Lena Horne
Charles Fox started his music education at an early age, finding an interest in arranging and composition. As a child he loved the opera and would go to as many shows as possible paying $2 for standing room. A chance encounter with a piano teacher led him to an experience of a lifetime studying...
Lee Ritenour was exposed to jazz music in Los Angeles as a youth thanks to his parents. He developed a great knowledge of guitar techniques having watched and or worked with many of his guitar heroes. When he was 16 years old he accompanied jazz singer Lena Horne, which opened up many doors for...
Gerald “Wig” Wiggins was a world renowned composer, arranger and jazz keyboardist. As an early pioneer in playing jazz on the Hammond B-3 organ, Wig had a strong interest in new and inventive sounds. His creatively can be heard in hundreds of recordings and motion pictures beginning in the 1930s....
Donn Trenner was one of the most successful pianists in the big band and Bebop jazz eras. He began his career with the popular Ted Fio Rito Orchestra beginning in 1943. He later played with bands led by Buddy Morrow, Charlie Barnet and Jerry Gray. As the Bop era developed, Donn played alongside...
This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Lena Horne was a popular singer and actress who was dedicated to the Civil Rights movement beginning in the 1950s. She began her career singing in the chorus line at the...