Rob McConnell

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Fraser MacPherson and Rob McConnell 1989. Photo courtesy of the Fraser MacPherson estate

Rob McConnell (actually Robert Murray Gordon McConnell *, 14. February 1935 in London , Ontario ; † 1. May 2010 ) was a Canadian jazz - trombonist , composer , arranger, bandleader and teacher.

Live and act

Rob McConnell learned to play the valve trombone in high school and began his career as a professional musician in Canadian dance bands in the early 1950s. a. with Don Thompson, Bobby Gimby , later in the Big Band of Maynard Ferguson . From 1965 on he played in the formation Nimmons'n'Nine Plus Six of the arranger and clarinetist Phil Nimmons . In 1968 he founded his big band The Boss Brass , with whom he worked during the 1970s and 1980s, a. a. with the vocal group The Singers Unlimited (1979).

McConnell formed the band from Toronto studio musicians. The instrumentation of the 16-piece big band consisted of trumpets, trombones, french horns, a rhythm section , but had no saxophones. It wasn't until 1970 that McConnell introduced a saxophone section and expanded the band to 22 members. Over the years Rob McConnell & The Boss Brass developed into one of the most popular jazz ensembles in Canada, recording a number of albums for Concord Jazz and other labels. Members were u. a. Ed Bickert , Moe Koffman and Ludwig Nuss . In 1986 the big band recorded a Concord album with Mel Tormé .

In 1988 McConnell took a teaching position at the Dick Grove School of Music in California, but returned to Canada a year later. In 1997 McConnell was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame ; In 1998 he received the Officer of the Order of Canada award .

In the 2000s, Rob McConnell worked with a tentet with Terry Clarke , with whom he made three albums.

Awards

McConnell has received a number of Grammy Awards:

  • 1984 for Best Jazz Instrumental performance, Big Band (Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band) for All in Good Time by Rob McConnell & the Boss Brass;
  • 1993 in the category Best Instrumental Arrangement (Best Arrangement On An Instrumental) for "Strike Up the Band" by Rob McConnell & the Boss Brass (arranger Rob McConnell)
  • 1996 in the category Best Instrumental Arrangement with vocal accompaniment (Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal (s)): for "I Get a Kick Out of You" by Mel Tormé with Rob McConnell & the Boss Brass (arranger Rob McConnell)

Discographic notes

  • The Boss Brass (1968)
  • The Jazz Album (Pausa, 1976)
  • Tribute (Pausa, 1980)
  • Our 25th Year (Concord Jazz, 1993)
  • Even Canadians Get the Blues (Concord, 1996)
  • Music of the Twenties (2003)

Web links

Commons : Rob McConnell  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

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Individual evidence

  1. ^ Canadian Music Hall of Fame - Inductees. Canadian Music Hall of Fame , accessed August 6, 2017 .
personal data
SURNAME McConnell, Rob
ALTERNATIVE NAMES McConnell, Robert Murray Gordon (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Canadian jazz trombonist, composer, arranger, band leader and teacher
DATE OF BIRTH February 14, 1935
PLACE OF BIRTH London (Ontario) , Ontario
DATE OF DEATH May 1, 2010
Place of death London , Ontario