Bunny Berigan

Bunny Berigan, actually Rowland Bernard Berigan ( November 2, 1908 in Hilbert ( Wisconsin), † June 2, 1942 in New York City ) was one of the greatest jazz trumpeters of the swing era.

Life

Berigan was a musical prodigy who learned early violin and trumpet. After various engagements in local orchestras he applied the late 1920s in the orchestra of Hal Kemp, but there was initially rejected. Mid- 1930, a second application is successful. With Kemp Berigan made ​​his first recordings and participated in a tour of England. From 1931 he was also an increasingly sought-after studio musician and played in the bands of Fredrich, Freddy Martin and Ben Selvin.

From the end of 1932 and 1933 through Berigan was a member of the orchestra of Paul Whiteman, 1934 he played with Abe Lyman. The following year he participated in numerous recordings and radio shows as a guest well-known bands such as the Dorsey Brothers Orchestra and Glenn Miller. Furthermore Berigan also toured with the Big Band Benny Goodman. There was a commitment to Tommy Dorsey. In 1937 he took under his own name "I Can not Get Started", a legendary piece by Vernon Duke, which became his trademark.

He formed his own big band, which despite a number of good recordings for Brunswick, Vocalion, Victor and Decca no financial been successful, and he therefore had to disband in 1940 due to insolvency. Nevertheless, he succeeded - starting with Leo Robin " Ebb Tide" (1937 ) - to position a total of 13 hits on the Billboard charts; His last hit was "Turn on That Red Hot Heat ( Burn Your Blues Away ) " in August 1937. In his orchestra played a number of well-known musicians, including Georgie Auld, Dave Barbour, Joe Bushkin, Cozy Cole, Ray Conniff, Bud Freeman, Vido Musso, Buddy Rich, Edgar Sampson, Hymie Schertzer, Graham Forbes, George Wettling and Dave Tough. In April 1940 recordings yet emerged with singer Lee Wiley.

This was followed by another short engagement with Tommy Dorsey, from early March to the end of June 1940; yet he also appeared on a series of studio recordings of the young Frank Sinatra as a soloist in appearance.

Around this time made ​​themselves increasingly noticeable health problems that were primarily due to excessive alcohol consumption. Berigan hit with a small, headed by him, formation more bad than good by. In the spring of 1942, he was hospitalized with pneumonia in Pittsburgh hospital, where an advanced liver cirrhosis was stated. He ignored the advice of the doctors, both drinking and playing the trumpet quit and went back to New York, where he died on June 2 at the effects of major internal bleeding.

Importance

Bunny Berigan heard as Bix Beiderbecke, whose game he was influenced to the tragic figures of jazz who were an early death to legends. Berigan always called himself Louis Armstrong as his biggest role model, but he managed to develop an inherent characteristic of play. This is characterized by a very large range and virtuoso playing. Compared to other major jazz trumpeters Berigan was also a master of lyrical game in for the trumpet unusually low altitudes. As Bobby Hackett he is one of the pioneers of modern ballad playing a Miles Davis or Chet Baker.

Disco Graphical Notes

Swell

  • Leo Walker: The Big Band Almanac. Ward Ritchie Press, Pasadena. 1978
  • Biography in the big band library
  • Jazz trumpeter
  • American musician
  • Born in 1908
  • Died in 1942
  • Man
Brunswick Records Vocalion Records Victor Talking Machine Company Decca Records Mosaic (disambiguation) Adrian Rollini Eddie Miller (jazz saxophonist) Integrated Authority File
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