Kenton on Capitol & Creative World: A Discography

Sparke, Michael

Venudor, Pete

Reference

Tiare Pubns

In the years since the publication of 'Kenton on Capitol and Creative World,' Michael Sparkes has turned  up a huge trove of information about the official recordings of Stan Kenton and the people involved in creating them. This is a completely revised version of the early book, incorporating some 70 pages of new material including: Full details on the MacGregor transcriptions; Detailed notes on every official Kenton LP; the background, intention and realization of the music as explained by the musicians themselves; original document examples from Capitol's files; new take numbers; original session A&R producers.This book covers Kenton's 40 years on record - every recording date, every release, every version, unissued recordings studio transcriptions, details on matrix numbers, alternative titles, release numbers, dates, places, people, thousands of facts, including things even the most ardent Kenton fan doesn't know. Stanley Newcomb "Stan" Kenton was a pianist, composer, and arranger who led a highly innovative, influential, and often controversial American jazz orchestra. Kenton was a salient figure on the American musical scene and made an indelible mark on the arranged type of big band jazz. Kenton's music evolved with the times throughout the 1960s and 1970s, and although he was no longer considered a contemporary innovator, he promoted jazz and jazz improvisation through his service as an educator. The "Kenton Style" continues to permeate big bands at the high school and collegiate level, and the framework he designed for the "jazz clinic" is still widely in use today.His music has experienced a resurgence in interest, with later critical "rediscovery" of his music and many reissues of his recordings. An alumni band tours to this day, led by lead trumpeter Mike Vax, which performs not only classic Kenton arrangements, but also new music written and performed in the Kenton style.

Stan Kenton: The Studio Sessions : A Discography

Arts & Photography

Music

Balboa Books

Stan Kenton (1911–1979) formed his first full orchestra in 1940 and soon drew record-breaking crowds to hear and dance to his exciting sound. He continued to tour and record unrelentingly for the next four decades. Stan Kenton: This Is an Orchestra! sums up the mesmerizing bandleader at the height of his powers, arms waving energetically, his face a study of concentration as he cajoled, coaxed, strained, and obtained the last ounce of energy from every musician under his control.
Michael Sparke’s narrative captures that enthusiasm in words: a lucid account of the evolution of the Kenton Sound, and the first book to offer a critical evaluation of the role that Stan played in its creation. Insightful and thought-provoking throughout, and supported by liberal quotes from the musicians who made the magic, even at his most contentious the author’s high regard and admiration for his subject shines through. The most knowledgeable of Stan’s fans will learn new facts from this far-reaching biography of a man and his music. Stan Kenton will be essential reading for every Kenton devotee and jazz historian.

Stan Kenton: This Is an Orchestra! (North Texas Lives of Musician Series)

Biographies & Memoirs

Arts & Literature

University of North Texas Press

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Books by Sparke, Michael