Art Farmer (1928-99)	Oct 8 99

Jazz trumpet legend Art Farmer died on October 4, 1999, at age 71 of heart failure. Farmer made over 100 recordings as a leader and over 200 as a sideman. His facility and emotional depth were remarkable on the trumpet, the flugelhorn, and a combination of both -- the "flumpet." The curiously named horn, specially developed for Farmer by master brass craftsman David Monette, is a beautiful sounding instrument with the luscious tone quality of the flugelhorn incorporated with the bright edge of the trumpet. "The natural feeling of playing this horn comes from really losing yourself in it--getting to the place where the song is second nature and you don't have to think about it." Art Farmer Art was born on August 21, 1928, in Council Bluffs, Iowa, into a musical family that included his twin brother, bassist Addison Farmer, who died in 1963. Art grew up in Phoenix, Arizona, where he studied piano and violin in grammar school. After being soldiered into playing the bugle for flag-raising ceremonies, Art was assigned to the sousaphone in the school marching band and soon after, he began playing the cornet. At age 15, he joined a dance band that played stock arrangements from the Count Basie, Duke Ellington, and Jimmie Lunceford bands. Art was completely enamored by the sound of a trumpet in jazz, along with the excitement of jam sessions, both of which he heard when the bands came through town. During the summer before their last year in high school, Art and Addison ventured west to Los Angeles and quickly became immersed in the thriving jazz scene around Central Avenue. With bandleader Johnny Otis, Art made his first trip to New York and stayed long enough to win a job in Jay McShann's band. After returning to Los Angeles, Farmer enjoyed learning from close associates Benny Carter, Gerald Wilson, and Dexter Gordon. By 1953, Art had settled in New York and was playing in the Lionel Hampton band, alongside Clifford Brown, Quincy Jones, and Gigi Gryce. Other musicians Art played with during the mid-50s included Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Thelonius Monk, Charlie Mingus, and Art Blakey. After playing in the quintets of Horace Silver, Gigi Gryce, and Gerry Mulligan, Farmer began mastering avant-garde experimentation with Teddy Charles, Teo Macero, and George Russell. Art earned a reputation for being able to play in any jazz style. Greater fame came in the brief flourishing of the Jazztet, the legendary sextet that Farmer founded with Benny Golson in 1959. In 1968, after being invited to join a radio orchestra in Vienna, Art immigrated to Austria. He lived there for almost three decades, while continuing to maintain a full schedule of concerts, club dates, clinics, and festivals throughout Europe, the United States, and Japan. In June 1994, Art was awarded The Austrian Gold Medal of Merit. A concert honoring his lifetime musical achievements was held at the Lincoln Center in August 1994. Among the musicians who participated were Ron Carter, Benny Golson, Jim Hall, Slide Hampton, Geoff Keezer, Wynton Marsalis, Gerry Mulligan, Lewis Nash, and Jerome Richardson. Please see:"The Meaning of Art" An Interview with Art Farmer by John LaBarbera, ITG Journal. December 1996 Source: B.H. Hopper Management, München; Burkhard Hopper, President

What's New | News & Events | Resources | Join ITG Contact ITG | About  ITG | How To Use This Site | Site Search © Copyright 1999 - International Trumpet Guild™ - all rights reserved