Brian Torff

Brian Quade Torff ( born March 16, 1954 in Chicago, Illinois ) is an American bassist of modern jazz, which also regularly composes for orchestras such as the Boston Pops, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.

Life and work

Torff studied the double bass at both the Manhattan School of Music and the Berklee College of Music. In 1974 he accompanied Cleo Laine and then from 1975 Erroll Garner. He also took a duo album with Mary Lou Williams ( Live at the Cookery ). With Stéphane Grappelli, he was from 1976 several times on worldwide tours. In the late 1970s he worked in a trio with Marian McPartland and Jake Hanna. Between 1979 and 1982 he formed a duo with George Shearing. He also worked with Hank Jones, Clark Terry, James Moody, Jimmy Cobb and Red Rodney. Since 1995, he led the group Union, which included Paul Laurence Hobgood and Wertico, and was also traveling with Dave Samuels, John Etheridge and Larry Coryell. He is also heard on recordings by such diverse musicians such as Sonny Stitt, Dave Amram, Roy Kral, Oliver Nelson, Carrie Smith, Tony Bennett, Henry Mancini, Milt Hinton or Toots Thielemans.

Torff is responsible as a high school teacher at Fairfield University for their jazz program and directs the Django Reinhardt New York Festival. He also belonged to the Advisory Board of the National Endowment for the Arts and has also appeared as a jazz writer.

Disco Graphical Notes

• George Shearing Blues & Jazz Alley (1979 )
• George Shearing On a Clear Day (1980 )
• Manhattan Hoe Down (1984 )
• Working on a bassline (1997, with Joe Beck and Grisha Alexiev )
• State of the Union (1998)
• Life in East Bumblepuck (2006)

Lexigraphic entries

• Martin Kunzler, Jazz Encyclopedia Vol 2 Reinbek 2002; ISBN 3-499-16513-9