Buddy Defranco

小

爵士单簧管之父巴迪·德弗兰寇Buddy DeFranco原名Boniface Ferdinand Leonrd DeFranco，出生于纽泽西州Camden，后举家迁居费城。他的父亲是钢琴调音师，多少影响了Buddy DeFranco的音乐喜好。十二岁时，Buddy DeFranco开始学单簧管，就读於费城培育音乐人才的Mastbaum中学。原来立志成为古典乐手的他，由于听到了Benny Goodman的精彩演奏，人生转了一个弯，从此 以演奏爵士乐为职志。Buddy DeFranco早年参与过Gene Krupa、Charlie Barnet、Tommy Dorsey等大乐团，当时他就已经是乐团中的明星级好手，负责单簧管独奏。然而，也就在此时，咆勃乐正悄悄的带来另一波音乐概念的革新，即使是演奏跳舞音乐的大乐团，也有不少年轻的爵士乐手对咆勃乐跃跃欲试。

Buddy DeFranco is one of the great clarinetists of all time and, until the rise of Eddie Daniels, he was indisputably the top clarinetist to emerge since 1940. It was DeFrancos misfortune to be the best on an instrument that after the swing era dropped drastically in popularity and, unlike Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw, he has never been a household name for the general public.

When he was 14 DeFranco won an amateur swing contest sponsored by Tommy Dorsey. After working with the big bands of Gene Krupa (1941-42) and Charlie Barnet (1943-44), he was with TD on and off during 1944-48. DeFranco, other than spending part of 1950 with Count Basies septet, was mostly a bandleader from then on. Among the few clarinetists to transfer the language of Charlie Parker onto his instrument, DeFranco has won a countless number of polls and appeared with the Metronome All-Stars in the late 40s. He recorded frequently in the 1950s (among his sidmeen were Art Blakey, Kenny Drew and Sonny Clark) and participated in some of Norman Granzs Verve jam session. During 1960-63 DeFranco led a quartet that also featured the accordion of Tommy Gumina and he recorded an album with Art Blakeys Jazz Messengers on which he played bass clarinet. However work was difficult to find in the 1960s, leading DeFranco to accept the assignment of leading the Glenn Miller ghost band (1966-74). He has found more artistic success co-leading a quintet with Terry Gibbs off and on since the early 80s and has recorded through the decades for many labels.