Dennis Sandole (29 September 1913 — 30 September 2000) born Dionigi Sandoli, was an American jazz guitarist, composer, and music educator from
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
.
Biography
Sandole was
John Coltrane's mentor from 1946 until the early 1950s, introducing him to
music theory
Music theory is the study of theoretical frameworks for understanding the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory": The first is the "Elements of music, ...
beyond chords and scales and exposing him to the music of other cultures. Sandole taught advanced harmonic techniques that were applicable to any instrument, using exotic scales and creating his own.
He taught privately until the end of his life. His students included saxophonists
James Moody,
Benny Golson
Benny Golson (January 25, 1929 – September 21, 2024) was an American bebop and hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and arranger. He came to prominence with the big bands of Lionel Hampton and Dizzy Gillespie, more as a writer than a p ...
,
Michael Brecker
Michael Leonard Brecker (March 29, 1949 – January 13, 2007) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. He was awarded 15 Grammy Awards as a performer and composer, received an honorary doctorate from Berklee College of Music in ...
,
Rob Brown and Bobby Zankel; trumpeter
Art Farmer
Arthur Stewart Farmer (August 21, 1928 – October 4, 1999) was an American jazz trumpeter and flugelhorn player. He also played flumpet, a trumpet–flugelhorn combination especially designed for him. He and his identical twin brother, doub ...
; pianists
Matthew Shipp
Matthew Shipp (born December 7, 1960) is an American avant-garde jazz pianist, composer, and bandleader.
Early life and education
Shipp was raised in Wilmington, Delaware. His mother was a friend of trumpeter Clifford Brown.
He began playing ...
and
Sumi Tonooka; guitarists
Jim Hall,
Joe Diorio,
Pat Martino
Pat Martino (born Patrick Carmen Azzara; August 25, 1944 – November 1, 2021) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. He has been cited as one of the greatest guitarists in jazz.
Early life
Martino was born Patrick Carmen Azzara in Philad ...
, Frank Gerard,
Jon Herington
Jon Herington (born Jonathan Reuel Herington on April 14, 1954) is an American guitarist, singer-songwriter, record producer, and session musician.
Career
Herington was born in Paterson, New Jersey, and grew up in West Long Branch, New Jersey ...
,
Bob DeVos,
Harry Leahey,
and
Rufus Harley.
Sandole recorded ''Modern Music from Philadelphia,'' with his brother, Adolf Sandole (1922–1959), which was released by
Fantasy Records
Fantasy Records is an American independent record label company founded by brothers Max and Sol Stanley Weiss in 1949. The early years of the company were dedicated to issuing recordings by jazz pianist Dave Brubeck, who was also one of its inves ...
in 1956 and credited to The Sandole Brothers.
Death and interment
Sandole died on September 30, 2000, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and was interred at
West Laurel Hill Cemetery.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sandole, Dennis
1913 births
2000 deaths
American people of Italian descent
American jazz guitarists
20th-century American guitarists
American male guitarists
20th-century American male musicians
Burials at West Laurel Hill Cemetery
American male jazz musicians
American jazz educators