Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Tullio Mobiglia was born in Carezzano, Italy on April 12, 1911. Passionate about music, he graduated in violin at the Niccolò Paganini Conservatory in Genoa, Italy. In 1934 he began playing in orchestras on ships, often traveling to the United States where he was able to approach jazz, becoming friends with some musicians such as Coleman Hawkins.

He quickly emerged as the best Italian saxophonist of the period, and was called to play in the Mirador Orchestra. By 1940 Tullio was to Berlin, Germany achieving great success, to the point of being hired for a certain period in Heinz. Wehner Orchestra. 1941 saw him forming his first band of Italian musicians, with whom he published the first 78 rpm recordings.

During his career he had the opportunity to play with Django Reinhardt in another Berlin club, the Femina Bar. Due to the ban on playing American music he was only allowed to play European music, however, many pieces are written by Mobiglia himself.

Mobiglia returned to Italy in 1943 and two years later reformed his orchestra with other musicians, obtaining a contract with Columbia Records, where he recorded several 78s. In the following years he recorded with Telefunken, Cetra and Durium, resuming the playing of his first instrument, the violin. By 1967 he was teaching violin at the Jan Sibelius Conservatory of Helsinki, Finland to teach the violin, a position he held until the 1980s, while continuing to perform in the Finnish capital where he spent the last few years of his life. Saxophonist and bandleader Tullio Mobiglia passed away on July 24, 1991 at the age of 80 in Helsinki, Finland.

ROBYN B. NASH

More Posts: ,,,,,