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March 26th 2008            Music Spectacular  Strand Theater Lakewood NJA power house band for Music Spectacular #21    Saxes:                            Kaj Hansen, Warren Fioretti, John Asti,  Audrey Wright, Len Klinker          Trombones:              John Allred, Doug Elliot, Dale Devoe,  Barry McCommon  Trumpets:                  Don Junker, Bob Gravener, Steve Uibel, Al Harrison    Rhythm:           Gladstone Trott keyboard                    Dan Haase bass         Ron DiDonato drumset  Ed Pillion percussion    Jon Grill percussion

2008 Carl Saunders      "2008 Music Spectacular AM Concert"

      "2008 Music Spectacular PM Concert"

"2008 Music Spectacular All Star Student Band

Jazz listeners worldwide have long known that Carl Saunders is one of the great trumpet players around today. Carl Saunders was born on Aug. 2, 1942 and died February 25th 2023. His first five years were mostly spent on the road. His uncle was trumpeter-bandleader Bobby Sherwood was riding high with the popular Sherwood Orchestra, having hits with “Elks Parade” and “Sherwood’s Forest.” Saunders’ mother Gail (Bobby’s sister) sang for the Sherwood Orchestra and Stan Kenton, among others. When Carl was five, he and his mother settled in Los Angeles; living with Carl’s aunt Caroline and her husband, tenor-saxophonist Dave Pell. At the time, Saunders heard the records of the Dave Pell Octet and was influenced by the style and phrasing of trumpeter Don Fagerquist. Saunders began playing trumpet in the seventh grade and he quickly found that he had a natural ability, mostly learning to play by ear and never having any lessons. He played in school bands, and after he graduating high school, his mother helped get him a job with Stan Kenton’s Orchestra. Saunders auditioned for Kenton’s band and was given a choice: wait for the first opening in the trumpet section or join the band the following week as a member of the mellophonium section. He chose the latter and spent much of 1961-62 on the road with Stan Kenton. After spending part of 1962-63 traveling with Bobby Sherwood’s group (playing drums), Carl Saunders settled back in Las Vegas where during the next 20 years he played with a countless number of show bands, including lead with Ella Fitzgerald, Tony Bennet, and Frank Sinatra. Saunders also traveled as a lead player with Paul Anka and Robert Goulet and with such bandleaders as Si Zentner, Harry James, Maynard Ferguson, Benny Goodman and Charlie Barnet. In 1984, Carl Saunders moved to Los Angeles where he was soon playing lead trumpet with Bill Holman’s Orchestra, a position he still holds. Saunders has also worked with Supersax, the big bands of Bob Florence and Gerald Wilson, and the Phil Norman Tentet. In 1994, he became a member of the Dave Pell Octet (in Don Fagerquist’s old chair.) In addition, he is often heard at the head of his own groups including the Carl Saunders Big Band, his sextet and a quartet. Each of Saunders’ CDs is a gem while being quite different from each other. Out Of The Blue has the trumpeter showcased in quartet and sextet settings. His warm tone and long melodic lines are featured on such numbers as a miraculous version of Chopin’s “Minute Waltz.” Eclecticism has Saunders joined by 25 strings and three French horns. Bebop Big Band is most notable for the high musicianship of the band, the hard swinging, and the colorful original arrangements of the late Herbie Phillips. Carl Saunders, who enjoys working with kids and conducting clinics, plans to continue playing the straight ahead jazz that he loves most. His three recordings show that he is one of the finest jazz trumpeters of the 21st century.

Contact Wilbur Click Here   wilbur@wworchestras.com

 

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