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Gene Roland (September 15, 1921 – August 11, 1982)[1] was an American jazz musician, composer, and arranger who contributed richly to American jazz, especially through his work with theStan Kenton Orchestra. Born inDallas,Texas, he played multiple instruments, including the trumpet, trombone, and saxophone, and collaborated with musicians includingCount Basie andDizzy Gillespie. Roland was pivotal in defining the unique 'Four Brothers' sound that influenced big band jazz.[2] Throughout his career, he contributed groundbreaking arrangements and compositions for many major bands, performing globally and working with Denmark's Radiohus Orchestra.
Roland, who gained a degree in music from theUniversity of North Texas College of Music, first met Kenton in 1944, playing fifthtrumpet and contributing arrangements.[2] He worked briefly withLionel Hampton andLucky Millinder and then rejoined Kenton in 1945, this time as atrombonist and writer (he arranged the hit "Tampico").[1]
Roland playedpiano and wrote for a group in 1946 that includedStan Getz,Zoot Sims,Jimmy Giuffre andHerbie Steward and would lead toWoody Herman's Four Brothers Second Herd.[1] In the late 1940s, Roland played trombone withGeorgie Auld, trumpet withCount Basie,Charlie Barnet andLucky Millinder and contributed charts for the big bands ofClaude Thornhill andArtie Shaw.[1] After leading a giant rehearsal band in 1950 that includedDizzy Gillespie andCharlie Parker, Roland wrote for Kenton in 1951,Dan Terry in 1954, and Woody Herman from 1956 to 1958, for whom he contributed 65 arrangements. Roland was a major force in Kenton'smellophonium band of the early 1960s,[2] not only writing for the ensemble but performing as one of the mellophoniums; he also occasionally doubled on soprano sax with the orchestra.
Roland remained active as a writer in the 1960s and 1970s, working with the Radiohus Orchestra inCopenhagen (1967) and contributing charts to Kenton as well as Dan Terry'sD.T.B.B.B. album (Metronome Records, 1981); he also played trumpet, piano and tenor with his own groups.[1] In addition to writing an entire album for Kenton, Roland led his 1950 rehearsal band on aSpotlite release (Parker is one of his sidemen), led half of an album (recorded in 1957 and 1959) forDawn Records in which he plays trumpet, and arranged a 1963 octet record forBrunswick Records.
He died in New York on August 11, 1982, at the age of 60.[3]
WithStan Kenton
With others
