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Stan Kenton

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Stan Kenton was an American pianist, composer, arranger and bandleader. He was born in 1911 in Wichita, Kansas, and grew up in California. At sixteen he was already playing regular gigs as a pianist. In the 1930s he worked in clubs and with orchestras, including Gus Arnheim's. In 1940 he founded his first orchestra, with which he played at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa, California, in 1941. From 1943 he recorded for the new label Capitol Records. Eager Beaver became a well-known record. The singer June Christy and the arranger Pete Rugolo were part of the core of the band from 1945.

Music and breakthrough

Kenton's orchestra sounded different from the swing bands of his time. With plenty of brass, rhythms from Latin America and influences from modern classical composers such as Stravinsky and Bartók, Rugolo helped build a heavy, powerful sound, which made the Artistry in Rhythm band famous. In 1947 the period of Progressive Jazz began, with work by Rugolo and Bob Graettinger. Graettinger's City of Glass premiered in 1948 and was recorded in 1950 for the Innovations Orchestra. According to the source, critics wrote about that music sometimes scathingly, and sometimes with respect. Kenton kept looking ahead, even when he had hits.

Influence

Kenton was also a pioneer of jazz education. In 1959 he started the Stan Kenton Jazz Camp at Indiana University. He led an innovative jazz orchestra for almost forty years and also kept making albums such as Kenton in Hi-Fi, Kenton's West Side Story and Adventures in Jazz. He died in 1979. For anyone who wants to understand the big band and West Coast jazz, he is an important link.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Artistry in Rhythm or Eager Beaver. Notice the heavy block of brass and how the band plays with force, rather than with light swing.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

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Mentioned in other articles

See also

Categories: ArtistsBig band