, 1912 – August 25, 1979)[1] was a pianist, composer, and arranger who led an innovative, influential, and often controversial American jazz orchestra. In later years he was active as an educator.

Contents

Early life

Stan Kenton was born in Wichita, Kansas, and raised first in Colorado, then in California. He learned piano as a child, and while still a teenager toured with various bands. He attended Bell High School, in Bell, California, where he graduated in 1930. In June 1941 he formed his own band, which developed into one of the best-known West Coast ensembles of the 1940s. In the mid-1940s, Kenton's band and style became known as "The Wall of Sound", a tag later used by Phil Spector.[2]

Career

Kenton played in the 1930s in the dance bands of Vido Musso and Gus Arnheim, but his natural inclination was as a band leader. In 1941 he formed his first orchestra, which later was named after his theme song "Artistry in Rhythm". A competent pianist, influenced by Earl Hines, Kenton was much more important in the early days as an arranger and inspiration for his loyal sidemen. Although there were no major names in his first band (bassist Howard Rumsey and trumpeter Chico Alvarez come the closest), Kenton spent the summer of 1941 playing regularly before a very appreciative audience at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa Beach, CA. Influenced by Jimmie Lunceford (who, like Kenton, enjoyed high-note trumpeters and thick-toned tenors), the Stan Kenton Orchestra struggled a bit after its initial success. Its Decca recordings were not big sellers and a stint as Bob Hope's backup radio band was an unhappy experience; Les Brown permanently took Kenton's place.[2]

Stan Kenton with Eddie Safranski, 1947 or 1948

By late 1943 with a Capitol Records contract, a popular record in "Eager Beaver", and growing recognition, the Stan Kenton Orchestra was gradually catching on. Its soloists during the war years included Art Pepper, briefly Stan Getz, altoist Boots Mussulli, and singer Anita O'Day. By 1945 the band had evolved quite a bit. Pete Rugolo became the chief arranger (extending Kenton's ideas), Bob Cooper and Vido Musso offered very different tenor styles, and June Christy was Kenton's new singer; her hits (including "Tampico" and "Across the Alley From the Alamo") made it possible for Kenton to finance his more ambitious projects. A popular recording of "Laura" was made, the theme song from the film Laura (starring actress Gene Tierney), and featured the voices of the band.[2]

Calling his music "progressive jazz," Kenton sought to lead a concert orchestra as opposed to a dance band at a time when most big bands were starting to break up. By 1947 Kai Winding was greatly influencing the sound of Kenton's trombonists, the trumpet section included such screamers as Buddy Childers, Ray Wetzel, and Al Porcino, Jack Costanzo's bongos were bringing Latin rhythms into Kenton's sound, and a riotous version of "The Peanut Vendor" contrasted with the somber "Elegy for Alto". Kenton had succeeded in forming a radical and very original band that gained its own audience.[2]

In 1949 Kenton took a year off. In 1950 he put together his most advanced band, the 39-piece Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra that included 16 strings, a woodwind section, and two French horns. Its music ranged from the unique and very dense modern classical charts of Bob Graettinger to works that somehow swung despite the weight. Such major players as Maynard Ferguson (whose high-note acrobatics set new standards), Shorty Rogers, Milt Bernhart, John Graas, Art Pepper, Bud Shank, Bob Cooper, Laurindo Almeida, Shelly Manne, and June Christy were part of this remarkable project, but from a commercial standpoint, it was really impossible. Kenton managed two tours during 1950-1951 but soon reverted to his usual 19-piece lineup.[2]

Then quite unexpectedly, Kenton went through a swinging period. The charts of such arrangers as Shorty Rogers, Gene Roland, Gerry Mulligan, Marty Paich, Johnny Richards, and particularly Bill Holman and Bill Russo began to dominate the repertoire. Such talented players (in addition to the ones already named) as Lee Konitz, Conte Candoli, Sal Salvador, Stan Levey, Frank Rosolino, Richie Kamuca, Zoot Sims, Sam Noto, Bill Perkins, Charlie Mariano, Mel Lewis, Pete Candoli, Lucky Thompson, Carl Fontana, Pepper Adams, and Jack Sheldon made strong contributions. The music was never predictable and could get quite bombastic, but it managed to swing while still keeping the Kenton sound.[2]

Later years

Stan Kenton in Munich, September 25, 1973

Kenton's last successful experiment was his mellophonium band of 1960-1963. Despite the difficulties in keeping the four mellophoniums (which formed their own separate section) in tune, this particular Kenton orchestra had its exciting moments; the albums "Adventures in Jazz" and "West Side Story" (arrangements by Johnny Richards) each won Grammy awards in 1962 and 1963. Kenton Plays Wagner (1964) was an important project, produced in concert with his interests in jazz education and encouraging big band music in high schools and colleges instructing what he called "progressive jazz." Stan knew what he had in the body of work that was The Stan Kenton Orchestra and in the remainder of his life and career, he took on the challenge of ensuring his legacy that was Progressive Jazz.

In the early 1970s Kenton split from his long-time association with Capitol Records and formed his own label, "The Creative World of Stan Kenton". Recordings produced during the 1970s on this new label included several "live" concerts at various universities and are a testament to his devotion to education. In addition, Kenton made his charts available to college and high-school stage bands. When Kenton took to the road during the early 70's and up to his last tour, he took with him seasoned veteran musicians (Willie Maiden, Warren Gale, Graham Ellis and others) teaming them with relatively unknown young artists to mentor America's youth and take advantage of the unchecked energy in those young players while at the same time preserving the legacy of his work as an active art form. The magic for most of these players (the first female soloist, Mary Fettig just barely in her twenties) was being a part of an organization that while historically substantial was continuing to make an impact on the music scene. New Kenton arrangements (including those by Hank Levy, Bill Holman, Bob Curnow, Willie Maiden and Ken Hanna) expanded the creative foundation that nurtured original musical exploration by these younger artists long after Gabe Baltazar's "graduation" in 1965. For many of these young players, touring with Kenton began as a highschool dream that once realized inspired them to new beginnings in other arenas. Many alumni became educators and itinerate clinicians caught up in the art of inspiring younger players (Mike Vax, The Baron Jon Von Ohlen, Chuck Carter, and Richard Torres). A few went on to take their musical careers to the next level (Peter Erskine, Dick Shearer) and beyond. Other's left the road knowing that they were leaving behind the best of their high school dreams but will carry with them the knowledge that for a few moments in time they were part of a musical force that made history, one that continues to keep progressive jazz alive even to this day.

Jack Sandmeier, Road Manager during these years, tells the story of an unusual meeting in a hotel lobby between Woody Herman and Kenton. Unusual because they both toured more than fifty (50) weeks a year "one-nighters," in order to keep their respective bands on the road, they hardly ever met. In discussing a chronically late band member, Herman said to Kenton..."Fire his ass, there's thousands of them and only two of us."[3][4]

He had a skull fracture from a fall in 1977 while on tour in Reading, PA. He entered Midway Hospital on August 17, 1979 after a stroke and later died.[1]

Criticism

In 1956, when the band returned from its European trip, the Critics Poll in Down Beat reflected victories by black musicians in virtually every category. The Kenton band was playing in Ontario, Canada, at the time, and Kenton dispatched a telegram which lamented "a new minority, white jazz musicians," and stated his "disgust [with the so-called] literary geniuses of jazz." Jazz critic Leonard Feather, alone of all the critics, responded in the October 3, 1956, issue with an open letter which questioned Kenton's racial views. Feather implied that Kenton's failure to win the Critics Poll was probably the real reason for the complaint, and wondered if racial prejudice was involved.

Fellow DownBeat critic Ralph J. Gleason wrote that Feather's verdict was passed on Kenton "...without, unfortunately, any real forethought or public statement from the only musicians really in a position to know.”[5] Jazz writer Jack McKinney stated that the night Kenton wrote the telegram, there were two African-Americans trombonists touring with him.[6] Previous to Feather's letter, in the December 16, 1953, issue of Down Beat, critic Nat Hentoff had written that ". . . Stan is as free from prejudice of any kind as any man I know."

Feather's allegation of prejudice ignored Kenton's well-known close friendships with Duke Ellington and Count Basie.[7] In July to September, 1955, the year before Feather's letter, Kenton hosted the CBS summer replacement, Music 55, for which he invited Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Lena Horne, Louis Jordan, Cab Calloway, and many other African-American artists to participate.[8] He toured with Basie and his Orchestra in Fall, 1960, and released an album with the Nat King Cole Trio in 1962.

McKinney wrote further, in 1965, that "All points [of the Feather letter] except the last were based on conjecture, and events preceding and following Feather's complaint have shown how ridiculous they were." He further pointed out that many budding African-American jazz musicians, such as Art Tatum and Charlie Parker, were given more exposure on Kenton-sponsored tours than elsewhere.[6] One Kenton band member, trumpeter Donald Byrd, in discussing Kenton's hands-on college and university music program, said, "My experience with the Stan Kenton clinic at the National Band Camp has left me in complete ecstasy ... The camp was interracial, both in the teaching faculty and the student body..."[6]

Feather himself realized his error, and in August, 1960, apologized for the letter he then claimed was a "result of sorrow."[5] Kenton later lamented of Feather's apology, "I think it was on the back page of the Pittsburg Inquirer."[6] Kenton reportedly felt that Feather had created a great ill feeling toward him by African-American musicians, and no matter how apologetic Feather would be, much of that "prejudice-in-reverse" would remain.

Legacy

Kenton was a salient figure on the American musical scene and made an indelible mark on the arranged type of big band jazz. Kenton's music evolved with the times throughout the 1960s and 1970s, and although he was no longer considered a contemporary innovator, he promoted jazz and jazz improvisation through his service as an educator. The "Kenton Style" continues to permeate big bands at the high school and collegiate level, and the framework he designed for the "jazz clinic" is still widely in use today.

His music has experienced a resurgence in interest, with later critical "rediscovery" of his music and many reissues of his recordings. An alumni band tours to this day, led by lead trumpeter Mike Vax, which performs not only classic Kenton arrangements, but also new music written and performed in the Kenton style.

Kenton donated his entire library to the music department of North Texas State University[9] (now the University of North Texas), and the Stan Kenton Jazz Recital Hall is named in his honor. His arrangements are now published by Sierra Music Publications.[10]

Kenton continued leading and touring with his big band up to his final performance in August 1978. He suffered a stroke in August 1979. Kenton did not recover and died on August 25, 1979. He was interred in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery, Los Angeles.

The complex machinations of Kenton's private life have recently been disclosed in the 2010 memoir "Love Affair", written by his daughter Leslie Kenton.[11] She describes her experience of life within the Kenton family and discloses secrets, including the incestuous relationship she had with her talented and celebrated, yet self-doubting and frequently troubled, alcoholic father.

Noted band personnel

Instrumentalists
Composers and arrangers
Vocalists

Discography

[icon] This section requires expansion.
"Machito", Capitol Records 78, #408, 1947.

Studio albums

  • Stan Kenton And His Orchestra - McGregor #LP201 (1941)
  • The Formative Years - Decca #589 489-2 (1941–1942)
  • Stan Kenton Encores - Capitol #155 (various early years)
  • Stan Kenton's Artistry In Rhythm - Capitol #167 ('45-'48)
  • Opus In Pastels - Jazz Roots (1945–1952)
  • A Presentation Of Progressive Jazz - Capitol #T172 (1947)
  • Innovations In Modern Music - Capitol #189 (1-30-1950)
  • Stan Kenton's Milesones - Capitol #T190 (thru 1950)
  • Stan Kenton Presents - Capitol #248 (1950)
  • City Of Glass (Stan Kenton recording) - Capitol #H353 (1951)
  • Stan Kenton Classics - Capitol #358 (various years)
  • New Concepts of Artistry in Rhythm - Capitol 383 (1952)
  • Stan Kenton's Greatest Hits (orig.recordings) - Capitol #398 (1943–1951)
  • Sketches On Standards- Capitol #426 (1953)
  • This Modern World- Capitol #460 (1953)
  • Portraits On Standards - Capitol #462 (1953)
  • Kenton Showcase: The Music of Bill Holman And Bill Russo - Capitol #W524 (1954)
  • The Kenton Era - Capitol #WDX569 (1940–1953)
  • Duet (June Christy) - Capitol #656 (1955)
  • Contemporary Concepts - Capitol #666 (1955)
  • Kenton In HI-FI - Capitol #724 (1956)
  • Cuban Fire! - Capitol #731 (1956)
  • City Of Glass And This Modern World - Capitol #736 (various years)
  • With Voices - Capitol #810 (1957)
  • Rendezvous With Kenton - Capitol #932 (1957)
  • Back To Balboa - Capitol #995 (1958)
  • The Ballad Style Of Stan Kenton - Capitol #1068 (1958)
  • Lush Interlude - Capitol #1130 (1958)
  • The Stage Door Swings - Capitol #1166 (1958)
  • The Kenton Touch - Capitol #1276 (1958)
  • Viva Kenton - Capitol #1305 (1959)
  • Standards In Silhouette - Capitol #1394 (1959)
  • Too Much (with Ann Richards) - Capitol #1495 (1960)
  • Sophisticated Approach - Capitol #1674 (1961)
  • The Romantic Approach - Capitol #1533 (1961)
  • A Merry Christmas - Capitol #1621 (1961)
  • West Side Story - Capitol #1609 (1961)
  • Adventures In Blues - Capitol #1985 (1961)
  • Adventures In Jazz - Capitol #1796 (1961)
  • Adventures In Standards - (1961)
  • Stan Kenton Plays 18 Original Big-Band Recordings - Hindsight #HCD=407
  • Mellophonium Magic - Status #CD103 (1962)
  • Mellophonium Moods - Status #STCD106 (1962)
  • Adventures In Time - Capitol #1844 (1962)
  • Stan Kenton - Tex Ritter - Capitol #1757 (1962)
  • Artistry In Bossa Nova - Capitol #1931 (1963)
  • Kenton/Turner - Capitol #2051 (1963)
  • Artistry In Voices And Brass - Capitol #2132 (1963)
  • Kenton/Wagner - Capitol #2217 (1964)
  • Stan Kenton Conducts The Los Angeles Neophonic Orchestra - Capitol #2424 (1965-1966)
  • Stan Kenton Plays For Today - Capitol #2655 (1966-1967)
  • The World We Know - Capitol #2810
  • The Jazz Compositions Of Dee Barton - Capitol #2932 (1967)
  • Hair - Capitol #ST305 (1968)
  • Finian's Rainbow - Capitol #2971 (1968)
  • Today: Recorded Live In London - London #B944179-80 (1972)
  • National Anthems Of The World - Creative World #1060
  • Birthday In Britain - Creative World #1065 (1973)
  • 7.5 On The Richter Scale - Creative World #1070 (1973)
  • Kenton Plays Chicago - Creative World #1072 (1974)
  • Fire, Fury and Fun - Creative World #1073 (1974)
  • Kenton '76 - Creative World #1076 (1976)
  • Journey Into Capricorn - Creative World #1077 (1976)
  • Some Women I've Known - Creative World #1029
  • Stan Kenton Without His Orchestra (solo) - Creative World #1071
  • Street Of Dreams - Creative World #1079

Live albums

  • Stan Kenton Stompin' At Newport - Pablo #PACD-5312-2 (1957)
  • Road Show, Stan Kenton, June Christy, The Four Freshmen - Capitol #TBO1327 (1959)
  • Kenton Live From The Las Vegas Tropicana - Capitol #1460 (1959)
  • Stan Kenton at Ukiah - Status #STCD109 (1959)
  • Stan Kenton In New Jersey - Status #USCD104 (1959)
  • Live at Redlands University (1970)
  • Live at Brigham Young (1971)
  • Stan Kenton Today - Live In London - London/Creative World #BP 44179-80 (1972)
  • Live at Butler University (1973)
  • Live in Europe (1976)

Compilations

  • The Kenton Era - Capitol #WDX569 (1940–1953)
  • Stan Kenton On AFRS - Status DSTS1019 (1944-1945)
  • One Night Stand - Magic #DAWE66 (1961–1962)
  • The Complete Capitol Recordings Of The Holman And Russo Charts (Mosaic)
  • The Complete Capitol Recordings (Mosaic)
  • The Peanut Vendor
  • The Jazz Compositions Of Stan Kenton - Creative World #ST1078 (1945–1973)

Compositions

Stan Kenton's compositions included "Artistry in Rhythm", "And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine", "Dynaflow" with Art Pepper, "Machito", "Collaboration", "Journey to Btazil", and "Introduction to a Latin Rhythm" with Pete Rugolo, "Opus in Pastels", "Artistry Jumps", "Reed Rapture", "Eager Beaver", "Artistry in Boogie", "Fantasy", "Rhythm Incorporated", "Southern Scandal", "Monotony", "Abstraction", "Harlem Holiday", "Painted Rhythm", "Minor Riff", "Concerto to End All Concertos", "A Theme to the West", "Elegy For Alto", "Early Hours (Lady Luck)", and "Sunset Tower".

References

 This article uses bare URLs for citations. Please consider adding full citations so that the article remains verifiable. Several templates and the Reflinks tool are available to assist in formatting. (Reflinks documentation) (October 2011)
  1. ^ a b "Stan Kenton, Band Leader, Dies; Was Center of Jazz Controversies". New York Times. August 27, 1979. http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/0219.html. Retrieved 2009-02-19. "Stan Kenton, the band leader, died Saturday night in a Hollywood hospital. He was 67 years old. Mr. Kenton entered Midway Hospital on Aug. 17 after a stroke. His manager, Audrey Coke, said Mr. Kenton had never fully recovered from a skull fracture he suffered in a fall two years ago." 
  2. ^ a b c d e f allmusic Biography
  3. ^ Interview with Jack Sandmeier, June 7, 2009
  4. ^ Jack Sandmeier's unpublished memoir "Where's the Bus"
  5. ^ a b http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/musician.php?id=8330
  6. ^ a b c d http://www.jazzprofessional.com/interviews/kenton%20story.htm
  7. ^ Arganian, Lillian (1989) Stan Kenton: The Man and His Music. Artistry Press. ISBN 978-0962111600
  8. ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047759
  9. ^ http://www.library.unt.edu/music/special-collections/kenton library.unt.edu
  10. ^ http://www.Sierramusicstore.com/Stan_Kenton_Orchestra_s/52.htm
  11. ^ Kenton, Leslie. Love Affair: The memoir of a forbidden father-daughter relationship, Random House, 2010

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Stan Kenton

Further reading

  • Easton, Carol (1981). Straight Ahead: The Story of Stan Kenton. Da Capo. ISBN 978-0306801525. 
  • Lee, William F. (1994). Stan Kenton: Artistry in Rhythm. Los Angeles: Creative Press. ISBN 978-0897459938. 
  • Sparke, Michael (2011). Stan Kenton: This Is an Orchestra!. North Texas Lives of Musicians Series. University of North Texas Press. ISBN 978-1574413250. 
Special awards
Years
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