Moe Koffman
Encyclopedia
Moe Koffman, OC
(December 28, 1928 - March 28, 2001) was a Canadian jazz
musician and composer. He played the flute
, soprano, alto and tenor saxophone
and clarinet
. Although some jazz purists did not appreciate his sensitivity to popular tastes, his ability to adapt to changing styles reflected his technical skill as a musician and diverse musical interests.
Born Morris Koffman in Toronto
, he began his musical studies in his native city with Gordon Delamont
. He attended the Toronto Conservatory of Music, now the Royal Conservatory of Music of Toronto
, where he was a student of Samuel Dolin
but later dropped out of school to perform in dance bands. In 1950, he moved to the United States
, where he played with big band
s including those of Sonny Dunham
and Jimmy Dorsey
. In 1955, he returned to Toronto where he formed a quartet and later a quintet. He recorded Swinging Shepherd Blues in 1958 which helped establish his reputation as a flautist and ranked him alongside Herbie Mann
and Yusef Lateef
and later Jeremy Steig
as great influential jazz flute players. "Swinging Shepherd Blues" was a hit in the United States, reaching #23 on the Billboard pop chart.
Koffman was inspired by Rahsaan Roland Kirk
to play multiple instruments at once; and had a modified set of straps to hold a tenor and an alto saxophone so that he could put forward incredible chords and improvise at the same time. One of the more famous session musicians in Toronto, he appeared in countless commercials, background music, and film and TV soundtracks. Most work on bass flute in Canadian soundtracks from 1950 to 1990 in Toronto sessions was done by Koffman on this rare instrument. Koffman was also an exponent of circular breathing
techniques for his large volumes of sound, and joined fellow Canadian Maynard Ferguson
and new age multi-instrumentalist musician Ron Allen in this talent.
During the 1970s, Koffman recorded several popular albums with arrangements of works by classical composers including Bach
, Mozart
and Vivaldi
. He also was a guest performer with a number of symphony orchestras across Canada.
He performed with Dizzy Gillespie
and Peter Appleyard
during the 1980s. He often performed with Rob McConnell
's Boss Brass. From 1956 to 1990, Koffman booked performers for George's Spaghetti House
in Toronto, where he performed weekly. His compositions "Curried Soul" and "Koff Drops" have been used as the opening and closing themes respectively for the CBC
radio show As It Happens
for over 30 years, and are consequently probably his best-known recordings.
Koffman died of cancer
in Orangeville, Ontario
in 2001 at the age of 72. He had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma about a year earlier. Some of his music for Duke Street Records
remains unreleased; however Music for the Night was released and re-issued in 2007, and Devil's Brew will be re-issued in 2009.
He was appointed to the Order of Canada
in 1993 and inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1997. In 2002, Moe Koffman was a MasterWorks honouree (video clip) by the Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada
.
LPs:
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
(December 28, 1928 - March 28, 2001) was a Canadian jazz
Canadian jazz
Canadian jazz refers to the jazz and jazz-related music performed by jazz bands and performers in Canada. In Canada, there are hundreds of local and regionally-based Canadian jazz bands and performers...
musician and composer. He played the flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, soprano, alto and tenor saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
and clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
. Although some jazz purists did not appreciate his sensitivity to popular tastes, his ability to adapt to changing styles reflected his technical skill as a musician and diverse musical interests.
Born Morris Koffman in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, he began his musical studies in his native city with Gordon Delamont
Gordon Delamont
Gordon Arthur Delamont was a Canadian music educator, author, composer, and trumpeter. He is best remembered for his work as an educator, having helped shape the talents of dozens of notable musicians in Toronto. He also published several books on musical theory topics which have been used widely...
. He attended the Toronto Conservatory of Music, now the Royal Conservatory of Music of Toronto
Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto)
The Royal Conservatory of Music, also known as The Royal Conservatory, is one of the largest and most respected music education institutions in the world...
, where he was a student of Samuel Dolin
Samuel Dolin
Samuel Joseph Dolin was a Canadian composer, music educator, and arts administrator. An associate of the Canadian Music Centre and a founding member of the Canadian League of Composers , he served as the CLC's vice president in 1967-1968 and president from 1969-1973...
but later dropped out of school to perform in dance bands. In 1950, he moved to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, where he played with big band
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...
s including those of Sonny Dunham
Sonny Dunham
Elmer "Sonny" Dunham was an American trumpet player and bandleader.Born in Brockton, Massachusetts, the son of Elmer and Ethel Dunham, he attended local schools and took lessons on the valve trombone at the age of 7. He changed to the slide trombone at age 11, and was playing in local bands by...
and Jimmy Dorsey
Jimmy Dorsey
James "Jimmy" Dorsey was a prominent American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, trumpeter, composer, and big band leader. He was known as "JD"...
. In 1955, he returned to Toronto where he formed a quartet and later a quintet. He recorded Swinging Shepherd Blues in 1958 which helped establish his reputation as a flautist and ranked him alongside Herbie Mann
Herbie Mann
Herbert Jay Solomon , better known as Herbie Mann, was a Jewish American jazz flutist and important early practitioner of world music...
and Yusef Lateef
Yusef Lateef
Dr. Yusef Lateef is an American Grammy Award-winning jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, educator and a spokesman for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community after his conversion to the Ahmadiyya sect of Islam in 1950.Although Lateef's main instruments are the tenor saxophone and flute, he is known for...
and later Jeremy Steig
Jeremy Steig
-Biography:Steig is the son of New Yorker cartoonist William Steig,At age 19 Steig was involved in a motorcycle accident which left him paralyzed on one side...
as great influential jazz flute players. "Swinging Shepherd Blues" was a hit in the United States, reaching #23 on the Billboard pop chart.
Koffman was inspired by Rahsaan Roland Kirk
Rahsaan Roland Kirk
Rahsaan Roland Kirk was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist who played tenor saxophone, flute and many other instruments...
to play multiple instruments at once; and had a modified set of straps to hold a tenor and an alto saxophone so that he could put forward incredible chords and improvise at the same time. One of the more famous session musicians in Toronto, he appeared in countless commercials, background music, and film and TV soundtracks. Most work on bass flute in Canadian soundtracks from 1950 to 1990 in Toronto sessions was done by Koffman on this rare instrument. Koffman was also an exponent of circular breathing
Circular breathing
Circular breathing is a technique used by players of some wind instruments to produce a continuous tone without interruption. This is accomplished by breathing in through the nose while simultaneously pushing air out through the mouth using air stored in the cheeks.It is used extensively in playing...
techniques for his large volumes of sound, and joined fellow Canadian Maynard Ferguson
Maynard Ferguson
Maynard Ferguson was a Canadian jazz musician and bandleader. He came to prominence playing in Stan Kenton's orchestra, before forming his own band in 1957...
and new age multi-instrumentalist musician Ron Allen in this talent.
During the 1970s, Koffman recorded several popular albums with arrangements of works by classical composers including Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
, Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
and Vivaldi
Antonio Vivaldi
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi , nicknamed because of his red hair, was an Italian Baroque composer, priest, and virtuoso violinist, born in Venice. Vivaldi is recognized as one of the greatest Baroque composers, and his influence during his lifetime was widespread over Europe...
. He also was a guest performer with a number of symphony orchestras across Canada.
He performed with Dizzy Gillespie
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
and Peter Appleyard
Peter Appleyard
Peter Appleyard, is a Canadian jazz vibraphonist, percussionist, and composer of English birth. He has spent most of his life living and performing in the city of Toronto where for many years he was a highly popular performer in the city's nightclubs and hotels...
during the 1980s. He often performed with Rob McConnell
Rob McConnell
Robert Murray Gordon "Rob" McConnell, was a Canadian jazz valve trombonist, composer, arranger, music educator, and recording artist.-Biography:...
's Boss Brass. From 1956 to 1990, Koffman booked performers for George's Spaghetti House
George's Spaghetti House
George's Spaghetti House was a famous jazz club in Toronto on Sherbourne street operated by Doug Cole in which Moe Koffman led the house band. It hosted many famous musicians from Don Francks to Sonny Rollins, operating from 1956 through 1984....
in Toronto, where he performed weekly. His compositions "Curried Soul" and "Koff Drops" have been used as the opening and closing themes respectively for the CBC
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
radio show As It Happens
As It Happens
As It Happens is a long-running interview show on CBC Radio One in Canada. Its 40th anniversary was celebrated on-air on 18 November 2008. It has been one of the most popular and acclaimed shows on CBC Radio; it is also distributed in the United States by Public Radio International.The bulk of the...
for over 30 years, and are consequently probably his best-known recordings.
Koffman died of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in Orangeville, Ontario
Orangeville, Ontario
Orangeville is a town in south-central Ontario, Canada, and the seat of Dufferin County.-History:Before European settlers, Orangeville was thought to be a native hunting ground...
in 2001 at the age of 72. He had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma about a year earlier. Some of his music for Duke Street Records
Duke Street Records
Duke Street Records was a Canadian independent record label. The label was established in 1984 by Andrew Hermant and ceased operations in 1994. The Universal Music Group took over the label when it disappeared....
remains unreleased; however Music for the Night was released and re-issued in 2007, and Devil's Brew will be re-issued in 2009.
He was appointed to the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
in 1993 and inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1997. In 2002, Moe Koffman was a MasterWorks honouree (video clip) by the Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada
Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada
The Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada was a charitable non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the preservation of Canada’s audio-visual heritage, and to facilitating access to regional and national collections through partnerships with members of Canada's audio-visual community...
.
Discography
Singles:- "Pixies Three"
- "Swinging Shepherd Blues"
LPs:
- Hot And Cool Saxophone (1957) (Jubilee)
- The Shepherd Swings Again (1958) (Jubilee)
- Moe Koffman The Swinging Shepherd Plays For Teens (1962) (Ascot)
- Tales Of Koffman (1962) (UA)
- The Moe Koffman Quartet (1963) (CTA)
- Moe Koffman (1967) (Universal)
- 1967 (1967) (Just A Memory)
- Moe Koffman Quartet (1967) (CBC/RCI)
- Moe Koffman Goes Electric (1967) (Jubilee)
- Turned On Moe Koffman (1968) (Jubilee)
- Moe's Curried Soul with Doug RileyDoug RileyDoug Riley, CM was a Canadian musician. Born in Toronto, Ontario and informally referred to as "Doctor Music", he spent two decades with the Famous People Players as its musical director, besides his participation on over 300 album projects in various genres...
& Lenny BreauLenny BreauLeonard Harold "Lenny" Breau was a musician, guitar player, and music educator. He was known for blending many styles of music including: jazz, country, classical and flamenco guitar...
(1969) (Revolver) - Moe Koffman Plays Bach (1971) (GRT)
- The Four Seasons (1972) (GRT)
- Master Session (1974) (GRT)
- Solar Explorations (1974) (GRT)
- Swinging Shepherd (1975) (Universal)
- Live At George's (1975) (GRT)
- Jungle Man (1976) (GRT)
- Museum Pieces (1977) (Janus)
- Things Are Looking Up (1978) (GRT)
- Back To Bach (1979) (Anthem)
- Project (1980) (Universal)
- Moe-Mentum (1986) (Universal)
- One Moe Time (1986) (Duke)
- Oop.Pop.A.Da featuring Dizzy GillespieDizzy GillespieJohn Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
(1989) (Universal) - Music For The Night arranged by Doug RileyDoug RileyDoug Riley, CM was a Canadian musician. Born in Toronto, Ontario and informally referred to as "Doctor Music", he spent two decades with the Famous People Players as its musical director, besides his participation on over 300 album projects in various genres...
(1991) (Universal) - Collection (1993) (Universal)
- Devil's Brew (1996) (Universal)