Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Tete Montoliu was born Vicenç Montoliu i Massana on March 28, 1933 in the Eixample district of Barcelona, Spain. Born blind, he was the only son of Vicenç Montoliu, a professional musician) and Àngela Massana, a jazz enthusiast, who encouraged her son to study piano. He first began piano lessons under Enric Mas at the private school for blind children that he attended from 1939 to 1944. By 1944, his mother arranged for Petri Palou to provide formal piano lessons.

From 1946 to 1953 Montoliu studied music at the Conservatori Superior de Música de Barcelona, where he also met jazz musicians and became familiar with the idiom in jam sessions. During the early stages of his career, Montoliu was particularly influenced by the music of pianist Art Tatum, although he soon developed a distinctive style.

He began playing professionally in Barcelona pubs where noticed by Lionel Hampton in 1956 he began touring with Hampton throughout Spain and France. After the tour Tete recorded Jazz Flamenco, setting off a prolific international career. In the 1960s, he played in various New York City concerts and established collaborations with drummer Elvin Jones and bassist Richard Davis.

The Seventies saw him traveling extensively throughout Europe, consolidating his reputation as a main referent in the hard bop movement. During the 1980s, he played numerous concerts, collaborating with Dexter Gordon, Johnny Griffin, Joe Henderson, Dizzy Gillespie, Chick Corea, Hank Jones, Roy Hargrove and Jess Davis, to name a few.

The man from Catalonia, pianist Tete Montoliu was given a public tribute by Spain in 1996 for his fifty-year career in jazz. He passed away the following year on August 24, 1997 in Barcelona. He left the jazz world an estimated catalogue of 52 albums as a leader and another 21 as a sideman with Anthony Braxton, Nuria Feliu, Dexter Gordon, Eddie Harris, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Charlie Mariano, Jordi Sabates, Archie Shepp, Lars Gullin, Buddy Tate, and Ben Webster.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Lem Winchester was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on March 19, 1928. He played piano, baritone and tenor saxophone before settling on the vibraphone. Formerly a police officer, he pursued music as a hobby in Wilmington, Delaware. He turned to music full-time after an appearance at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival. He was soon working with some of the top names in jazz, making his debut recording with pianist Ramsey Lewis.

Winchester recorded a handful of albums as a leader, mostly for Prestige Records and made sideman appearances with Oliver Nelson, Jack McDuff, Shirley Scott, Benny Golson, Tommy Flanagan and Johnny “Hammond” Smith.

The career of hard bop vibraphonist Lem Winchester was cut short when he passed away from an unsuccessful demonstration of a trick with a revolver on January 13, 1961 in Indianapolis, Indiana. He was 32 years old.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Willie Maiden was born William Ralph “Willie” Maiden in Detroit, Michigan on March 12, 1928. He began on piano at age five and started playing saxophone at 11. He spent most of his career playing in big bands, and while he copiously recorded as a sideman, he never led his own session.

Willie worked with Perez Prado in 1950 and arranged for Maynard Ferguson from 1952 into the 1960s. He played with Charlie Barnet in 1966, and played baritone sax in addition to arranging for Stan Kenton between 1969 and 1973.

As an educator, hard bop tenor saxophonist and arranger Willie Maiden who also played alto and baritone, taught at the University of Maine in Augusta until his passing on May 29,1976.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Pierre Michelot was born on March 3, 1928 in Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, Paris, France. He studied piano from 1936 until 1938 when he switched to bass at the age of sixteen.

Throughout his career he performed and recorded with Rex Stewart, Coleman Hawkins, Django Reinhardt, Stephane Grappelli, Don Byas, Thelonious Monk, Lester Young, Dexter Gordon, Stan Getz, Bud Powell, Kenny Clarke, Zoot Sims, Dizzy Gillespie, Chet Baker and numerous others.

Michelot was a member of the Jacques Loussier Trio, known for the Play Bach album series. In 1957 he recorded the landmark album Afternoon In Paris with John Lewis and Sacha Distel Septet. As a leader he recorded Round About A Bass with an orchestra on the Uni Jazz France label.

Together with Miles Davis, he was responsible for the critically acclaimed soundtrack of Louis Malle’s film Ascenseur pour l’echafaud and also appeared as an unnamed bass player in the movie Round Midnight.

In later life, bebop and hard bop double bassist Pierre Michelot suffered from Alzheimer’s disease and passed away on July 3, 2005.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Bobby Broom was born Robert Broom Jr. on January 18, 1961 in New York City and began studying the guitar at age 12, taking lessons in the American Folk music style. A year later, he studied with jazz guitarist Jimmy Carter in Harlem where he took weekly lessons for the next two years.

His interest in jazz began in earnest at age 15 and as a result he began his research, study and practice of the jazz art. Broom attended the Laguardia High School of Performing Arts where he played in the jazz ensemble. He received an award for Outstanding Jazz Improvisation during his senior year.

Broom began his career while still in high school, performing at New York clubs with Charlie Parker’s pianists, Al Haig and Walter Bishop Jr. By 1977 he was playing with Sonny Rollins and Donald Byrd at Carnegie Hall. He went to Berklee School of Music in 1978, then returned to New York the next year in order to pursue his career while attending Long Island University.

 At this time he began working in New York as guitarist for Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers, Dave Grusin, Hugh Masekela and Tom Browne and landed his own recording contract with GRP Records. He earned three DownBeat Critics Poll nods from 2012 to 2014 as one of the world’s foremost jazz guitarists.

He has performed with Max Roach, Stanley Turrentine, Kenny Garrett, Miles Davis, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Charles Earland, Dr. ohn, Ron Carter, Dianne Reeves, Eon Blake, Eric Alexander, Ron Carter and Ramsey Lewis among others. He has recorded as a leader with The Deep Blue Organ Trio, The Bobby Broom Organi-Sation and his trio with Kobie Watkins and Makaya McCraven..

In the mid 1980s Broom relocated and as an educator, Broom began his work in 1982 for Jackie McLean, Director of African American Music at Studies for the Hartt School of Music at the University of Hartford. Over the years he has also been a lecturer/instructor at the American Conservatory of Music, Chicago Musical Colege-Roosevelt University, DePaul University and North Park University. He currently instructs and coaches Chicago area high school students for the Ravinia Festival Organization’s community outreach — Jazz Scholar Program, as well as the Thelonious Monk Institute.

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