Harry Carney

Harry Howell Carney is a Saxophoniste baritone, viola and Clarinettiste (clarinet and low clarinet), American, born with Boston (Massachusetts, the United States) on April 1st 1910 and deceased with New York (the United States) the October 8th 1974.

He studies initially the Piano then is interested in the Clarinette and the alto sax. Whereas it is still with the college, it at the time of playing in obscure formations, the Knights off Pythias, then Bobby Sawyer and the pianist Walter Johnson. At sixteen years, it is engaged by Duke Ellington (first recording on October 6th, 1927). Rare thing in the world of the Jazz, it remains with Ellington until the death of this last in May 1974. It takes part sometimes in recordings in studio by musicians like Lionel Hampton, Benny Goodman, Sidney Bechet, Cousin Joe, Harry James, Teddy Wilson, Jimmy Jones, Sandy Williams, Billie Holiday, and, of course, the highly skilled ellingtonien Johnny Hodges, Rex Stewart and Cootie Williams.

Harry Carney is the pillar par excellence of the orchestra of Duke Ellington, the base impossible to circumvent of its section of sheers, vector of depth and density. Poly-instrumentalist first of all, it is especially the baritone who makes known it. It is especially him which gives him a honourable statute, after the first rather awkward tests of Adrian Rollini, by the mobility (as well in phrased as in the intensity) of its play, mobility inspired of the work of Coleman Hawkins to the tenor and its own practice of nimbler instruments. Its speech is modelled attentively, passing from the density of the register serious to the promptness of the medium, sometimes felted and sometimes in extreme cases of a soft “growl”, without the scintillation “corny” of its predecessors, and by a precision and a flexibility remarkable of the attack. Of an instrument dedicated to the rhythmic underlining of the “Chicagoans”, it made a participant in whole share of the melody section and soloist. Its solis is short (sometimes 8 measurements), but always decisive. He played the same part of pioneer and clearer to the low clarinet.

Its instrument of predilection is the saxophone baritone. It caused many vocations besides, like those of Cecil Payne, Leo Parker, Sahib Shihab, Gerry Mulligan, Serge Chaloff, Bob Gordon, Pepper Adams, Ronnie Cuber, Hamiet Bluiett. None is really disciple, but all prolonged one of the aspects of its play.

Personal discography

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