Frank Wess

Biography

Frank Wellington Wess was born on January 4, 1922, in Kansas City, Missouri, into a middle-class African-American family of schoolteachers. He began playing alto saxophone at age 10 in his father's amateur band in Sapulpa, Oklahoma, after the family moved there in 1932, and further honed his skills after settling in Washington, D.C., in 1935, performing with local dance groups and the Howard Theatre house band. Despite parental expectations for him to become a dentist, Wess pursued jazz, switching to classical training and later studying flute seriously under Wallace Mann of the National Symphony Orchestra at the Modern School of Music in 1949 via the GI Bill, earning a degree. His early career included U.S. Army Band service from 1941-1945 in Africa, leading a group for Josephine Baker, and joining Billy Eckstine's pioneering bebop orchestra in 1945 alongside Miles Davis, Dexter Gordon, and Art Blakey.[1][2][3]

Fun Facts

• Colleagues nicknamed him 'Magic' for his consistent artistry and professionalism across 70 years and over 600 recordings.
• He won DownBeat Magazine's critics' poll for flute every year from 1959 to 1964, establishing it as a jazz instrument following Wayman Carver.
• Served in WWII U.S. Army Band in Africa, leading a 17-piece group accompanying Josephine Baker on tours.
• He quipped that the clarinet 'was invented by five men that never met,' despite playing it in Broadway pit bands like Golden Boy.

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

• Wallace Mann - Flute teacher at Modern School of Music (Flute studies leading to degree) [1949]
• Lester Young - Stylistic influence on saxophone playing (General solo style) [1950s career]
• Johnny Hodges, Ben Webster, Benny Carter - Saxophone influences blending into unique style (Genre-defying saxophone approach) [Throughout career]

Key Collaborators

• Count Basie - Tenor sax and flute soloist in band (Atomic Mr. Basie (1957), arranger of 'Seque') [1953-1964]
• Billy Eckstine - Tenor sax in bebop orchestra (Eckstine orchestra sessions) [1945-1947]
• Frank Foster - Co-leader and frequent recording partner from Basie days (Two for the Blues (1983), Frankly Speaking (1984)) [1950s-1980s]
• Clark Terry - Member of big band (Clark Terry’s Big Bad Band) [1967-1970]

Artists Influenced

• Aspiring jazz musicians - Teacher and mentor establishing flute in jazz (General mentorship) [Lifetime]

External Links

• Spotify
• Wikipedia