Ken Rattenbury
Encyclopedia
Ken Rattenbury was an English
jazz
trumpeter, pianist
and composer and author
born in Spilsby
, Lincolnshire
to Sidney, a postman, and Maude (nee
Miller), a homemaker. He would go on to serve in the British Army
from 1940-1946 as a private first class
. He received a World War II Victory Medal, Defence Medal, and the British Expeditionary Forces medal.
leading his own band. In 1946 he had a stint with Stars in Battledress
, and after being demobilized lived in the English Midlands
. He mostly did freelancing until he formed his own band in 1951. He wrote a extended jazz suite in honor of Bix Beiderbecke
, called Mirror to Bix, and had George Chisholm
and Steve Race
. During 1963 and 1964, he composed and broadcast two thirty-minute jazz suites, The Seven Ages of Man and The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and again had some of the greats of jazz play with him, Kenny Baker
and had Michael Hordern
reciting the famous Shakespearean soliloquy, "All the world's a stage ..." in the Seven Ages suite. He then worked for EMI
to produce full-length albums of incidental music to stories by Hans Christian Andersen
and The Brothers Grimm. He then established the Jazz Four.
He got his M.A. from University of Keele
in 1984.
Rattenbury is most notable for his Duke Ellington
biography
, but also had been commissioned by the BBC
in the 1960s to compose two half-hour jazz suites titled The Seven Ages of Man and The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
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...
trumpeter, pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
and composer and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
born in Spilsby
Spilsby
Spilsby is a market town and civil parish in Lincolnshire. England. The town is situated adjacent to the main A16 Trunk Road at the southern edge of the Lincolnshire Wolds north of the Fenlands, east of the county town of Lincoln, north east of Boston and north west from Skegness.The town has...
, Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
to Sidney, a postman, and Maude (nee
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Miller), a homemaker. He would go on to serve in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
from 1940-1946 as a private first class
Private First Class
Private First Class is a military rank held by junior enlisted persons.- Singapore :The rank of Private First Class in the Singapore Armed Forces lies between the ranks of Private and Lance-Corporal . It is usually held by conscript soldiers midway through their national service term...
. He received a World War II Victory Medal, Defence Medal, and the British Expeditionary Forces medal.
Jazz career
He first joined a jazz band playing the piano in 1933. While in the Service, he took up the trumpet and toured the European Theatre of World War IIEuropean Theatre of World War II
The European Theatre of World War II was a huge area of heavy fighting across Europe from Germany's invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939 until the end of the war with the German unconditional surrender on May 8, 1945...
leading his own band. In 1946 he had a stint with Stars in Battledress
Stars in Battledress
Stars in Battledress ' was an organisation that produced entertainment during World War II for and by military personnel- History :In Britain, during the Second World War, entertainment was considered an essential to keep morale high. In 1939 ENSA was organised by Basil Dean to send groups of...
, and after being demobilized lived in the English Midlands
English Midlands
The Midlands, or the English Midlands, is the traditional name for the area comprising central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders Southern England, Northern England, East Anglia and Wales. Its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important...
. He mostly did freelancing until he formed his own band in 1951. He wrote a extended jazz suite in honor of Bix Beiderbecke
Bix Beiderbecke
Leon Bismark "Bix" Beiderbecke was an American jazz cornetist, jazz pianist, and composer.With Louis Armstrong, Beiderbecke was one of the most influential jazz soloists of the 1920s...
, called Mirror to Bix, and had George Chisholm
George Chisholm (musician)
George Chisholm OBE was a Scottish jazz trombonist.Born in Glasgow to a family of musicians, Chisholm's musical career began in the Glasgow Playhouse orchestra. In the late 1930s he moved to London, where he played in dance bands led by Bert Ambrose and Teddy Joyce...
and Steve Race
Steve Race
Stephen Russell Race OBE was a British composer, pianist and radio and television presenter.-Biography:Born in Lincoln, the son of a lawyer, Race learned the piano from the age of five...
. During 1963 and 1964, he composed and broadcast two thirty-minute jazz suites, The Seven Ages of Man and The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and again had some of the greats of jazz play with him, Kenny Baker
Kenny Baker (trumpeter)
Kenny Baker was born on 1 March 1921 in Withernsea, East Riding of Yorkshire and died 7 December 1999. He was an accomplished player of jazz trumpet, cornet and flugelhorn, and a composer.-Biography:...
and had Michael Hordern
Michael Hordern
Sir Michael Murray Hordern was an English actor, knighted in 1983 for his services to the theatre, which stretched back to before the Second World War.-Personal life:...
reciting the famous Shakespearean soliloquy, "All the world's a stage ..." in the Seven Ages suite. He then worked for EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
to produce full-length albums of incidental music to stories by Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen was a Danish author, fairy tale writer, and poet noted for his children's stories. These include "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," "The Snow Queen," "The Little Mermaid," "Thumbelina," "The Little Match Girl," and "The Ugly Duckling."...
and The Brothers Grimm. He then established the Jazz Four.
He got his M.A. from University of Keele
Keele University
Keele University is a campus university near Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as an experimental college dedicated to a broad curriculum and interdisciplinary study, Keele is most notable for pioneering the dual honours degree in Britain...
in 1984.
Rattenbury is most notable for his Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
biography
Biography
A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life. More than a list of basic facts , biography also portrays the subject's experience of those events...
, but also had been commissioned by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
in the 1960s to compose two half-hour jazz suites titled The Seven Ages of Man and The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner.
Works
- Duke Ellington, Jazz Composer Yale University PressYale University PressYale University Press is a book publisher founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day. It became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but remains financially and operationally autonomous....
, 1990; ISBN 0300044283 - Jazz Journey 1925-94, 1995; autobiography