Barney Bigard, Ben Webster, Otto Hardwick, Harry carney, Rex Stewart, Sonny greer, Wallace Jones, Ray Nance (Gottlieb 02401)

Otto James "Toby" Hardwicke (May 31, 1904 – August 5, 1970) was an American saxophone player associated with

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was bas ...

Biography

Hardwick began on

string bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar ...

at the age of 14, then moved to C melody saxophone and finally settled on

alto saxophone The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in E, smaller than the B t ...

. A childhood friend of

,''The Rough Guide to Jazz'' Carr, Ian; Fairweather, Digby; Priestley, Brian; Alexander, Charles
Google books Hardwick joined Ellington's first band in Washington, D. C. in 1919. Hardwick also worked for banjoist

Elmer Snowden Elmer Chester Snowden (October 9, 1900 – May 14, 1973) was an American banjo player of the jazz age. He also played guitar and, in the early stages of his career, all the reed instruments. He contributed greatly to jazz in its early days as b ...

at Murray's Casino. In 1923, Ellington, Hardwick, Snowden, trumpeter

Arthur Whetsel Arthur Parker Whetsel (February 22, 1905 – May 1, 1940) was an early "sweet" trumpeter for Duke Ellington's Washingtonians. Biography Arthur Whetsel was born in Punta Gorda, Florida, one of two children of the Reverend Oscar N. Whetsel, an eld ...

, and drummer

Sonny Greer William Alexander "Sonny" Greer (December 13, c. 1895 – March 23, 1982) was an American jazz drummer and vocalist, best known for his work with Duke Ellington. Biography Greer was born in Long Branch, New Jersey, United States, and p ...

had success as the Washingtonians in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. After a disagreement over money, Snowden was forced out of the band and

was elected as the new leader. They were booked at a

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...

nightspot called the Kentucky Club for three years where they met

Irving Mills Irving Harold Mills (born Isadore Minsky; January 16, 1894 – April 21, 1985) was an American music publisher, musician, lyricist, and jazz artist promoter. He sometimes used the pseudonyms Goody Goodwin and Joe Primrose. Personal Mills was ...

, who produced and published Ellington's music. Hardwick occasionally doubled on

violin The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...

and

in the 1920s, but specialized on alto sax. He also played

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitch ...

and

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the ...

and

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880& ...

saxes. Hardwick left the

band in 1928 to visit

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, where he played with Noble Sissle,

Sidney Bechet Sidney Bechet (May 14, 1897 – May 14, 1959) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer. He was one of the first important soloists in jazz, and first recorded several months before trumpeter Louis Armstrong. His erratic tempe ...

and Nekka Shaw's Orchestra, and led his own orchestra before returning to

in 1929. He had a brief stint with

Chick Webb William Henry "Chick" Webb (February 10, 1905 – June 16, 1939) was an American jazz and swing music drummer and band leader. Early life Webb was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to William H. and Marie Webb. The year of his birth is disputed. ...

(1929), then led his own band at the

Hot Feet Club The Hot Feet Club was a popular nightclub in New York City that operated from 1928 until 1933, approximately. The mob-controlled speakeasy attracted "some of the best crowds" of the day, such as boxing champion Gene Tunney and Mayor Jimmy Walker. ...

, with

Fats Waller Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, violinist, singer, and comedic entertainer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz pi ...

leading the rhythm section (1930), led at Small's before rejoining Duke Ellington in the spring of 1932, following a brief stint with

. He played lead alto on most Ellington numbers from 1932 to 1946, but he was rarely heard as a soloist because

Johnny Hodges Cornelius "Johnny" Hodges (July 25, 1907 – May 11, 1970) was an American alto saxophonist, best known for solo work with Duke Ellington's big band. He played lead alto in the saxophone section for many years. Hodges was also featured on soprano ...

performed many of the alto solos. Exceptions are: "

Black and Tan Fantasy "Black and Tan Fantasy" is a 1927 jazz composition by Duke Ellington and Bubber Miley. The song was recorded several times in 1927 for the Okeh, Victor and Brunswick record labels. The song was also featured in the 1929 short film ''Black and Ta ...

", " In a Sentimental Mood" and " Sophisticated Lady". Hardwick, with his creamy tone, was almost always the lead alto in the reed section of the Ellington orchestra except in some situations where Ellington required the more cutting tone of

' alto to set the tone of the ensemble. After Hardwick's departure (and replacement by Russell Procope) it soon became the norm for Johnny Hodges to take the ensemble lead as well as taking the lion's share of the solos on alto sax. Hardwick remained with Ellington until May 1946, when he left the band because of Ellington's dislike of Hardwick’s girlfriend. Hardwick became a freelance for a short time in the following year, and then retired from music. In his biography of Ellington, author James Lincoln Collier stated that " In a Sentimental Mood," " Sophisticated Lady," and " Prelude to a Kiss" are adaptations of Hardwick melodies.

References

External links

* http://www.basssax.com/ottohardwick.htm {{DEFAULTSORT:Hardwick, Otto 1904 births 1970 deaths Swing saxophonists Swing clarinetists American jazz clarinetists American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists Duke Ellington Orchestra members 20th-century American musicians 20th-century saxophonists American male jazz musicians 20th-century American male musicians