Around 1990, I had the pleasure of performing with a wonderful horn line as part of Raymond Cajuste’s Bossa Comba. It seemed that the whole band made it to the concert in Miami, except the trombonist-who may have been ill at the time. I was very fortunate to have been asked to fill in. I was even more surprised when I found that they were playing on the South Side of Chicago the following week, just before Christmas, and that I would be home in Illinois to perform with them a second time. The horn section I recall was one trumpet, or two and two saxophones plus myself.
The closest I had lived to Chicago was a half block North of Howard Street , in Evanston. The South Side was the subject of the imagination for me and a mixture of impressions I had garnered from Jim Croce Songs, The University of Chicago and tales of Elliot Ness, and on one cold winter night, rhe tale of a young trombonist newly transplanted to Miami. I remember being very cold and shivering without a sweater. Without hesitation, the big burly Haitian trumpet player literally loaned me the sweater of his back! (I was rather thin in those days!). I had just acquired a diesel van, and had to take every opportunity to start it up on our breaks, lest I become stranded at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Headquarters on the South Side a day or two before Christmas.
I recall beautiful music and even more beautiful people. Since then, I felt that of all the people I have met in my lifetime, those from Haiti were the nicest. I also recalled the moment, about an hour or so into the gig, it suddenly occurred to me that I might be the only blonde for miles around-certainly at the concert! And then we just played some more and more. I was sorry to discover that Monsieur Cajuste passed away last year, and am grateful to have performed with him and his wonderful band.
c. 2024 David William Brubeck All Rights Reserved.
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Did a Japanese pre-print call for a suspension of all mRNA “vaccines” as concern that transfusions of “vaccinated” blood may have adverse affects on the un-vaccinated?!
Is “Deadly Quiet”, a micro-documentary on Excess Deaths from the view a British funeral director?
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It’s true! We literally had THE most fun when Giulia was on the job! Often times, it did not even seem like work. We loved all of her stories about growing up near Vienna , Austria “The City of Musicians” EXCEPT ONE: The creature that came out to torment Austrians on Nikolaus-KRAMPUS! SCARY!
Giulia possess such a warm sound and is able to do so much with it-AMAZING! We wish her the best!
OUR ADVICE: Have a great time while you can; she might not be there too long! (And whatever you do, do NOT ask about Krampus!)
The Blues has drawn near universal acclaim as one of the most outstanding and influential art forms of the twentieth century and its origins are the exclusive product of Black American culture. Any singer, instrumentalist or listener who would step one toe outside of classical music, would likely encounter the Blues or one of its offspring.
Few, seem to recognize the significant intellectual accomplishments of the this incredible and indelible art from. Here are but a few:
The intellectual achievement of the American Blacks created a music which regularly tonicized the dominant seventh chord-an achievement beyond the Europeans!
With the blues scale, Black American culture and The Blues also produced a more interesting, sophisticated and popular alternative to the diatonic harmony of Major and minor scales than the leaders of European musical culture of the time-the French and their whole-tone scale.
The limited improvisation of the Blues found between sparse secular lyrics served as the incubator of improvisation which led to Jazz and became one of the principal genres of Jazz.
The stunning originality of the Blues concept of a backbeat, which emphasis on beats TWO and FOUR, was a stark contrast to both the African and European conception of emphasizing beat ONE.
The addition of the musical personality of the singer through more than tone, phrasing and technique of European Classical Music created a precedence which changed to interpretation of music around the globe.
The Blues takes a little bit more than “just feelin’ it”, but that would not be a bad place to start! How often, you ask?
c. David William Brubeck 2024. All Rights Reserved
Where can you go to get it? Hmm, Chicago, Memphis or maybe even…
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Duo Brubeck, featuring Mitch Farber, performing Stereogram No. 6, (composed by David Brubeck),dedicated to Master Musician and trombonist Louis Satterfield of Earth Wind and Fire.
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Well, solo album, anyway. It is difficult to exclude all the great recordings with Frank Sinatra, Stan Kenton and his orchestra, Nelso riddle or many other recordings. We sincerely hope that you enjoy this transcription that has been re-imagined. Like vocalists Frank Sinatra and Billie Holiday, many of George Robert’s solos center around the melodic material, or respond to it in a tasteful and seemingly unhurried way-no matter how difficult his part may have been!
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If there were a “Groove Genie” in a bottle, anyone who knew Mitch Farber would toss it back in the ocean; not needed here, thank you!
“Summertime”
Mitch doesn’t just groove at the grooviest level, he adds melodic interest to the groove, then layers in contrasting ideas and of course, alternates grooves within a tune.
“You Are My Sunshine”
“I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart” on Top of “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore”
Mitch Farber grooves with rhythmic chords, he grooves with single line riffs, he grooves with percussive sounds on the guitar, with different patches, with two voice and three voice and … voice riffs; he grooves with bass lines; heck, even the electric cord to the amp grooves when Mitch is playing! (Where is Dr. Seuss, when you need him?)
Mitch also LISTENS, with HUGE ears, and ENJOYS the music as he makes it. Mitch Farber is most certainly a divinely appointed gift from God. Here are a few tunes with Mitch, that are not part of concerts that he alternated tunes or sets with Tom Lippincott, which will be posted later, and include two more sets worth of music with Mitch, and two with Tom.
“Its Bitsy Spider”
“Go Tell Aunt Rhosy”
“Stereogram No. 6”
You Blew It! Your SUNSHINE is Gone! This is what it sounds like,,,,
Performing live together for the University of Miami Jazz Hour on WDNA 88.9 was a highlight for sure.
“Sea Journey”
c. 2024 David William Brubeck. All Rights Reserved.
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The trombone section in the Count Basie Band. The Chicago Symphony low brass section, especially with with Frank Crisafulli and Arnold Jacobs. And Los Angeles studio musicians! Those are probably the best trombone sections I have heard on recordings.
Studio musicians from other towns have related stories of how they could not get a track recorded correctly after many hours, only to have the producer fly to LA and have it done first or second take. Were the LA studio cats really more expensive if they could do it in 1/10th the time?
I am not sure what Dr. Charles Campbell had in mind when he assembled an especially good crop of his trombone students and recent alumni from the University of Miami at the Blue Smoke Studios of Miami Dade College. I cannot even remember the arranger. My wonderful dad, Jim, had the idea of repeating each of the very short recordings for greater effect, and some recordings are incomplete. It was just a phone call one afternoon and showing up to play whatever they put in front of me. I played the bottom part on my single-valve Earl Williams model 10 Bass Trombone that was left to me by my friend Fred Carter after he passed away too soon and too young.
(If a single an open symphonic tenor earl William is a model 8, and it becomes a model 9 with the addition of a valve, wouldn’t that make a double-valve Earl Williams Bass Trombone a model Eleven? Too late; the bell has been stamped!)
I am not sure what the other guys were thinking, but I was thinking of George Roberts, Dick Nash, Tommy Pederson and the LA studio trombonists-no one better in the world! Enjoy!
ALBUM V Trombone Sextet!
01 “Jingle Bells”
02 “Silent Night”
03 “I’ll Be Home for Christmas”
04 “It Came Upon. Midnight Clear”
05 “Deck The Halls”
06 “Oh, Holy Night-Excerpt”
07 “Joy To the World”
08 “O’ Come, All Ye Faithful”
09 “We Three Kings”
10 “God Rest ye Merry Gentlemen, Excerpt”
Maybe Dr. Charles Campbell, John Kricker, Domingo Pagliuca, Jason Pyle and Steve Saunders on Trombones with David Brubeck, Bass Trombone.
c. 2024 David William Brubeck All Rights Reserved
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The Knight Center, in historic Miami, is the just a stones’ throw from the Intracoastal waterway, the bridge to Watson Island , South Beach and the Atlantic Ocean beyond. From “Stiltsville” to the Miami Marine Stadium, South Florida is all about the beaches and waves that connect us to the world.
Originally a hit for the Carpenters, this song is a frightening appraisal of life on the road and more particularly, the stage. But what happens when the stage becomes the most intimate audience of one? Karen Carpenter was a wonderful drummer and superb vocalist. Part of an exclusive list of musicians who were nearly equally accomplished as both instrumentalists and vocalists. Whether Louis Armstrong to Jack Teagarden, Prince to Paul McCartney, Terry Kath to Peter Cetera, Shirley Horne to Buddy Guy, Jimi Hendrix to Nat King Cole, or Trombone Shorty-Ray Charles tops the list.
Swing is perhaps the dominant rhythmic expression of the twentieth century. It is a rhythm drawn from musics of the Blues, Classical, Ragtime, Minstrel and the Caribbean. As Florida welcomes and nurtures flora and fauna from almost every region, so does swing invite any rhythm to its court, as the king rhythm of all. Ray brings the Swing!
In ancient mythology Apollo, the Greek God of Music, was surrounded by the Muses, drawing inspiration from them and the arts they had mastered. Who knows where the inspiration for a song begins for mortals? A rhythm that you cannot shake, a clever phrase or idea that could serve as a hook, an ear worm of melody that begs development, or even a person. For Hoagy Carmichael, that person was his sister, Georgia.
Epicureanism? Hedonism? Materialism? Once you have touched, and tasted, drank and held, beheld and owned all the stuff of your hearts desire, yet the longing in your heart persists still, what then?
Hank Williams was the inventor of Country music, as stark, simple and true mode of expression. considered a parallel mode used often by white rural Americans early on as was the Blues was for rural American blacks. Where the Blues groaned and wailed, with genius simplicity and provided the essential space that allowed the refinement of soloing skills in short one bar bursts, Country music told a story, garnering no less a fan than BeBop legend Charlie Parker. Both of these sincere elements helped to develop the basis for improvisation in Jazz.
Unrequited love? Not quite! It has inspired art enough!
What about love that is won and lost? Abandoned, discarded or misplaced? Moved on or upon?
The difference is clear: one lives only in the ethers of imagination, the other in a palpable memory that resonates within the confines of touch and taste and smell.
Miami Lighthouse for the Blind has been a beautiful supporter of the arts and a vital charity for many. They may be contacted for a donations or to volunteer at miamilighthouse.org
If you are going to compose just one musical, you could do a lot worse than “The Music Man”, by Meredith Wilson. A tour de force of melody and Americana, the song that seemed to find the most success on the charts was “‘Til There Was You”, although we are partial to “76 Trombone”-not sure why!
This is a soulful, yet clever and light blues. The Blues can be both mournful and cheerfully cathartic. Sign us up for the second with this tune!
The depths beyond imagining…
Yes, and pretty good saxophone playing, too! What an advantage this must have been to Mr. Charles as the leader of a big band for so many years. Do you think it was the playing of the great Hank Crawford who inspired Mr. Charles to take up the saxophone?
No one. Please read it again. No one, can traverse ALL the numerous styles from Swing, to R & B, to Country to Rock and Roll ‘n’ beyond as well and authentically as the great Ray Charles. He made each style his own and America’s. We are blessed to have lived during his career or after it and to have heard one of the most startlingly original artists of all time.
America is beautiful yet, and a great blessing.
ALbum VI
It is still somewhat difficult to find great Jazz and Commercial Music Concerts that are friendly to some expressive moments for the bass trombone and feature writing that allows it to soar with section trombones and shouting brass, especially live! Dozens of concerts I shared with artists from Stevie Wonder to Steve Lawrence were unrecorded-fortunately this one was captured! This is what I would have been looking to listen to when I was a boy…Album VI Bass Bone Sideman!
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