Results for "Les Hooper"

Les Hooper

Born: February 27, 1940

Take Five with Ed Palermo

by Edward Palermo
October 9, 2019

Meet Ed Palermo Ed Palermo is an arranger, composer and alto saxophonist mostly known for his big band and their interpretations of the music of Ed's hero, Frank Zappa. Coming out of college in jny: Chicago, his initial plan was to become a great jazz tenor saxophonist in the vein of Michael Brecker, Steve Grossman and ...

A Big Band Spectacular? You Bet Your Brass!

by Jack Bowers
June 5, 2017

On May 23, Betty and I flew to jny: Los Angeles to attend the L.A. Jazz Institute's semi-annual ode to swinging, this one labeled Big Band Spectacular and slated for Thursday through Sunday, May 25-28. We rearranged our schedule to arrive a day early, even before Wednesday's “bonus" event, to attend the funeral of a longtime ...

Jack's Gone! No He Isn't; Yes He Is; No He Isn't...!

by Jack Bowers
July 8, 2011

As I sat down to write this month's column, word came that trumpeter Jack Sheldon had died. No sooner had I written a few words about that when word came that trumpeter Jack Sheldon had not died. After some back-and-forth on the internet (is he or isn't he?), the last report, it seems, was the true ...

Tops in '10: The Best Big Band Albums of the Year

by Jack Bowers
December 3, 2010

The holiday season is upon us, which means it's a perfect time to name my choices for the best big band albums of 2010. Looking back, this was a better year for large ensembles than memory envisaged, and narrowing the list of candidates to 10 wasn't as easy as I thought it might be. Nevertheless, the ...

Phil Woods / Stan Kenton / The Les Hooper Band

by Jack Bowers
June 3, 2010

Phil Woods / DePaul University Jazz Ensemble Solitude Jazzed Media 2010 Not to underplay the title, but Solitude, from alto saxophone master Phil Woods and the splendid DePaul University Jazz Ensemble, embodies far more than the sort of serenity it implies. In fact, Woods is as animated and ...

"A Swingin' Affair" Outshines Its Name

by Jack Bowers
June 8, 2009

With an appreciative bow and genial tip of the hat to the late Chairman of the Board, Frank Sinatra, the Los Angeles Jazz Institute named its semi-annual big-band soiree May 21-24 at the Sheraton LAX Four Points Hotel “A Swingin' Affair." Was the event able to live up to its name? In the immortal words of ...

Louie Bellson: Tasteful Drummer, Sweeter Guy

by Jack Bowers
April 2, 2009

To say that drummer extraordinaire Louie Bellson, who left us on February 14, 2009 at age eighty-four, had a remarkable career would be to explicitly understate the record. Bellson's success at age 17 in a nationwide contest sponsored by one of his idols, Gene Krupa, and Slingerland Drums set the talented wunderkind on a path that ...

The Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra Gets "Thrasched"

by Jack Bowers
March 3, 2009

The thirty-third annual Albuquerque Jazz Festival ended its two-day run on February 21, 2009. The event is devoted mainly to performances by high school and middle school bands, while the grand finale features the Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra with invited guests, this year the saxophone quartet Thrascher (Randy Hamm, soprano; Tim Ishii, alto; Ed Petersen, tenor; Glenn ...

Vaughn Wiester / Doncaster Jazz Orchestra / Kluvers Big Band / Mike Holober & the Gotham Jazz Orchestra

by Jack Bowers
March 1, 2009

Vaughn Wiester's Famous Jazz Orchestra Dreams Come True COJazz 2009 If you're going to dream, you may as well dream big, in glorious Technicolor with stereophonic sound. As Vaughn Wiester knows, there are times when Dreams Come True. Wiester's vision of leading his own big band is a ...