[Dixielandjazz] R I P Derf Nolde

[Stephen G Barbone]

This event took place yesterday, thanks to the organizational efforts  
of of Dan Levinson who worked with Derf at various venues throughout  
New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Dan and Molly were there along with a  
bunch of us who at one time or another were members of Derf's Keystone  
Jazz Group.

Derf, along with Tex Wyndham, was one of the band leaders who  
encouraged me from about 1990 on to start playing jazz again and I  
played many gigs with them as a sideman in this area prior to starting  
my own band.

The final tune was, of course, "Saints" and all joined in to give Derf  
a rousing send-off.

RIP Derf.

Steve Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband

Jazz pianist Derf Nolde to be recalled at concert
Sunday, October 31, 2010 - by Curt Yeske
SPECIAL TO THE TRENTON TIMES
Leading jazz musicians from throughout the area have been cued and are  
ready to offer a resounding rendition of "When the Saints Go Marching  
In" to memorialize one of their own on today.

A top-tier array of traditional and jazz musicians will be saying  
goodbye to their friend and colleague Derf Nolde at a memorial concert  
from noon to 4 p.m. at Holly Hedge near New Hope, Pa.


Pianist Nolde, 82, who died Sept. 25, was one of the best known  
leaders of Dixieland and swing bands in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Nolde struck a professorial posture with his tall lanky frame topped  
by a striking shock of white hair that was often covered with a  
stylish straw hat.

But on a piano bench he was all business as he drew the best from his  
musicians in creating an enduring sound while entertaining audiences.

In decades gone by he was a main attraction at the now defunct Paddock  
Tavern in Trenton.

Although based for 30 years at Eagles Mere, Pa., Nolde traveled widely  
to perform in venues in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, including events  
and parties in Princeton.

For more than 15 years, starting in the mid-1980s, his Keystone Jazz  
Group pounded out Dixieland music for Sunday brunches at the  
Temperance House in Newtown, Pa.

Although originally trained as a classical pianist, Nolde was beholden  
to Dixie and swing once he was introduced to the genre and later  
taught music history and harmony at Rutgers University.

He operated a piano and guitar retail store in Flemington for many  
years.