Jazz Saxophonist. He also played the Clarinet, Oboe and the Piano. Considered one of the greatest tenor saxophone players of all time, well known for his instantly recognizable warm tone as displayed in his version of "The Girl From Ipanema." Nicknamed "The Sound" due to his own unique, polished style, Stan Getz is considered one of America's top tenor saxophone players. Getz, whose main early influence was Lester Young, grew to be a major influence himself and to his credit he never stopped evolving. Born Stanley Gayetzky, his parents were Ukrainian Jews who emigrated from the Kiev area in Ukraine in 1903. The family later moved to New York City for better jobs. At the age of 6, Getz was already interested in music instruments. At the age of 12, he played the harmonica until his school's band director chose him to play the bass. It was then that he realized he had a rare gift. At 13, his father gave him an alto-sax, he became particularly interested in the tenor sax. In his teen years he received training by playing in Jack Teagarden's bands. In 1944, he joined Stan Kenton's band and played with Jimmy Dorsey in 1945. He then played with Benny Goodman until 1946. His popularity rose when he became part of Woody Herman's Second Herd. He was one of the original members of "The Four Brothers" sax section. With the recording of "Early Autumn" while playing with the Woody Herman Band, his popularity continued to rise. He worked with different talented musicians and in 1961 helped make bossa nova (a mix of jazz and samba) more popular. With his quartet, he recorded "The Girl From Ipanema" which topped the charts in 1964. During the 1970s, he continued to play in Europe and after that at the Rainbow Grill in the U.S. He was incarcerated for drugs in 1954. He tried to fight his addiction by moving to Denmark in 1958. He once again had problems with the law due to drug use in 1969. He moved to Spain and stopped performing until 1971 when he began playing with an organ band in Europe. Getz toured and recorded heavily in the 1970s and 1980s, it is said that he recorded more than 300 pieces until the time of his death from cancer.
Jazz Saxophonist. He also played the Clarinet, Oboe and the Piano. Considered one of the greatest tenor saxophone players of all time, well known for his instantly recognizable warm tone as displayed in his version of "The Girl From Ipanema." Nicknamed "The Sound" due to his own unique, polished style, Stan Getz is considered one of America's top tenor saxophone players. Getz, whose main early influence was Lester Young, grew to be a major influence himself and to his credit he never stopped evolving. Born Stanley Gayetzky, his parents were Ukrainian Jews who emigrated from the Kiev area in Ukraine in 1903. The family later moved to New York City for better jobs. At the age of 6, Getz was already interested in music instruments. At the age of 12, he played the harmonica until his school's band director chose him to play the bass. It was then that he realized he had a rare gift. At 13, his father gave him an alto-sax, he became particularly interested in the tenor sax. In his teen years he received training by playing in Jack Teagarden's bands. In 1944, he joined Stan Kenton's band and played with Jimmy Dorsey in 1945. He then played with Benny Goodman until 1946. His popularity rose when he became part of Woody Herman's Second Herd. He was one of the original members of "The Four Brothers" sax section. With the recording of "Early Autumn" while playing with the Woody Herman Band, his popularity continued to rise. He worked with different talented musicians and in 1961 helped make bossa nova (a mix of jazz and samba) more popular. With his quartet, he recorded "The Girl From Ipanema" which topped the charts in 1964. During the 1970s, he continued to play in Europe and after that at the Rainbow Grill in the U.S. He was incarcerated for drugs in 1954. He tried to fight his addiction by moving to Denmark in 1958. He once again had problems with the law due to drug use in 1969. He moved to Spain and stopped performing until 1971 when he began playing with an organ band in Europe. Getz toured and recorded heavily in the 1970s and 1980s, it is said that he recorded more than 300 pieces until the time of his death from cancer.
Bio by: Curtis Jackson
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