Charles Leonard Kunz (August 18, 1896 – March 16, 1958) was an American-born pianist and band leader who worked in Great Britain during the

British dance band British dance band is a genre of popular jazz and dance music that developed in British dance halls and hotel ballrooms during the 1920s and 1930s, often called a Golden Age of British music, prior to the Second World War. Thousands of miles awa ...

era, eventually becoming a well-known solo pianist.

Life and career

Kunz was born in

Allentown, Pennsylvania Allentown (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Allenschteddel'', ''Allenschtadt'', or ''Ellsdaun'') is a city in eastern Pennsylvania, United States. The county seat of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh County, it is the List o ...

, United States, the only son of Margaret T. (Wehr) and Leonard Kunz, a master baker who played the

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most o ...

. He made his debut aged six and made his first appearance as a prodigy aged seven. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he led his own resident band, while working in a munitions factory. He came to the United Kingdom in 1922 as a pianist in a small dance band. He was to remain there until his death from a heart attack in 1958. He is buried in Streatham Vale Cemetery. He was such a distinctive and popular pianist that he abandoned his orchestra to concentrate on his piano playing, both at

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was most popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850, through the World War I, Great War. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as Varie ...

venues and on the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

. Two of Britain's most famous female vocalists were with his orchestra in the 1930s:

Vera Lynn Dame Vera Margaret Lynn (; 20 March 1917 – 18 June 2020) was an English singer and entertainer whose musical recordings and performances were very popular during World War II. She is Honorific nicknames in popular music, honorifically known ...

and Welsh songstress Dorothy Squires. His best known crooner was George Barclay. Kunz was the pianist in a dance band which was led by the drummer, Ed Krick. The band came to London in 1922 to play a residency in the London Trocadero. The band returned without Kunz to Pennsylvania after a successful run at the 'Troc' and, until 1998, still got together for sessions for retirement homes, renamed as 'The B Flats'. His debut as a soloist came in 1934 at the Holborn Empire, London followed by countless variety theatres in Britain and the Continent, after playing in hotels, restaurants and ballrooms. The same year saw the beginning of what was to become a continuous output of solo records of "Charlie Kunz Medleys". His signature tune was " Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie", and his closing theme was "Pink Elephants". He became the highest paid pianist in the world, earning up to £1,000 a week. His piano transcriptions sold widely in the teaching of piano-playing. Kunz's playing style was a relaxed flowing interpretation of popular melodies played with subtle soft and loud accents, which he called "melody and rhythm with expression". He was married three times: * 1) Amanda Dysher (died) (one son Joseph) * 2) Eva Dorothy "Nin" Lloyd, a fashion model (1923–1939) (two sons Peter and Gerald) In 1939 he was living with Eva in Elmer Road, Chichester Area. * 3) Pat Sparkes (1942–1958) He is buried in Streatham Park Cemetery in London.

References

External links

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Charlie Kunz

Charlie Kunz DiscographyCharlie Kunz Biography - AllMusic
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kunz, Charlie 1896 births 1958 deaths British bandleaders Dance band bandleaders 20th-century British conductors (music) 20th-century pianists Burials at Streatham Park Cemetery American emigrants to the United Kingdom