Thanks to Rifftides readers Frank Roellinger and Svetlana Ilyicheva for alerting us that last Thursday, Geneva honored LaFaro on his 78th birthday by proclaiming April 3rd its first annual Scott LaFaro Day. Those years of self-discovery can be challenging at times and those moments found their perfect expression in the Village Vanguard SessionsI listened to that music for so many hours that it became my constant silent companion and a beacon of hope.. By City News Service. It originally appeared as a solo piano piece on Evans' debut album, New Jazz Conceptions. LaFaro-Fernandez: My father passed away (from a heart attack) in 1957. There is also a street off of Seneca Street, just across from the Smith Opera House, that has been renamed Scott LaFaro Way. When we were in junior high school, Godfrey Brown, the head of the high school music department, would come there to recruit for positions they needed to fill in the band and orchestra. (, This page was last edited on 15 February 2023, at 23:36. Nearly six decades later, Helene LaFaro-Fernandez continues to keep her older brothers flame alive. All that listening to the trio had another effect on me. He played a lot of top, cymbals, and Scotty wanted more drums, says Kuhn. How did that happen? The Scott La Faro book was wonderful. To top it off, the old cars didn't have self-sealing gas tanks and as in the case of LaFaro's accident, if they ruptured, frequently resulted in fire. Evans and Dolphy dont feature on a couple tunes, while LaFaro is the constant. Scott died instantly and the world lost a talented andinnovative musical voice. Press J to jump to the feed. The great bassist is best known for his work with the Bill Evans Trio between 1959 and '61, and for the tragic car accident that claimed his life on July 6, 1961, two weeks after the trio's . Q: So if you were all living in California, how was it that your brother was near Geneva when he died? Joe LaBarbera, who drummed in the trio with Evans and Johnson, says, Bill said regarding Scott and the music, that Scott hated it when it remained the same. After Scotty played at the Newport Jazz Festival with Stan Getz (July 1961), he went to Geneva to try to convince the people who had been renting our house to buy it. [10] Obsessively he played "I Loves You Porgy", a song that had become synonymous with him and LaFaro. In 2007, 46 years later, Roy introduced Helene to the great bassist Christian McBride. The two albums released by Riverside Records from that fabled performance,Sunday at the Village VanguardandWaltz for Debby, have long stood as his epitaph. LaFaro-Fernandez: Dad (Joe LaFaro) never forced us to play music. It was released in 1962. Evans was an articulate interweaver of a pianist, a melodic speaker, a filigree lord rather than a rhythm king. LaFaro-Fernandez: On Sundays our family would go to church, then go to the movies in the afternoon. Ornette Coleman was another musician who appeared on the Jazz Abstractions datebut as with Dolphy and Evans, on just half the recordand I often imagine the conversations he might have had with LaFaro during breaks and between takes about what Coleman had in mind for the next day. She writes, What he said not only had an impact on me, but seemed to sum up much of what I had been hearing as I talked to musicians. The 25-year old Scott LaFaro's death in a car accident shortly after was a major shock to the jazz world. [5] He left that organization to work in Los Angeles. Three of the tunes from their setBaubles, Bangles and Beads; Where Do You Go; and Airegin were released on CD in 1994. The texture, however, is the back of the handthats the form of caress, rather than the rough-skinned palm. Musician. Put one way: Scott LaFaro was up for it. The Sampson Air Force Base was so big that it brought in big names like Duke Ellington. AMAGANSETT, N.Y. - Acclaimed tenor saxophonist Robert Berg was killed Thursday when a cement truck skidded across a snow-slicked road and rammed into his sport utility vehicle, East Hampton police said. John Tynan wrote inDownbeatthat the rhythm duo [LaFaro and Billy Higgins] were the baddest cats on the date. So if you were all living in California, how was it that your brother was near Geneva when he died? LaFaro was taken from this world 60 years ago, on July 6, 1961, in Flint, New York, where he was involved in an auto accident a few days after playing with Stan Getz at Newport. Search Music. The trio attracted attention for its style. Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a154b16ff047cd4 It has rolled corners on the bottom and very sloped shoulders on the top, making it easier to get in and out of thumb position. Q: When did your brother start getting interested in music? After three months at Ithaca College, he concentrated on bass. My dad loved the director, so we had to go and have that experience as well. Yes, the Evans dynamic provided him with a perfect setting. Around this time he received a greeting card from Miles Davis suggesting that Davis wanted to hire him. In addition to hosting Jazz la Mode since 1984, Tom writes the jazz blog and produces the Jazz Beat podcast at NEPM. Having followed him out to Los Angeles in the late 1950s along with the rest of the LaFaro family, LaFaro-Fernandez still lives in California and continues to answer daily inquiries about her brother, conduct interviews, and ensure his legacy will inform musicians and fans for generations to come. The album included five tracks recorded in New York City during 1961 with pianist Don Friedman and drummer Pete LaRoca.[13]. My mom was still pregnant with my last sister. This page was last edited on 24 February 2023, at 08:03. Here is a verbal snapshot of that conversation, edited for clarity. Scott LaFaro was born 64 years ago . Sound-carver. Hes just so damn elegant. Former Major League Baseball pitcher Scott Erickson has been charged in connection with a hit-and-run crash in Westlake Village that killed two . Read More Joe Williams: Beyond the Blues, As a JazzTimes writer, I can talk about the powers of a dynamic drummer until Im blue in the face: the weight of each tom-toms Read More Chops: What Bassists Listen for in Drummers, America's jazz resource, delivered to your inbox. LaFaro also played opposite bassist Charlie Haden in alto saxophonist Ornette Coleman's experimental double quartet on Free Jazz. Cool Modal Music Post-Bop. I get 10 to 12 emails a day asking about Scotty. After that touch of piano, he really started to enjoy music and develop a keen awareness of what it was all about. Today would be the 78th birthday of the great Scott LaFaro, who died in a car accident in 1961. We had to have a strong rhythm section and he was definitely of that caliberHe was a dedicated personintolerant of anyone who wasnt giving his best., https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ngs04EXtDwk. Bud Powell. Jade Visions: The Life and Music of Scott LaFarorecounts how three days after his appearance at the Newport Jazz Festival with the Stan Getz Quartet, hed driven to Geneva, NY to take care of some business related to his mothers home there. Performers: Stan Getz, ts; Steve Kuhn, p; Scott LaFaro, b; Roy Haynes d. Newport, 2 July 1961. LaFaro died in an automobile accident on July 6, 1961, in Seneca, New York, [5] on U.S. Route 20 between Geneva and Canandaigua, [9] four days after accompanying Stan Getz at the Newport Jazz Festival. Is that a bass thing? Is that a jazz thing? LaFaro is best known as the bassist in Bill Evans' groundbreaking trio, and also worked with Chet Baker, Ornette Coleman, Sonny Rollins and the Stan Kenton Orchestra. The all-timer live session that produced the aforementioned discs is rounded out by two studio LPs, Portrait in Jazz (1960) and Explorations (1961), which I sense are not listened to as much as they ought to be, but the Vanguard date is sufficiently lambent that it pulls us to it, which is good on one handthis is one sweet, invigorating flameand less than ideal on the other, because Scott LaFaro (who, along with Jimmy Blanton, Id posit as jazzs most important bassist) was a lot more, and did a lot more, than the prevailing narrative would have us believe. It was then he fell in love with the tenor saxophone. Evans, according to Motian, would play "I Loves You Porgy," a song with which he and LaFaro became synonymous, almost obsessively, but always as a solo piece. Become a member and get exclusive access to articles, live sessions and more! It was written with so much love and insight. That show typically includes stories about LaFaro, who forever changed the jazz worlds concept of what bass playing could accomplish with his counter-melodic style. The tendency is to associate him with classical predilections, but here he is at one of the zeitgeist-shaking avant-garde sessions, and boy, does he drive the sound. On March 5, 2014, the Geneva (New York) City Council approved making April 3 Scott LaFaro Day. Toggle filters. He was a tremendous talent [who] wanted to go on to greener pastures.Over the next two years, Scotty toured the country with Chet Baker, and worked around L.A. with Hampton Hawes, Harold Land, Buddy DeFranco, Richie Kamuca, Joe Gordon, and Stan Kenton. As such, the album is a sort of memorial record for him; all of the tracks featured were either written by him, or feature a bass solo performed by him as the centerpiece of the track. The 25-year old Scott LaFaros death in a car accident shortly after was a major shock to the jazz world. [3] He took up double bass at 18 before entering college because learning a string instrument was required of music education majors. He also played in Stan Getz's band between jobs with the Bill Evans trio. LaFaro was killed in a car accident ten days after the recording. LaFaro's freewheeling, harmonically advanced bass style with the Bill Evans Trio (1959-1961) opened a door to a wholly new approach to the instrument that influenced a generation of players who followed in his wakeEddie Gomez, Dave Holland, and Marc Johnson, to name just a few. Victor Feldman. I quit very fast, but he was a natural. Q: What happened to your brother after Ithaca College? Scotty was on the road at the time, in California. On date night, people would end up at The Smith. Stan Levey. LaFaro is a potent cup of teaa brilliant future is in store for this youthful bassist from Geneva, N.Y., (Film footage ofLaFarois extremely rare. It was then he fell in love with the tenor saxophone. Mom needed the money. Member Of . One of the most substantial biographies Ive read in recent years is the 2009 publication that Helene LaFaro-Fernandez devoted to her brother Scott. We also spent time at the First Presbyterian Church choir. [10] They needed a bass clarinetist, and he promised Scotty that he would be allowed to play clarinet and eventually the tenor sax if he took that position. In Meet Me at Jim & Andy's: Jazz Musicians and Their World, Gene Lees wrote, "The shock of LaFaro's death stayed with Bill for years, and he felt vaguely guilty about itHe felt that because of his heroin habit he had made insufficient use of [their] time togetherAfter LaFaro's death, Bill was like a mane with a lost love, always looking to find its replacement. He got his first professional experience playing bass at Belhurst (with my fathers group). "[3], It was voted number 465 in the third edition of Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums (2000).[10]. They worked together with vocalist Dick Haymes, whose road show included dancers and a comic. Does anyone have pictures of this bass, or have you seen it in person? Composer: Gillespie [1] He played in groups at the College Spa and Joe's Restaurant[4] on State Street in downtown Ithaca. He became a professional musician in New York City during the Roaring 20s. ~ Charles A. Ralston, A Site About Dead Musicians and how they got that way. LaFaro-Fernandez: When Scotty was in sixth grade we took our first piano lessons. He waited until we got interested, and then he was totally supportive. But LaFaro had a pronounced Dolphy streak too, in that both musicians were playmakers, facilitators, helping others to raise their games by playing theirs at the highest level. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNqSL3xGW70, The Evans Trios appearance at the Village Vanguard opposite Lambert, Hendricks & Ross in June 1961 culminated with the legendary recordings made on the last day of the two-week engagement, Sunday, June 25. Little must have loved LaFaros contributions, because he himself was one of those players between spheres: neither a bopper nor a hard-bopper nor an out-and-out New Thing guy. Q: Your family ended up following Scotty out to California. Thats his brand of intimacy: the sensation of the stolen moment. [My] early years at the university were thoroughly engaging intellectually but were also a time of deep introspection. He waited until we got interested, and then he was totally supportive. Waltz for Debby is a live album by jazz pianist and composer Bill Evans and his trio consisting of Evans, bassist Scott LaFaro, and drummer Paul Motian. Geller said Goodman was unhappy with his current bassist, and offered to recommend Scotty but cautioned, Bennys very conservative, dont do any of those fast things you can do. Before long he mastered the instrument, and he toured with trombonist Buddy Morrow and trumpeter Chet Baker. Both Nat Hentoff and Ralph J. Gleason took note. The title track, a musical portrait of Evans' niece, became a staple of his live repertoire in later years. Elsewhere, a legacy is a reflection on what might have been, based on a limited amount of what was. The portion of Linden Street that runs from Seneca Street to South Exchange. The loss of LaFaro hit Evans hard, and he went into a brief seclusion. Performance & security by Cloudflare. This year The Smith is excited to have National Endowment of the Arts Jazz Masters, Kenny Barron (piano) and Dave Holland (bass), together on stage on Saturday, April 6. He stuck with his new hire, offered Scotty the option of plane fare to New York or L.A., and showed him the door. 1926). RE: Person I Knew is a tribute to bass legend Scott LaFaro, who died tragically in a car accident 50 years ago this year at the age of 25.Phil Palombi plays the EXACT bass that made Scotty a legend on the Bill Evans Trio, Live at the Village Vanguard Sessions!. LaFaro is heard soloing while George Duvivierplays the bass riff that Percy Heath had introduced on the first recordings of "Django" by the Modern Jazz Quartet. Scott LaFaro - Death. Scott Yanow, All-Music GuideScott LaFaros life and career were cut short in July of 1961. He would practice for hours: he had all these Sonny Rollins solos he had written out in bass clef! DSD 128 fs (2) DSD 64 fs (2) . Having followed him out to Los Angeles in the late 1950s along with the rest of the LaFaro family, LaFaro-Fernandez still lives in California and continues to answer daily inquiries about her brother, conduct interviews, and ensure his legacy will inform musicians and fans for generations to come. In 2009 she published a biography about him, Jade Visions: The Life and Music of Scott LaFaro. Composer: Rosolino Christian said, Scottys playing was the bible for bass playersJimmy Blanton the old testament, Scotty the new., LaFaro spent the evening of July 5 with old friends in Geneva then drove 80 miles west with Frank Ottley to visit another friend in Warsaw who was house-sitting at a place with a good stereo. It was there his career exploded. Composer: Hawes He was visiting some friends west of Geneva and was driving home late when he crashed. Composer: Urso Though hed previously appeared onGolden Trombonewith Buddy Morrow,The Arrival of Victor Feldmanwas essentially the first LP that showcased his singular gifts. He's seen here playing "Cherry" and "Chart of My Heart" with saxophonist Richie Kamuca's Quintet on a Stars of Jazz television broadcast on April 7, 1958. Composer: Mercer / Kosma / Prevert Evans stopped performing for several months. Scott LaFaro was born 64 years ago today. Before that grim July night, LaFaro had been a busy bassist. Published since 1970, JazzTimesAmericas Jazz Magazineprovides comprehensive and in-depth coverage of the jazz scene. That huge sound and strength of attack is finger-sprung alone. Gleason commented, It is, however, as a vehicle for bassist Scott LaFaro that the LP really impresses. Later in the year, he toured and recorded with the Cal Tjader-Stan Getz Sextet. A copy of the latest annual report may be obtained from the Smith Center or from the Office of the Attorney General, Charities Bureau, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271. What were Scotts childhood and teen years like here in Geneva? Bill Evans. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. See all our current specials here. In high school Scotty played clarinet and tenor saxophone, in spite of not being happy about a lip injury he got playing basketball at the Y. California had affordable education, and we could all go to college. Jan. 30, 2021 1:47 PM PT. Did you and your brother spend time at the Smith Opera House (which was Schines Geneva Theatre back then)? LaFaro achieved fame in the Bill Evans Trio, which he joined in 1959 and which featured Paul Motian on drums. Evans also went on hiatus after LaFaro's death for a period of several months. Postings here are the last known photographs or videos of a person. I dont blame him, said Morrow. Chops: What Bassists Listen for in Drummers, The 10 Best Jazz Albums of the 1950s: Critics Picks, Year in Review: The Top 40 Jazz Albums of 2022, Year in Review: The Top 10 Historical Albums of 2022, Chops: What Bassists Listen for in Drummers. The top of the instrument is a three-piece plate of slab-cut fir; the back is a two-piece plate of moderately flamed maple with an ebony inlay at the center joint; the sides are made of matching maple. Just about any jazz fan knows that on June 25, the 25-year-old had been in NYC as part of Bill Evans trio at the Village Vanguard, cutting the Sunday live date that will be reissued and repackaged so long as the earth continues to spin. There was great rapport. Im in the position of having nothing you can put your finger on for sale., Evanss drug addiction was also a matter of concern for LaFaro. The album was the fourth and final effort from the unitLaFaro died in a car accident just ten days after the live date at the Village Vanguard from which Waltz for Debby and its predecessor, Sunday at the Village Vanguard, were taken. The rest is told in his gripping visuals, The Exhibit: Finding the Next Great Artist. His sense of time was freer, less tied to the ground beat, than any jazz bassist had previously acheivedIt is not going too far to see this short-lived trio as redefining the nature of the jazz rhythm section. Scott LaFaro was an American jazz musician whose technique on the double bass left an indelible impression on future artists even though he died in a car accident in 1961 when he was just 25 years.. LaFaro died in an automobile accident on July 6, 1961 in Flint, New York on U.S. Route 20 between Geneva and Canandaigua, four days after accompanying Stan Getz at the Newport Jazz Festival. The helmsman remains present to take us many places where we otherwise might not have gone, and no one has steered that ship better than Scott LaFaro. we do worse! Search for: Search. Scotty and I rented a house for Mom and the girls, I got married a few months later and (soon) we all moved into a new house in a new development in West Hills. Brooklyn, NY The other day at school someone mentioned Red Mitchell taking the bass which was in the car crash that killed Scott LaFaro back to Kolstein's in pieces, and Kolstein, fairly recently, restored it. Your IP: Remembering Geneva's jazz legend Scott LaFaro: An interview with his sister Helene LaFaro-Fernandez - Smith Center for the Arts Smith Center for the Arts CONTACT US 82 Seneca Street Geneva, NY 14456 315-781-5483 BOX OFFICE Tuesday-Friday 10am-4pm ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES by appointment boxoffice@thesmith.org Rocco Scott LaFaro, in a career that lasted only six years, developed skills on the upright bass that few have been able to match. Fraternal guidance, in that this endeavor allowed fellow band members to do what they best did. In May 1960, the Bill Evans Trio joined in a program at Circle in the Square that was devoted to Gunther Schullers jazz compositions. He was playing mandolin and violin publicly by age 7. When Scotty came east to play with Goodman, he shared a cold-water flat in the East 70s with Freidman that went for $18 a month. [citation needed], By late 1960, LaFaro was in demand as a bassist. Scotty grew up in Geneva, where his father Joe, whod played with the Paul Whiteman and Dorsey Brothers orchestras, earned a living as a violinist and shared his fondness for both classical music and big band jazz with his children. Mr. Berg, whose career encompassed free jazz, soul jazz, jazz rock, and straight-ahead playing, was driving east on Route 27 with his wife when Beginning in 1955, he was a member of the Buddy Morrow big band. The Jazz la Mode Blog has plenty to stimulate your interest and curiosity in American music. July 6, 1961 in Seneca, NY. May 23, 2021. Pictures of people only please! He told Helene that Scott lived for the bassHe was looking all the time to play. He was in his second year at college to study music when he joined Buddy Morrow's band and went on a cross country tour. ai! LaFaro-Fernandez: Scotty and I were born in New Jersey but we moved back to Geneva in 1942. Born . Many believe that Evans never fully recovered from the loss, as well as that it contributed to his pattern of heroin usage, an addiction that would later kill him. Taking a tip from Red Mitchell, he trained himself to pluck the strings of his bass with his index and middle finger independently. It is still so wild to me that he was so influential. We would explore all around our neighborhood on West Street our house was where the elementary school is. LaFaro left Morrow and settled in Los Angeles in 1957. LaFaro and his stellar bandmates pianist Don Friedman and drummer Pete LaRoca run through four jazz standards, including two takes of Sacre Blu. Kuhn is uncertain about exactly where he met LaFaro, but says it was most likely when he heard the Evans trio at the Five Spot late in 1959. He heard what I was doing at the piano, and I heard what he was doing. In 2009 she published a biography about him, Jade Visions: The Life and Music of Scott LaFaro. For many, that Evans association, with drummer Paul Motian, is the LaFaro legacy. Youll have to adjust your ears, but theyll fall into line quickly. Scotty and I were born in New Jersey but we moved back to Geneva in 1942. He began working in jazz radio in 1977 at WCUW, a community-licensed radio station in Worcester, Massachusetts. But he was best known for his collaborations and recordings with the Bill Evans Trio. 2023 Viacom International Inc. All Rights Reserved. There is a creek that ran through the park, it would go up past Shuron Optical where they used this rouge chemical to make glass lenses, so the creek was always red. In his playing you can hear how happy Evans is to have this helmsman at the back of the boatI think it helped him see better at the front. Its there for a reason, and thats not solely to complement the proof of the magic that occurred at a New York City club in late June 1961. This brings about the situation of whether I should spend these hours and months developing what I seem to be able to foresee, or should I dump it and get another job as an entertainer again. LaFaro joined the Bill Evans Trio in 1959 and, although he would record with Ornette Coleman (including Free Jazz) and gig with Stan Getz, the bassist is best-remembered for his association with Evans, particularly their Village Vanguard recordings of 1961. Composer: Hammerstein II / Kern Find him on the web at colinfleminglit.com (where he maintains the unique online journal, the Many Moments Moreblog) and on Twitter @colinfleminglit. Other birthdays Monday: Jimmy McGriff, 64; Harold Vick, 19361987; and Eric Kloss, 51. Lafaro's innovative bass playing, which combined virtuoso technique with a counter-melodic conception, was captured in all its glory at the Vanguard on June 25, 1961. Q: What were Scotts childhood and teen years like here in Geneva? My day consists of such a singular preoccupationthe physicology of music. Then wed go home and have dinner and ice cream. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZ_rZZusz90, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbTEgBEaEM4. Composer: Porter In spring 1960, he featured on a half-dozen tracks that trumpeter Booker Little cut for his second session as leader. LaFaro-Fernandez: After Scotty played at the Newport Jazz Festival with Stan Getz (July 1961), he went to Geneva to try to convince the people who had been renting our house to buy it. I adored him, and I was thrilled to be able to work with him. Scott was extremely picky and choosy, and he wanted to call the trio. "[12], In 1988, Insights label of RVC Corporation in Japan released Memories for Scotty. You may additional context in comments. The great bassist is best known for his work with the Bill Evans Trio between 1959 and 61, and for the tragic car accident that claimed his life on July 6, 1961, two weeks after the trios legendary performance at the Village Vanguard. This album is widely considered to be one of the best in the Evans canon, and the type of emotive interplay between the musicians that at some points seemed almost deconstructed has served as a model for piano trio play. He was a musician from age 4. The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has We calculated our top 40 new releases of 2022 We calculated our top 10 historical/reissue You never quite knew what Chicago bassist Kelly Sill was going to play (or what he was going to say). Rocco Scott LaFaro (April 3, 1936 July 6, 1961)[1] was an American jazz double bassist known for his work with the Bill Evans Trio. A stacked bass makes for a stacked musical deck. He says that word of the accident reached Getz over the wire through his manager Jack Whittemore, and that all were incredulous at the news. At the time it was such a revolutionary idea, and it ushered in a sea change for jazz. The bass was badly damaged in the automobile accident that killed him, but was eventually restored and is sporadically used in performance to honor LaFaro. Later we moved to Elmwood Place, and during the summer we would spend many of our days at the Brook Street Playground. - The Absolute Sound Scott LaFaro's Pieces of Jade features long-lost material recorded in New York City shortly before the bassist's death in a car accident in 1961. We all knew something important was going to happen with this guy., https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lN4CrJ9lyzE, Jade Visionsis suffused with the perspective of an admiring, yet candid sister who overcame the grief of her beloved brothers sudden death and drew inspiration from friends and fans who urged her to write this richly evocative and musically illuminating volume.

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