BOB BROOKMEYER

Biography

Robert Edward "Bob" Brookmeyer was born on December 19, 1929, in Kansas City, Missouri, where he developed an early passion for jazz after hearing Count Basie perform at the Tower Theater.[3] He began playing clarinet at age 8 and later took up trombone and piano during his high school years.[3] After studying composition for three years at the Kansas City Conservatory of Music—where he won the Carl Busch Prize for Choral Composition—Brookmeyer served briefly in the U.S. Army before moving to New York in 1952.[2][3] There he established himself as a versatile freelance musician, initially performing primarily on piano with swing and bebop bands led by Tex Beneke, Ray McKinley, and Claude Thornhill, while also collaborating with jazz luminaries including Coleman Hawkins, Pee Wee Russell, Ben Webster, and Charles Mingus.[2][3]

Brookmeyer achieved widespread recognition in the mid-1950s after replacing Chet Baker in Gerry Mulligan's innovative piano-less quartet, a position he held until 1968.[4] During this period, he became known for his mastery of the valve trombone—a relatively uncommon instrument in jazz—and established himself as a prolific composer and arranger.[2][4] He co-led a celebrated quintet with trumpeter Clark Terry from 1961 to 1967, earning Grammy and Downbeat awards, and served as lead trombonist and arranger-composer for the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra beginning in 1965.[2][3] After a decade-long hiatus from jazz recording (1968–1978) spent working as a studio musician in Los Angeles, Brookmeyer returned to New York in 1978 and resumed his career with renewed vigor, eventually becoming musical director of the reorganized Mel Lewis Orchestra in 1979.[1][3]

From 1981 to 1991, Brookmeyer divided his time between Europe and the United States, composing in both classical and jazz idioms while teaching at the Manhattan School of Music beginning in 1985.[2] He founded and directed the award-winning NewArt Orchestra and served as artistic director of the Composition Workshop at the Rhythmic Conservatory in Copenhagen.[3] In 1997, he began teaching full-time at the New England Conservatory, where he chaired the jazz composition department and created the Jazz Composers' Workshop Orchestra before retiring in 2007.[3] Brookmeyer died on December 15, 2011, just four days before his eighty-second birthday, leaving behind an extensive legacy as a multiple Grammy Award winner, three-time NEA grant recipient, and 2006 National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master.[1][5] He is remembered as an almost unique figure in jazz history—a top-ranking valve-trombone soloist who excelled equally as a pianist, composer, arranger, and educator.[4]

Fun Facts

• Brookmeyer is almost unique in jazz history as a top-ranking valve-trombone soloist—the valve trombone was a relatively uncommon instrument in jazz compared to the slide trombone, yet he became one of its greatest practitioners.[4]
• Despite his fame as a trombonist, Brookmeyer was skilled enough on piano to record a duo album with pianist Bill Evans, demonstrating his versatility as a musician.[8]
• Brookmeyer struggled with a serious drinking problem that at one point led him to consider leaving music entirely to become an alcoholism counselor; however, he returned to music instead and maintained a productive career for decades after.[1]
• In 2006, the same year Brookmeyer was named a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master, his NewArt Orchestra released the Grammy-nominated album 'Spirit Music,' and shortly before his death in 2011, an album composed entirely of his compositions received a Grammy nomination for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album.[5]

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

• Count Basie - Early inspiration; Brookmeyer's first exposure to jazz came from hearing the Count Basie Orchestra perform at the Tower Theater in Kansas City (Count Basie Orchestra performances) [Early childhood/1940s]
• Kansas City Conservatory of Music - Formal composition training where Brookmeyer studied for three years and won the Carl Busch Prize for Choral Composition (Composition studies) [Late 1940s]
• Claude Thornhill - Bandleader under whom Brookmeyer settled permanently on valve trombone and played both trombone and second piano (Claude Thornhill ensemble) [Early 1950s]

Key Collaborators

• Gerry Mulligan - Replaced Chet Baker in Mulligan's piano-less quartet; later served as chief arranger/composer and featured soloist for Mulligan's Concert Jazz Band (Piano-less quartet; Concert Jazz Band recordings) [1952–1957, 1960–1964]
• Clark Terry - Co-leader of legendary quintet that earned Grammy and Downbeat awards (Clark Terry-Bob Brookmeyer Quintet recordings) [1961–1967]
• Thad Jones and Mel Lewis - Founding member and lead trombonist/arranger-composer of the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra; later became musical director of the reorganized Mel Lewis Orchestra (renamed Vanguard Jazz Orchestra) (Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra; Vanguard Jazz Orchestra albums) [1965–1982]
• Jimmy Giuffre - Member of experimental trio with unique instrumentation emphasizing folk music elements in jazz (Jimmy Giuffre Three recordings) [1957–1958]
• Stan Getz - Performed with Getz's sextet on European tour and collaborated on various projects (Stan Getz Sextet European tour; various recordings) [1952–1953, 1978]
• Bill Evans - Recorded a duo album together, showcasing Brookmeyer's piano skills (Duo album) [1960s]
• Coleman Hawkins, Pee Wee Russell, Ben Webster, Charles Mingus - Freelance collaborations in New York during the early 1950s (Various recordings and performances) [1952 onwards]

Artists Influenced

• Students at Manhattan School of Music and New England Conservatory - Taught composition and jazz at these institutions, influencing generations of jazz composers and musicians (Teaching at Manhattan School of Music; New England Conservatory Jazz Composition Department) [1985–2007]
• Participants in BMI Composers Workshop and Rhythmic Conservatory Composition Workshop - Directed workshops that shaped emerging composers' approaches to jazz composition (BMI Composers Workshop; Rhythmic Conservatory Composition Workshop) [1989–1991, 1996 onwards]

External Links

• Spotify
• [Wikipedia](Not found in search results)