Jul 9, 2024 11:35 AM
Trumpeter, Educator Jim Rotondi Dies at 61
Jim Rotondi, a renowned hard-bop trumpeter, composer and educator, died suddenly on July 7 at a hospital in France. He…
Jeff ‘Tain’ Watts will release Watts, his fifth album as bandleader, on his own Dark Key Music label on Feb. 3, 2009. The album features a lineup of Branford Marsalis, Terence Blanchard and Christian McBride.
Along with the leader’s last name, the album’s title references the CD cover’s image of the Watts Towers, a symbol of the mid-‘60s Los Angeles race riots, and hometown of Charles Mingus.
“I started to write things for more than one lead voice and that kind of led me into doing a predominantly piano-less record,” Watts said. “I wanted to hear these musicians in that setting, with more room to roam. I was inspired by [the record] Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus, that piano-less quartet. The more research I did, I just liked where he was coming from. I grew up during the civil rights movement. I remember the riots in Pittsburgh, in Watts, and around the country when I wasn’t even listening to jazz. I heard that feeling through the music of Curtis Mayfield, James Brown, Hendrix and Sly Stone. Mingus’ pieces represented the jazz expression of a vibration that was going on in art, and the United States, in general.”
More info: tainish.com
Jim Rotondi was acclaimed for his wide, round trumpet tone, remarkable virtuosity and assured swing.
Jul 9, 2024 11:35 AM
Jim Rotondi, a renowned hard-bop trumpeter, composer and educator, died suddenly on July 7 at a hospital in France. He…
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