Esy Morales

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Esy Morales (back left with flute, with his brothers Noro and Humberto), around 1947. Photo: William P. Gottlieb

Ismael "Esy" Morales Sanabria (* 3. March 1917 in Puerta de Tierra (San Juan) ; † 2. November 1950 in New York City ) was a Puerto Rican musician who primarily as a flutist and orchestra leader in the field of Latin music has emerged . He is considered one of the important early jazz flutists .

Live and act

Morales, who learned the flute , clarinet and tenor saxophone as a child , came to New York in 1935 with his brothers Hunberto and Noro Morales . There he played with Xavier Cugat ( Cugat on Film ) before founding his own orchestra with his brothers in the early 1940s, which was then continued by Noro Morales. In 1947 he submitted recordings under his own name. His piece Jungle Fantasy became so famous that he was able to perform it in Robert Siodmak's feature film Criss Cross (with Burt Lancaster ) in 1949 ; the same year the piece was also used in Edward Buzzell's comedy film Neptune's Daughter . (It was later interpreted by Herbie Mann and Yusef Lateef .)

He then made further recordings for the Manor Records and Decca Records label . His death may have been due to substance abuse. Tito Puente wrote the piece "Esy" in memory of the early deceased.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ date of birth according to Internet Movie Database; According to some literature, he was born in 1916.
  2. ↑ a b Joe Conzo, David A. Perez Mambo Diablo: My Journey With Tito Puente Bloomington 2011, p. 28
  3. ↑ Cary Ginnell The Evolution of Mann: Herbie Mann and the Flute in Jazz Milwaukee 2014, pp. 9ff.
  4. ↑ Biography ( Memento from August 28, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) (Spanish)
personal data
SURNAME Morales, Esy
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Morales Sanabria, Ishmael
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Puerto Rican musician (flute, orchestra conductor)
DATE OF BIRTH March 3, 1917
PLACE OF BIRTH Puerta de Tierra (San Juan)
DATE OF DEATH November 2, 1950
Place of death New York City