Bob Brookmeyer

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Bob Brookmeyer
Impulse!, Mainstream, RCA, Verve
Formerly ofGary Burton, Bill Evans, Stan Getz, Jimmy Giuffre, Jim Hall, Gary McFarland, Gerry Mulligan, Lalo Schifrin, Clark Terry, The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra, Claude Thornhill, Zoot Sims

Robert Edward "Bob" Brookmeyer (December 19, 1929 – December 15, 2011) was an American jazz

Grammy Award
nominations during his lifetime.

Biography

Brookmeyer was born on December 19, 1929,

Kansas City, Missouri, United States.[4] He was the only child of Elmer Edward Brookmeyer and Mayme Seifert.[1]

Brookmeyer began playing professionally in his teens. He attended the Kansas City Conservatory of Music, but did not graduate. He played piano in big bands led by Tex Beneke and Ray McKinley, but concentrated on valve trombone from when he moved to the Claude Thornhill orchestra in the early 1950s. He was part of small groups led by Stan Getz, Jimmy Giuffre, and Gerry Mulligan in the 1950s. During the 1950s and 1960s, Brookmeyer played in New York clubs, on television (including being part of the house band for The Merv Griffin Show), and on studio recordings, as well as arranging for Ray Charles and others.[1]

In the early 1960s, Brookmeyer joined flugelhorn player Clark Terry in a band that achieved some success. In February 1965, Brookmeyer and Terry appeared together on BBC2's Jazz 625.[5]

Brookmeyer moved to

Boston, Massachusetts, and other institutions.[1]

Clark Terry and Brookmeyer at the Clearwater Jazz Festival in the 1980s

In June 2005, Brookmeyer joined

Vanguard Jazz Orchestra's album, Forever Lasting, shortly before his death.[1] That same album was also nominated in the 57th Annual Grammy Awards
for the category of Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album; the CD was entirely made up of Brookmeyer's compositions.

Brookmeyer died of congestive heart failure on December 15, 2011, in New London, New Hampshire.[1][6]

Compositional style

One notable element of Brookmeyer's compositional style is his use of contemporary classical writing techniques in his works for big bands and jazz ensembles. In the early 1980's Brookmeyer was mentored by composer Earle Brown, with whom he explored 20th century classical music in depth. Brookmeyer's works since have been influenced by such composers as Witold Lutosławski (whose cello concerto Brookmeyer used often in teaching students about simple motifs), Igor Stravinsky, Claude Debussy, György Ligeti, and Béla Bartók.[7]

Some examples of 20th-century classical compositional techniques used in Brookmeyer's jazz pieces are:

Honors and awards

Grammy Awards (nominations)

Year Nominee / work Award Result
1960
 Blues Suite', composed by Brookmeyer Best Arrangement Nominated
1965
 The Power Of Positive Swinging, composed by Brookmeyer Best Instrumental Jazz Performance Nominated
1966
 ABC Blues, composed by Brookmeyer Best Original Jazz Composition Nominated
1980
 Skylark, arranged by Brookmeyer
Best Instrumental Arrangement
 Nominated
2001
 Impulsive! (Album) Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album Nominated
2004
 Get Well Soon (Album) Large Jazz Ensemble Album Nominated
2006
 Spirit Music (Album) Large Jazz Ensemble Album Nominated
2008
 St. Louis Blues, arranged by Brookmeyer
Best Instrumental Arrangement
 Nominated
2011
 Nasty Dance, arranged by Brookmeyer
Best Instrumental Arrangement
 Nominated

Discography

As leader/co-leader

As sideman

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Keepnews, Peter (December 18, 2011). "Bob Brookmeyer, Jazz Musician and educator, Dies at 81". The New York Times.
  2. ^ Berendt, Joachim (1976). The Jazz Book. Paladin. p. 380.
  3. ^ Berendt (1976). The Jazz Book. p. 384.
  4. ^ Berendt (1976). The Jazz Book. p. 199.
  5. ^ "Tribute to Bob Brookmeyer". clarkterry.com. December 19, 2011. Retrieved February 10, 2014.
  6. ^ artsjournal obituary. Archived May 21, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ Guerra, Stephen J. Jr. (2016). A Study of Bob Brookmeyer's Compositional Style for Large Jazz Ensemble. p. 55.
  8. ^ Guerra (2016). A Study of Bob Brookmeyer's Compositional Style for Large Jazz Ensemble. pp. 56–70.
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