[Dixielandjazz] Re: King Oliver and Frank Guarente

[Wim Mossel]

Listmates,

At 2006-03-19 16:05, Anton Crouch wrote:

>Chris Tyle mentions that "King Oliver took lessons from Italian-born
>trumpeter  Frank Guarente when he lived for a couple of years in New
>Orleans. Oliver reciprocated by helping Guarente learn how to play jazz ... "
>
>I've seen this, and similar, comments over the years but I've never seen a
>reference to a contemporary source. Dick Sudhalter, in "Lost Chords", shows
>the trail starting in 1940 (with a Downbeat article by Ken Farnsworth) and
>coming down to us via Paul Specht (in French, 1951 and English, 1960);
>Horst Lange (in German), 1957-58; Giuseppe Barrazzetta, 1966; and Les
>Erskine, 1980.
>
>I've not seen any of the articles and am wondering if any DJMLer has.
>Specht was the bandleader who formed the Guarente-led band-within-a-band,
>"The Georgians" and his views may be definitive.
>
>Any help?


Not much. In the liner notes of the Retrieval CD 
"RTR 73003 Jazz The Georgians 1922-23" Mark Berresford writes

"
.and Frank Guarente. the leader and star of the band.
Of all the white trumpeters who recorded in the 
acoustic era, Guarente came closest to the sound 
and style of the great black trumpeters King 
Oliver and Freddie Keppard, playing with immense 
power and emotion. coupled with impeccable 
technical ability and a sound knowledge of muted 
effects. Guarente was the master of his 
instrument and it is small wonder that Specht 
later claimed that he was irreplaceable. 
Francesco Saverio Guarente was born in 
Montemilleto. Southern Italy on the 5th October 
1893. emigrating to the USA when he was 16 to 
join his brother in Allentown, PA, eventually 
settling in New Orleans. There existed in New 
Orleans a large Italian and Italian-American 
population. Including many musicians who were to 
play an important part in the development of 
Jazz- Nick LaRocca. Aicide Nunez, Tony Sbarbaro. 
Leon Roppolo Tony Parenti, the Barocco brothers 
Sharkey Bonano and many others. Already a 
proficient trumpeter, he worked for a brief time 
in a bank before becoming a professional 
musician, working in restaurants, theatres and 
marching bands. It was whilst in New Orleans that 
Guarente was exposed to black jazz and blues. and 
for a while traded lessons with King Oliver It is 
not too difficult to imagine the great man 
picking up reading and technical tips from the 
young white Italian. who in turn learnt the 
unwritten secrets of note ben­ding and the use of 
mutes. For Guarente, these lessons and the 
exposure to black New Orleans jazzmen would not 
be forgotten, for his playing on the Georgians 
records is full of black inspired phrases and 
techniques - his break in the final chorus of 
'Sister Kate' matches the power, feeling and 
delivery of Freddie Keppard, a feat no other 
white trumpeter had performed on record to date. "......................

But no references.
In the book "King Oliver" by Walter C. Allen and 
Brian A.L. Rust revised by Laurie Wright 
(Storyville Publications, 1987) Frank Guarente is not mentioned.

In November 1918 the gambling dens, saloons and 
cribs of Storyville where closed. Joe Oliver 
moved to Chicago in early 1918. From May 1921 to 
end May 1922 he was on the west coast and then 
returned to Chicago. Where Frank Guarente was in 
that time I don't know. The frist recordings of 
the Georgians were made in New York November 1922.
It is not very clear to me, if there were any 
lessons, where and when they were given.


"I am not young enough to know everything". -Oscar Wilde-

Kind regards, Vriendelijke groet, Grüße
Wim Mossel

Tenor guitar player of  The Autoreverse Jazz Orchestra
http://www.autoreverse.nl/

a.k.a. w.p.mossel at wanadoo.nl