Dick Sudhalter
Encyclopedia
Richard "Dick" Sudhalter (December 28, 1938 – September 19, 2008) was an American jazz
trumpet
er, scholar, critic, and album annotator
.
soloist. He began playing the cornet
at 12 and within a few years was performing professionally. After graduating from Oberlin College
, he moved to Europe in 1964, later becoming a United Press International
correspondent. In 1968 he covered the Russian invasion of Czechoslovakia
from Prague for UPI and was subsequently assigned the role of Manager for Eastern Europe. During his twelve years living in Europe and the UK, he also wrote under the pseudonym "Art Napoleon." He wrote jazz criticism for the New York Post
from 1978 to 1984.
ist Bix Beiderbecke
and the first jazz biography ever to be nominated for a National Book Award. Music critic Terry Teachout
has called the book "a 'landmark of jazz scholarship' and the 'first jazz biography written to the standards' of a serious study of a classical composer or other major historical figure." Sudhalter's other books are Lost Chords: White Musicians and Their Contribution to Jazz, 1915-1945 (1999) and Stardust Melody (2002), the first full-length biography of Hoagy Carmichael
. Lost Chords ignited some controversy for its assertion that jazz was shaped by both black and white musicians. Sudhalter received an ASCAP Deems Taylor Special Citation for Excellence for Lost Chords, and a Grammy Award
in 1983 for his liner notes for Bunny Berigan: Giants of Jazz.
on guitar
, Joe Muranyi
on clarinet
, and Dick Wellstood
on piano
. In addition to recording with the Classic Jazz Quartet and the New Paul Whiteman Band, he made several solo albums.
, a disease that left him unable to speak and subsequently led to his death from pneumonia
, aged 69. He was survived by his brother and sister, two adult daughters, his ex-wife Vivian Sudhalter of 18 years, and his companion Dorothy Kellogg of 22 years.
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
er, scholar, critic, and album annotator
Liner notes
Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...
.
Biography
Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Sudhalter was inspired to pursue a musical career by his father Al Sudhalter, a noted Boston-area saxophoneSaxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
soloist. He began playing the cornet
Cornet
The cornet is a brass instrument very similar to the trumpet, distinguished by its conical bore, compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. It is not related to the renaissance and early baroque cornett or cornetto.-History:The cornet was...
at 12 and within a few years was performing professionally. After graduating from Oberlin College
Oberlin College
Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating...
, he moved to Europe in 1964, later becoming a United Press International
United Press International
United Press International is a once-major international news agency, whose newswires, photo, news film and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines and radio and television stations for most of the twentieth century...
correspondent. In 1968 he covered the Russian invasion of Czechoslovakia
Prague Spring
The Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during the era of its domination by the Soviet Union after World War II...
from Prague for UPI and was subsequently assigned the role of Manager for Eastern Europe. During his twelve years living in Europe and the UK, he also wrote under the pseudonym "Art Napoleon." He wrote jazz criticism for the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
from 1978 to 1984.
Literary works
In 1974 Sudhalter and Philip R. Evans co-wrote Bix: Man and Legend, the standard biography of jazz cornetCornet
The cornet is a brass instrument very similar to the trumpet, distinguished by its conical bore, compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. It is not related to the renaissance and early baroque cornett or cornetto.-History:The cornet was...
ist Bix Beiderbecke
Bix Beiderbecke
Leon Bismark "Bix" Beiderbecke was an American jazz cornetist, jazz pianist, and composer.With Louis Armstrong, Beiderbecke was one of the most influential jazz soloists of the 1920s...
and the first jazz biography ever to be nominated for a National Book Award. Music critic Terry Teachout
Terry Teachout
Terry Teachout is a critic, biographer and blogger. He is the drama critic of The Wall Street Journal, the chief culture critic of Commentary, and the author of "Sightings," a column about the arts in America that appears biweekly in the Friday Wall Street Journal...
has called the book "a 'landmark of jazz scholarship' and the 'first jazz biography written to the standards' of a serious study of a classical composer or other major historical figure." Sudhalter's other books are Lost Chords: White Musicians and Their Contribution to Jazz, 1915-1945 (1999) and Stardust Melody (2002), the first full-length biography of Hoagy Carmichael
Hoagy Carmichael
Howard Hoagland "Hoagy" Carmichael was an American composer, pianist, singer, actor, and bandleader. He is best known for writing "Stardust", "Georgia On My Mind", "The Nearness of You", and "Heart and Soul", four of the most-recorded American songs of all time.Alec Wilder, in his study of the...
. Lost Chords ignited some controversy for its assertion that jazz was shaped by both black and white musicians. Sudhalter received an ASCAP Deems Taylor Special Citation for Excellence for Lost Chords, and a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
in 1983 for his liner notes for Bunny Berigan: Giants of Jazz.
Musical career
Sudhalter also worked as a professional musician for most of his life, playing trumpet and cornet with the New York Jazz Repertory Company and founding the New Paul Whiteman Band. In 1983 he co-founded the Classic Jazz Quartet, a traditional jazz ensemble that also included Marty GroszMarty Grosz
Martin Oliver "Marty" Grosz is an American jazz guitarist, banjoist, vocalist and composer born in Berlin, Germany, perhaps most notable for his work with Bob Wilber, performing with and doing arrangements for him. Grosz has also been involved in projects involving Kenny Davern, Dick Sudhalter and...
on guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, Joe Muranyi
Joe Muranyi
Joseph P. "Joe" Muranyi is an American jazz clarinetist, producer and critic.Muranyi studied with Lennie Tristano but is primarily interested in early jazz styles such as Dixieland and swing. After playing in an United States Army Air Forces band, he moved to New York City in the 1950s and...
on clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
, and Dick Wellstood
Dick Wellstood
Richard MacQueen "Dick" Wellstood was an American jazz pianist...
on piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
. In addition to recording with the Classic Jazz Quartet and the New Paul Whiteman Band, he made several solo albums.
Illness and death
A stroke in 2003 forced him to retire from playing, after which he developed multiple system atrophyMultiple system atrophy
Multiple system atrophy is a degenerative neurological disorder. MSA is associated with the degeneration of nerve cells in specific areas of the brain. This cell degeneration causes problems with movement, balance and other autonomic functions of the body such as bladder control or blood pressure...
, a disease that left him unable to speak and subsequently led to his death from pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
, aged 69. He was survived by his brother and sister, two adult daughters, his ex-wife Vivian Sudhalter of 18 years, and his companion Dorothy Kellogg of 22 years.