File - TONY GEZZI TEACHING PORTFOLIO

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t's lIal- 1970 and Eastman Theater in Rochester. Nes'York is crammed to capacity with
people arvaiting the start of Chuck Mangione's
premier orchestral concert, Friends and Love. On the
bill that night rvas an extended trumpet feature
Mangrone origrnally wrote for Lew Soloffs senior recital entitled Feel of a Vision. Lew was on the road
urth Blood, Sweat & Tears, so Chuck called on Marvin
Stamm to fill in for the performance. Imagine standing in flont of a 90-piece orchestra, facing 3,000 people,
and after a short unison introduction you have to nail
an entrance of fourth line D up to high E-flat, cold.
\Iarv did just that and continued to wail on this nineminute work that uses every style one can string
together for trumpet. That is the image of Marvin
Stamm that stands out in my mind. Now a veteran of
20 1-ears in New York studios with commercial credits too numerous to mention, it is impossible to log
the hours of jingles, films, shorn's, and albums his
horn has graced. For the last 10 )lears, he's been back
on the road pursuing the music he loves - jazz. Recently, Marvin shared a few hours u'ith me to talk
about his career and approach to trumpet playing.
36 ITG Journal I
September, 1998
JLB: Marvin, I usually try to get the technical,
trumpet-head questions out of the way frrst, so let's
start with your equipment. What trumpet and mouthpiece are you playing now?
MS: I'm playing my own design, a French Besson,
which is owned by Boosey & Hawkes. My trumpet
happens to be a tunable bell model. I've been playing
on tunable bell trumpets for 20 odd years now. Basically it is a medium large horn more toward the
larger size. The mouthpiece is a John Stork Vacchiano
series. I played a 7D for a while, but recently switched
to the 7D+. I liked the 7 rim but felt I needed to have
a little more room inside the mouthpiece, so I moved
to the slightly larger cup. I use his "C" backbore with
a 26 hole rather than the standard 27.I've been playing John's equipment for almost 12 years now and
like his mouthpieces very much. John and PhyIIis
Stork are just greatl
JLB: How long have you been playing this combination?
MS: This mouthpiece for only about three months;
before that I played the 7D for about a year. I seem to
get into a little larger equipment every year or so.
JLB:
I
assume
this setup gets the results
you
want in sound quality.
MS: Yes. The most important thing about playing
is sound and fluidity. First of all, you're identifred by
the sound that you play. I know what I'm listening
for, and I know what I want to hear. The fluidity is
the ability to execute the ideas that you musically
hear in your mind. This equipment helps me achieve
that goal.
JLB: How about before the Besson, can you give a
thumbnail sketch of your horn history?
MS: I've been associated with three different companies which is not unusual but one thing they all
have in common is my association with Jack Faas.
Jack is now the president of Boosey & Hawkes, N.A.
He has always been supportive of music education
and realizes the importance of the trumpet in any
instrunent line as being one of the stalwart instruments.
JLB: In my interview with CIay Jenkins, he raved
about the horn you gave him.
MS: There w-ere two prototypes of my design made
in the beginning. ttfter working on these two horns, I
started plaling one and liked it very much. It is the
horn I play norv. Clay called me, and said he was very
interested in one of my horns and asked what he
could do about getting one. I said there would be one
at his door the next morning. I overnighted it to him,
and he called the next day to say he loved it. I told
him it was his. Incidentally, I was in Houston in May
of '97 performing a mass, written by a friend of mine,
Joe LoCascio, for solo trumpet, string orchestra, keyboard, and a 120-voice chorus. Clay happened to be
playrng in a club in town, so I went to sit in with him.
At one point, I said to him, "Let me try that horn of
yours." After the set , I said, "Why did I ever let you
have this horn?" He is such a creative player and
sounds great on it!
JLB: TeII us a little about your upbringing. Was
there music in your family?
MS: There wasn't any history that I know about.
My father took violin lessons when he was a kid, but
he got mad at the teacher and hit him with the violin.
That was the end of his music career. I grew up in
Memphis and had a public school education. I played
in the band because the choices were chorus, art, or
band. At that time of my life, I was a shy kid, and I
just wanted a place to hide. I figured the bigger the
Broup, the easier it would be to hide. My voice had
just changed from a beautiful soprano to this froglike voice, so I was ashamed to go into the chorus. I
ean't draw at all, so the choice was easy.
Almost immediately, I was taken by this thing
called the trumpet. I had a junior high band director
named Jack Foster who was a very good trumpet
player and also one of these gu1's who knew how to
keep your interest. In those days, junior high was
7th, 8th, and 9th grades; and I experienced a lot of
growth on the horn during that period. I also had a
wonderful high school band director, A.E. Mclain,
who inspired me. "Mr. Mac," as we used to call him,
was known all over the South for his honesty and
inspiration. Concurrently, I was taking private lessons with Perry Wilson who's still in Memphis. Perry
studied at the New England Conservatory and was
one of the original members of Herb Pomeroy's band
in Boston. He plays violin, piano, and trumpet and is
a fine arranger too. We would do about a two-and-ahalf hour lesson. We'd start with 45 minutes of Arban,
St. Jacome, and Schlossberg, then play Amsden duets for another 45 minutes, then go down to the piano
room where he'd play (chord) changes, teaching me
many of the Charlie Parker andDizzy Gillespie tunes.
I must say that all three of these men were very
special. I've remarked before that with a1l of the
great things I learned at North Texas and every'thing
that happened through my formative years, had I
only had my public school education, and then gone
with Stan (Kenton) and Woody (Herman), there was
a lot I would have been able to skip because of those
teachers. I may not have been as musically ready,
but the foundation was there, and, because of my
own great desire, I would have continued to go on to
reach the same goals because these people started
me in the right direction. I don't mean to down play
the role of North Texas, John Haynie, or Carmine
Caruso, all of whom played an important and mean
Marvin Stamm & Allen Vizzutti
September, 1998
I ITG Journal 37
E.B. S. B. M.
O.
"E.B.S.B.M.O." from Bop Boy
Mar"vin Stamm Quartet featuring special guest
Bob Mintzer
Music Masters 07612-65065-2
Recorded on flegelhorn at Clinton Studios, New
York City, January 5 & 6, 1990
Form:A (8 bars), A, B (14 bars),
A (with 4 bar extension), C (Interlude, 8 bars)
Range: low g-sharp to d"'
This solo is a supreme example of the importance ofbeing able to listen and react to a rhythm
section. Unfortunately, that is impossible to no-
tatel Many of the rhythmic and melodic ideas
used throughout the solo are an outgrowth of
masterful rhythm section input. Pianist Phil
Markowitz, Bassist Lincoln Goines, and Drummer Terry Clarke, all seem to have developed a
sincere attachment to Stamm's playing and
present a sensitivity that borders on telepathy.
Stamm reacts accordingly, producing an incredibly elastic rhythmic feel that makes this solo a
ingful role in my career, but my public school music
education was so thorough and directed in the right
way that I could have succeeded with just that.
JLB: What horn were you playing in high school?
MS: A King Super 20. When I entered high school,
my trumpet teacher told my dad that I needed a better
horn; I guess I started on an old Buescher or something, probably a student model. I had seen the ads for
the Super 20 because Harry James was playing it.
JLB: What years \ rere those?
MS: That was high school, 1955-57 . Brv the ri ay'. I
think the lessons were $6.00.
JLB: Big money. So your family encouraged rather
than discouraged you?
MS: Yes, but they really didn't knorv hor'. They
were old-fashioned country people from a small toinn
in Tennessee. My dad moved to Memphis and opened
up a men's shop during the Depression. He had a
high school education but his exposure to the arts
was nil. He figured this young man is happy doing
what he's doing, so let him go on with it because I
know he's going to come back and go into the business with me. He felt that way up until I was about
35 (laughter all around). Let me tell you what happened. My mom and dad took a little vacation to
Florida and went dancing one evening. When the
band finished playing and was taking an intermission, he went up to leader and complimented him.
The leader asked if he was a musician, and my father
said, "No, but my son is a musician in New York." He
asked my father what his son's name was, and my
38 ITG Journal I
September, 1998
very tasteful and joyous excursion. His playing of
the head on this tune also represents a great
model for interpreting tunes that have what
trIar"vin describes as a "floating feel."
Particular note should be made to page 3 of
the solo u'here he plays on the "offbeat" sixteenth
note in double time figures and also places four
eighth notes over three to create great intensity
to close out the so1o. This solo provides a great
example of rvhat rh;'thmic variety and creativity
can do to generate momentum in a solo that is
otheru'ise void of typical trumpet devices like the
use of the extreme upper register. Stamm's command of rh1'thm and harmonic awareness blended
with his virtuoso technique only add to the incredible warmth and passion with which he plays.
Please take my recommendation to pick up this
recording as well as Mystery Man.
Thanks to Marvin for adding his thoughts to
the final edition of the transcription!
- Dr. Michael Caldwell
father told him he wouldn't know me. After much
coaxing, my father finally told him my name, and the
leader replied, "That's your son?!" When the man
said that, that's when my father realized I wasn't
coming back. I had already been in New York City for
10 years, successful in a career doing studio work,
playing with Thad Jones and Mel Lewis, and playing
all the other stuff.
E.B.S.B.M.O.
Bop Boy (1991)
Flugelhorn
Composed by Kenny Wheeler
Transcribed by Michael Caldwell
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September, 1998
I ITG Journal 39
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September, 1998
I ITG Journal 4t
for me about that institution. The frrst is John Haymie.
He was professor of trumpet there for almost 40 years.
JLB: \\hat started vour interest tn jazz?
MS: N{y- brother had an extensive record collection, and that's the reason I really took up the trumpet and became involved in jazz. After practicing my
school and classical stuff, I would sit down with his
record collection for hours and transcribe solos, not to
paper, but from the record through my ears to the
horn. That's the rvay all the guys I knor'v of iearned
how to play jazz.
JLB: What trumpet players l\-ere ),:ou listening to
then?
MS: Shorty Rogers, Chet Baker. Dlzzv, a little
Miles, but I really got into him later rn college. lI1'
brother also had the Jazz at the Philharmonic records
with Howard McGee and Roy Eldridge. Wou'l I rea1ly
wasn't aware of Louis Armstrong until college. In
Memphis, there really wasn't a record store where
you could buy a lot of jazz labels like Prestige or
Fantasy; those were exotic. Unfortunately, because
of segregation at that time, I wasn't even aware of
the wealth of black musicians in Memphis; legends
Iike Harold Mabern, Jamil Nasser, George Coleman,
Garnett Brown, Frank Strozier, or Booker Little, one
of the greats of the trumpet. I didn't even know they
were there.
JLB: After high school, you went to North Texas.
Tell us about your college experience.
MS: I was fortunate to go right into Gene Hall's
band. The number one band at that time was called
the Trvo O'Clock Band. There were only tn'o bands in
those 1'ears, the Two O'Clock and Three O'Clock
Bands. There are three things that really stand out
12 ITG Journal ' Septentber.
1998
He was a wonderful teacher and fine person, and his
influence on me meant a great deal to my career. We
remain very close friends today. The second is the
fact that the student body was made up of players
from all over the country, and that enabled me to
g'ork rvith a diverse group of musicians. The third is
the exposure I got because of the prestige of the
."chool. In m1' junior year I had the opportunity to
pla1- for Stan Kenton. He asked me to join his band
that summer. but I told him my father would abso1utel1- kill me if I quit school. He said that he agreed
rrith that philosophl' and advised me to finish my
education, and then we'd talk. About two months
into m5" senior year, Stan called to say that Sam Noto
had to leave the band early and that there were three
weeks left on the tour. He asked if I could get permission to come out on the road to finish the tour for
him. At that time, with a few exceptions, I had all my
course work done, and all my professors agreed that I
should go and gave me my assignments ahead. I got
on the band bus carrying school books. Bobby Knight
and Dalton Smith used to kid the heck out of me. I
took over Sam Noto's jazz chair, and Bud Brisbois
was playing lead. I frnished out the tour, and Stan
announced that the band was taking some time off
and would re-form in April. He told me, "The day you
graduate, I want you on the band." I graduated, drove
my stuff to my parents'home the next day, then got on
a plane and joined the band in Trenton, New Jersey.
JLB: Any chop problems on the road?
MS: The playing on Stan's band was hard, and I
found I rvas irritating my lip every night because of
plaltng too far down onto the red or cherry of the
upper lip. Because the section on the band wasn't
terribll' strong at that time, whenever I wasn't playing a jazz part, Dalton would have me playing the
second parts. Every trumpet player knows that is the
hardest part to play because you are up in the upper
register, but never on top with all the support beneath you. Kinda like always being a bridesmaid, but
never a bride. So, between tours I talked to John
Haynie about it, and he suggested that I work on
moving the mouthpiece up a little bit more on the top
Iip, about a sixteenth of an inch, off the red area. It
was a change that took me a long time to adjust to,
but over time, I believe it saved my career.
JLB: What happened after your time with Stan?
MS: I got married right out of college and had a
child. Unfortunately, that marriage wasn't rvorking
out. So after the divorce was finalized, I mor-ed to
Reno, Nevada in January \964. Dave Barrv. mr- best
friend and a drummer rvho had been mv college 1'oc,1rmate, had moved his famil1- out there and toli :re
there rvere good things happening there - so 1r.,-el:. I
worked in the shou- bands for a year and a half, then,
in the fal1 of 1965. I rvent on the road n'ith WoodSr
Herman. \\4ren BiIi Chase called and invited me to
join the Herman band. he said he rranted to tell me
something before I came out. He said there n'ere
some gu]-s on the band ri-ho \r'ere concerned because
thel- heard I rvas prettl- tough to get along with on
Stan's band. \\:ith m1- marriage breaking up. I rvent
through some rough moments on Stan's band. Bill
said he had stuck his neck out for me because he
rvanted me on the band. and I assuled him that q-as
all in the past. Bill and I had a great a-.sociarion. and
the trumpet section - Bill. Pau1 Fontaine. Bill Brrne
u,ho had just joiled. and ^{-ler Rodrigez - vi-a-i rl-onderful. I stal-ed for about a l-ear unil J'Cv 1966. then u ent
back to \Iemphis for a ferr- months 'b'efore u:raJ'ing the
plunge into the \err York scene. Bill and I remained
foiends. and I believe I justified his faith in me. -\s for
gu1-s in the Kenton band. I believe thel- understood.
and the situation resolved itself rnth all the gu1-s that I
have had an1' association with since then. But it does
shog- you horv your behar,ior in one situation can affect
rvhat may happen in a future situation.
JLB: Any anecdotes from the road days that stand
out?
MS: Let me tell you my favorite Woody story.
Torrie Zito wrote a feature for me on Ray Noble's The
Very Thought of You. Woody played it one time in
Birmingham England. I remember that Ray Noble (a
band leader and also the composer of Cherokee) was
in the audience. It was a beautiful chart, but Woody
didn't play it again for the longest time. In 1966 we
went on a two-and-a-half month tour of Africa and
behind the Iron Curtain. One afternoon, bassist
Michael Moore, tenor player Frank Vicari, and I were
jamming in my room, just the three of us. Then
somebody walked in with a bottle of vodka, so we
were playing and drinking. Nobody had eaten, and,
by the time I got dressed for the gig, I was pretty
blotto. Of course, I made sure not to be an1'where
near Woody. He was one of those leaders that, if you
were not on it that night, his sixth sense kicked in,
and he would know it. So, the second tune he called
up was my feature on The Very Thought of You.
Needless to say, while not remembering much about
that performance, it was probably awful! He taught
me a great lesson that day: Never drink and play! A
g:'eat lesson learned!
JLB: Are your daughters musical?
MS: M1'tu'o daughters from my present marriage
tc, Nancl- are both musical, but they do it for fun. My
:,ldest. age 22. has a beautiful voice and my youngest,
age 19. plal-s the piano and is also a very good sculp:: r. 1I1- wife is an artist, so she comes by it naturally.
n -,'"-:.,id lor-e for them to go into the arts because I
:.e-:e-.'e ru=:c and art teach vou something about the
Ernie Royal & Marvin Stamm.
human side of being a person that nothing else does.
Besides creating a real sense of relationship to other
people, I can think of no life rvith greater rewards
than that of being an artist, even though it is one of
constantly "palntrg your dues." One thing that does
hurt me is when I see the competitive nature of some
musicians. For some trumpet players that keeps them
from being kind and considerate to their colleagues.
We really only have each other.
JLB: Did you have any trouble connecting in New
York when you first moved to town?
MS: The first day I was here, I went to a place I
knew musicians hung out called Jim'n Andy's. I got
there around three o'clock in the afternoon, and there
was hardly anyone in the place. So I sat at the bar
and ordered a cup ofcoffee and noticed a guy sitting
one stool away from me, a big, tall handsome guy. He
looked at me and said, "I don't think I know you." I
introduced mvself and told him I had just moved to
New York. He said, "Hi, my name is Ernie Royal."
From that day on, he always tried to put in a good
word for me. Ernie, Burt Collins, and Bernie Glow
were my three benefactors in New York. I've said
many times that my success was a result of the
support of the trumpet community.
JLB: What was your average day like during the
height of your studio days in New York.
MS: From 10:00 a.m. to noon I might do a commercial for Chevrolet, possibly a big band, then an hour
for lunch. From 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. might be a spot for
designer clothes written for piccolo trumpet and string
quartet. From 3:00 to 6:00 and 8:00 to 11:00 p.m.
might be an album with James Brown in the R&B
vein. The next day I might start with an album for
Thad and Mel's band. Once, I did a 10-hour session
for MCI written for solo trumpet, string orchestra,
and woodwinds. To sum it up, every day was a new
adventure.
September, 1998
I ITG Journal 43
JLB: Do you do a regular warm-up?
MS: Not really, John. I make sure I allow myself
ample time to get to the horn every day whether it be
for long practice sessions on nonperformance days or
abbreviated sessions on days when I have a rehearsal
or performance.
I have an extensive general practice routine that
is directed toward the classical side. I continually try
to expand its difficulty level in order to alu'ays challenge myself. My reason for a classical approach to
my practice is that I believe to be a creative jazz
musician, the instrument has to feel as much a part
of me as possible. I really don't lr,ant to think about
the instrument, just the music. For this to happen, I
must be able to produce the sound I q'ant to hear and
have the technique necessary to express the ideas I
want to put forth. For me, the best approach is to
work on all the fundamental things that I har.e been
working on since the beginning of my musiciil iife.
The only difference is that, through the years. I have
greatly extended my fundamental practice to allornme to gain a measure of mastery of the instrument.
That enables me to approach being the musician I
am striving to be. I do scales with different articulations, mostly single tonguing work, embouchure setting exercises, things I learned from Caruso, and
many of the technique-developing things I learned
from Perry Wilson and John Hayrrie such as Ernest
Williams, Arban, Charlier, Bozza, and etc. I practice
at least two hours a day, but if I'm on the road
performing every day, I may only do an hour or
whatever it takes to get me prepared for the performance.
JLB: What was your reason for going to Caruso,
did you have some chop problems?
MS: I went to him because I had developed a pivot
that was not helping me. Carmine, over a period of
time, helped me not to eliminate, but to work with
and synchronize the movements that take place at
the embouchure. There were other things he saw
that he could help me with that he never told me
about until much later. No lesson was ever less than
two hours, and it would always start with a dialogue
lasting about a half-hour. He encouraged you to talk
to him about things that may be troubling you and
would discuss them with you. It sometimes was like
being with wise guru, at other times iike a psychiatrist. You never walked out feeling bad about yourself; it was always the most positive of experiences.
He brought a lot of troubled players through some
rough times. He was a special human being in every
n'a1-. I truly loved him; all his students did!
JLB: When did you make the decision to leave
studio rvork and go back to playing j azz full time?
IIS: In 1987, I saw the handwriting on the wall. It
.r;a-. undeniable that the business was changing and
+1 ITG Journal ' September. 1998
I
t
there wasn't the amount of work we'd been experiencing. Also, I wasn't having fun anymore. We always had a good time in the studios, everybody had a
sense of humor, good people, a lot of communication,
a real comraderie. That started to change a lot, and I
decided to go back to the thing that was the real
reason I wanted to be a musician, jazz.In about two
years, I was weaned from the studios and back on the
road. Now I almost never work in New York, and I
don't miss it at all. I'm very huppy in what I do
because my whole focus is on music, not being a part
of a product that sells something. The music stands
on its own, and that, to me, is where the real value is.
A1so, I'm almost always playing with musicians who
are of a like mind.
JLB: What projects do you have coming up?
MS: I mentioned Joe LoCascio earlier; a wonderful
pianist and composer. We have a duo CD that I'll be
presenting soon. AIso, I'm going back into the studio to finish a duo CD I've begun with pianist/
composer Bill Mays. The thing I love about duo
playing is the intimacy of it all; it's very naked
l-ith no room for skating. I am also going to be
doing a quartet project in conjunction with drummer Ed Soph that will feature Bill Mays on piano,
Rufus Reid on bass, and Dave Liebman on saxophone. In late October, I'lI be going to Switzerland
to record the Rolf Liberman Concerto for Jazz Band
and Symphony Orchestra witln the George Gruntz
Concert Jazz Band. I'm very excited about all of
these projects. Of course, I will continue to tour the
six or seven months a year I'm on the road now. I'm
just playing jazz, and I iove itl
JLB: Marv, I want to thank you for this interview,
and we'll be sure to check out those new projects of
yours.
MS: Thank you John.
Marvin Stamm Selected Discography
As A Leader:
Bop Boy, Marvin Stamm, MusicMasters 65065
Mystery Man,Mawin Stamm, MusicMasters 65085
Maruin Stamm Quartet Liue at Just Jazz q.t the Ma.jestic Hotel, Max Productions (to be released FaIl
1998)
Mcrruirl StammlBob Stroup Quintet, Liue at the
Yardbird, MS: 85951116
As Featured Soloist:
Mays in Manhatton Bill Mays, Concord Records CCD4738
Brassmatazz, with the Brass Band of Battle Creek
Jump Shot, JohnAdams, Congruent Music
Editor's note: for more information about Man in
Stamm, go to: www.marvinstamm.com.