Frank Gagliardi
Encyclopedia
Frank Gagliardi was an American jazz drummer and percussionist, big band
composer, arranger, director, and professor. He was the creator and director of the UNLV Jazz Ensemble from 1974 until 1996. Prior to that, he worked as the drummer and percussionist at the Sands Hotel
, accompanying such notable performers as Frank Sinatra
, Dean Martin
, Sammy Davis, Jr.
, Patti Page
, Lena Horne
, Steve Lawrence
, Eydie Gorme
, Joe Williams
, Marlena Shaw
and Joey Bishop
among many others.
-playing older brother Vince, at age 8, Frank began the drum lessons that led to his becoming, at 17, a percussionist with the Denver Symphony Orchestra
, where he played for the next 15 years. During that time, Frank earned his Master’s degree in Music Education
and taught a course in Jazz
at Denver University.
in Las Vegas
, where he played for star entertainers such as Frank Sinatra
and the “Rat Pack
.” After 10 years, he joined the faculty of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas
, and over the next 22 years, Frank led the UNLV Jazz Ensemble to international stature, traveling world-wide, capturing multiple awards, and releasing 12 albums and CDs. He continued performing at the Sands until 1988.
", performed by Louis Armstrong
on which he was percussionist. This song has appeared in many movies from Madagascar
to Good Morning Vietnam.
, East Germany, and Peru
.
program were it not for his passion for the music and his dedication to the students, many of whom looked to him for guidance beyond the classroom. He was always there to help, whether it was with a wise word, or a few dollars for rent or groceries.
Big band
A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with jazz and the Swing Era typically consisting of rhythm, brass, and woodwind instruments totaling approximately twelve to twenty-five musicians...
composer, arranger, director, and professor. He was the creator and director of the UNLV Jazz Ensemble from 1974 until 1996. Prior to that, he worked as the drummer and percussionist at the Sands Hotel
Sands Hotel
The Sands Hotel was a historic Las Vegas Strip hotel/casino that operated from December 15, 1952 to June 30, 1996. Designed by architect Wayne McAllister, the Sands was the seventh resort that opened on the Strip....
, accompanying such notable performers as Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
, Dean Martin
Dean Martin
Dean Martin was an American singer, film actor, television star and comedian. Martin's hit singles included "Memories Are Made of This", "That's Amore", "Everybody Loves Somebody", "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You", "Sway", "Volare" and "Ain't That a Kick in the Head?"...
, Sammy Davis, Jr.
Sammy Davis, Jr.
Samuel George "Sammy" Davis Jr. was an American entertainer and was also known for his impersonations of actors and other celebrities....
, Patti Page
Patti Page
Clara Ann Fowler , known by her professional name Patti Page, is an American singer, one of the best-known female artists in traditional pop music. She was the best-selling female artist of the 1950s, and has sold over 100 million records...
, Lena Horne
Lena Horne
Lena Mary Calhoun Horne was an American singer, actress, civil rights activist and dancer.Horne joined the chorus of the Cotton Club at the age of sixteen and became a nightclub performer before moving to Hollywood, where she had small parts in numerous movies, and more substantial parts in the...
, Steve Lawrence
Steve Lawrence
Steve Lawrence is an American singer and actor, perhaps best known as a member of a duo with his wife Eydie Gormé, billed as "Steve and Eydie"...
, Eydie Gorme
Eydie Gormé
Eydie Gormé is an American singer, specializing, with her husband, Steve Lawrence, in traditional pop music, in the form of ballads and breezy swing. She has earned numerous awards, including the Grammy and the Emmy...
, Joe Williams
Joe Williams (jazz singer)
Joe Williams was a well-known jazz vocalist, a baritone singing a mixture of blues, ballads, popular songs, and jazz standards.-Early life:...
, Marlena Shaw
Marlena Shaw
Marlena Shaw is an American singer. Shaw began her singing career in the 1960s and is still singing today. Her music has often been sampled in hip hop music, and used in television commercials.-Biography:She was first introduced to music by her uncle Jimmy Burgess, a jazz trumpet player...
and Joey Bishop
Joey Bishop
Joey Bishop was an American entertainer who was perhaps best known for being a member of the "Rat Pack" with Frank Sinatra, Peter Lawford, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Dean Martin...
among many others.
Early life
Born in Denver, Frank’s interest in music started at a young age. Inspired by his accordionAccordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
-playing older brother Vince, at age 8, Frank began the drum lessons that led to his becoming, at 17, a percussionist with the Denver Symphony Orchestra
Denver Symphony Orchestra
The Denver Symphony Orchestra, established in 1934 and dissolved in 1989, was a professional American orchestra in Denver, Colorado. Until 1978, when the Boettcher Concert Hall was built to house the symphony orchestra, it performed in a succession of theaters, amphitheaters and auditoriums...
, where he played for the next 15 years. During that time, Frank earned his Master’s degree in Music Education
Music education
Music education is a field of study associated with the teaching and learning of music. It touches on all domains of learning, including the psychomotor domain , the cognitive domain , and, in particular and significant ways,the affective domain, including music appreciation and sensitivity...
and taught a course in Jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
at Denver University.
Career
In 1964, Frank was hired for what he called “the best job in the world”, percussionist for the Sands HotelSands Hotel
The Sands Hotel was a historic Las Vegas Strip hotel/casino that operated from December 15, 1952 to June 30, 1996. Designed by architect Wayne McAllister, the Sands was the seventh resort that opened on the Strip....
in Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
, where he played for star entertainers such as Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
and the “Rat Pack
Rat Pack
The Rat Pack was a group of actors originally centered on Humphrey Bogart. In the mid-1960s it was the name used by the press and the general public to refer to a later variation of the group, after Bogart's death, that called itself "the summit" or "the clan," featuring Frank Sinatra, Dean...
.” After 10 years, he joined the faculty of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
University of Nevada-Las Vegas is a public, coeducational university located in the Las Vegas suburb of Paradise, Nevada, USA. The campus is located approximately east of the Las Vegas Strip. The institution includes a Shadow Lane Campus, located just east of the University Medical Center of...
, and over the next 22 years, Frank led the UNLV Jazz Ensemble to international stature, traveling world-wide, capturing multiple awards, and releasing 12 albums and CDs. He continued performing at the Sands until 1988.
Significant works
Frank Gagliardi was best associated with the work he did with the UNLV Jazz Ensemble including several albums such as That's a Wrap and Caliente, Muy Caliente. However, the most popular work with which he was associated was on the single, "What a Wonderful WorldWhat a Wonderful World
"What a Wonderful World" is a song written by Bob Thiele and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louis Armstrong and released as a single in 1968. Thiele and Weiss were both prominent in the music world . Armstrong's recording was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999...
", performed by Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
on which he was percussionist. This song has appeared in many movies from Madagascar
Madagascar (2005 film)
Madagascar is a 2005 computer-animated film produced by DreamWorks Animation, and released in movie theaters on May 27, 2005. The film tells the story of four Central Park Zoo animals who have spent their lives in blissful captivity and are unexpectedly shipped back to Africa, getting shipwrecked...
to Good Morning Vietnam.
Live performances
Though a live performer at the Sands for many years, Frank Gagliardi is probably best remembered for his work with the UNLV Jazz Ensemble. Under his direction, the UNLV Jazz Ensemble was highly acclaimed internationally performing regularly in such places as JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, East Germany, and Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
.
Legacy
At UNLV, Frank would not have had such a distinguished jazzJazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
program were it not for his passion for the music and his dedication to the students, many of whom looked to him for guidance beyond the classroom. He was always there to help, whether it was with a wise word, or a few dollars for rent or groceries.
Personal life
He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Charleen; daughter, Susan; son, Ric and his wife, Linda; grandson, Alessandro; brother, Vincent; and the many students for whom he was a profound influence.External links
- http://vegasjazz.org/Press%20Release%20UNLV%20JAZZ%20Award.pdf DownBeat Magazine recognizes UNLV Jazz Ensemble I as one of the nation’s best for Graduate College Large Ensemble Outstanding Performance