| The Beau Hunks Orchestra continue their crusade to preserve the works of forgotten pioneers of American music. Over the past decade, the versatile Dutch band has released note-perfect renditions of the never-before-commercially-available Hal Roach comedy music (Laurel & Hardy; Little Rascals) of Leroy Shield and T. Marvin Hatley; the late 1930s cartoon- and chamber-jazz works of Raymond Scott; and the 1920s symphonic suites of Ferde Grofé. Each of these projects were different in scope -- from the whimsical, sextet arrangements of Scott’s novelties, to the 35-piece orchestral grandeur of Grofé’s elegant suites.
Changing gears yet again, Basta Records introduces THE BEAU HUNKS SAXOPHONE SOCTETTE. For this project, the brass, strings and piano were omitted, while the woodwind and saxophone sections were dramatically expanded, as the Beau Hunks pay tribute to saxophone bands from the first four decades of the 20th century, when the sax was a new instrument.
The Sax Soctette arrangements have not been heard in over a half-century. During 1938 and ‘39, the Whiteman band did a weekly broadcast in which Whiteman presented various sections of his large orchestra as breakaway ensembles -- which he termed the Bouncing Brass, the Singing Strings, the Swing Wing, the Woodwind Ensemble, and the Sax Soctette. He commissioned arrangements of such tunes "What'll I do,” "Blue Skies," "Melancholy Baby,” and “I Kiss Your Hand, Madame." The virtuoso Soctette arrangements were created by Nathan Van Cleave for a lineup of nine saxes doubling on clarinets, accompanied by two guitars, bass and drums. Most were never recorded commercially, and those that were have been unavailable since originally released on 78 rpm discs in the late 1930s.
This CD was conceived when Beau Hunks leader Gert-Jan Blom discovered the original arrangements for the Sax Soctette and Woodwind Ensemble in the Paul Whiteman Collection at Williams College. While rehearsing the original charts, the Beau Hunks noticed that edits had been made, due either to the limited duration of 78 rpm discs or to available airtime on the radio. THE BEAU HUNKS SAXOPHONE SOCTETTE perform the complete, uncut versions as originally arranged by Van Cleave.
To celebrate these new recordings, world renowned cartoonist Robert Crumb contributed original cover art to the SAX SOCTETTE package. Crumb, a longtime devotee of early American blues and orchestral music, had previously provided art for the first Beau Hunks recordings of Leroy Shield’s music in 1993.
Nathan Lang Van Cleave was born in 1910 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He was a staff arranger for Whiteman, Kostelanetz, and for CBS in New York. In 1945 he joined the staff at Paramount Films in Hollywood, for whom he scored Conquest of Space (1955), The Colossus of New York (1958), and The Space Children (1958), among others. He also composed scores for the TV series The Twilight Zone, Gomer Pyle USMC, Gunsmoke, Have Gun Will Travel, Perry Mason, Hogan’s Heroes, I Dream of Jeannie, and Rawhide.
During Blom’s research at Williams College, he also discovered a woodwind arrangement by Irving Szathmary of Raymond Scott’s “The Toy Trumpet.” This had been performed by the Whiteman band on radio, but never recorded commercially. It makes its debut release on THE BEAU HUNKS SAXOPHONE SOCTETTE album.
The Beau Hunks Soctette recorded and released a second album, CONTRASTS (also on Basta). If you enjoy this album, find the sequel! |
|
Facebook
Twitter
Contact Artist
Add to Profile
Add to station