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Gene Roland (1921–1982) was a talented jazz musician, composer, and arranger who contributed richly to American jazz, especially through his work with the Stan Kenton Orchestra. Born in Dallas, Texas, he played multiple instruments, including the trumpet, trombone, and saxophone, and collaborated with icons like Count Basie and Dizzy Gillespie. Roland was pivotal in defining the unique "Four Brothers" sound that influenced big band jazz. Throughout his career, he contributed groundbreaking arrangements and compositions for many major bands, performing globally and even working with Denmark's Radiohus Orchestra.

Life and work

Roland, who gained a degree in music from the University of North Texas College of Music, first met Kenton in 1944, playing fifth trumpet and contributing arrangements. He worked briefly with Lionel Hampton and Lucky Millinder and then rejoined Kenton in 1945, this time as a trombonist and writer (he arranged the hit "Tampico").^[1]

Roland played piano and wrote for a group in 1946 that included Stan Getz, Zoot Sims, Jimmy Giuffre and Herbie Steward and would lead to Woody Herman's Four Brothers Second Herd.^[1] In the late 1940s, Roland played trombone with Georgie Auld, trumpet with Count Basie, Charlie Barnet and Lucky Millinder and contributed charts for the big bands of Claude Thornhill and Artie Shaw.^[1] After leading a giant rehearsal band in 1950 that included Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie 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's mellophonium band of the early 1960s, 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 in Copenhagen (1967) and contributing charts to Kenton as well as Dan Terry's D.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 a Spotlite release (Parker is one of his sidemen), led half of an album (recorded in 1957 and 1959) for Dawn Records in which he plays trumpet, and arranged a 1963 octet record for Brunswick Records.

Discography

As leader

Jazzville Vol. 4 (Dawn, 1957)

As sideman

With Stan Kenton

Stan Kenton Classics (Capitol, 1952)
The Kenton Era (Capitol, 1955)
A Merry Christmas! (Capitol, 1961)
Kenton's West Side Story (Capitol, 1961)
The Romantic Approach in the Ballad Style of Stan Kenton (Capitol, 1961)
Sophisticated Approach (Capitol, 1962)
Stan Kenton! Tex Ritter! (Capitol, 1962)
Adventures in Blues (Capitol, 1963)
The Uncollected Stan Kenton and His Orchestra 1944-1945 Vol. 4 (Hindsight, 1979)

With others

June Christy, June Time (Swing House, 1981)
Stan Getz, Zoot Sims, Paul Quinichette, Wardell Grey, Tenors Anyone? (Dawn, 1958)
Jimmy Knepper, A Swinging Introduction to Jimmy Knepper (Bethlehem 1957)
Lucky Millinder, Cab Calloway, Awful Natural (RCA, 1977)
Rita Reys, Sylvia Pierce & Peggy Serra, New Voices (Dawn, 1957)
Tom Talbert, 1946–1949 (Sea Breeze, 1995)

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Colin Larkin, ed. (2002). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Fifties Music (Third ed.). Virgin Books. p. 370. ISBN 1-85227-937-0.

External links

[Larkin50-1] Colin Larkin, ed. (2002). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Fifties Music (Third ed.). Virgin Books. p. 370. ISBN 1-85227-937-0.

[1]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Short description|American jazz composer (1921–1982)}}
-'''Gene M. Roland''' (September 15, 1921 in [[Dallas]] &ndash; August 11, 1982 in [[New York City]]) was a [[jazz]] [[composer]] and [[musician]] who played many instruments during his career but was most significant as an arranger/composer and for his association with [[Stan Kenton]]. Roland was the only arranger to write for Kenton in all four decades of the band's existence.<ref>Michael Sparke, ''Stan Kenton&nbsp;– This Is an Orchestra!'', excerpt from one of the photo pages between pps 142 & 143, University of North Texas Press (2010)</ref>
+'''Gene Roland''' (1921–1982) was a talented '''jazz musician''', composer, and arranger who contributed richly to American jazz, especially through his work with the '''Stan Kenton Orchestra'''. Born in '''Dallas, Texas''', he played multiple instruments, including the trumpet, trombone, and saxophone, and collaborated with icons like '''Count Basie''' and '''Dizzy Gillespie'''. Roland was pivotal in defining the unique "'''Four Brothers'''" sound that influenced big band jazz. Throughout his career, he contributed groundbreaking arrangements and compositions for many major bands, performing globally and even working with '''Denmark's Radiohus Orchestra'''.
 ==Life and work==
-Roland, who gained a degree in music from the [[University of North Texas College of Music]], first met up with Kenton in 1944, playing fifth [[trumpet]] and contributing arrangements. He worked briefly with [[Lionel Hampton]] and [[Lucky Millinder]] and then rejoined Kenton in 1945, this time as a [[trombonist]] and writer (he arranged the hit "Tampico").
+Roland, who gained a degree in music from the [[University of North Texas College of Music]], first met Kenton in 1944, playing fifth [[trumpet]] and contributing arrangements. He worked briefly with [[Lionel Hampton]] and [[Lucky Millinder]] and then rejoined Kenton in 1945, this time as a [[trombonist]] and writer (he arranged the hit "[[Tampico (song)|Tampico]]").<ref name="Larkin50">{{cite book |title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Virgin Encyclopedia of Fifties Music]] |date=2002 |publisher=[[Virgin Books]] |isbn=1-85227-937-0 |editor=Colin Larkin |editor-link=Colin Larkin (writer) |edition=Third |page=370}}</ref>
-Roland played [[piano]] and wrote for a group in 1946 that included [[Stan Getz]], [[Zoot Sims]], [[Jimmy Giuffre]] and [[Herbie Steward]] and would lead to [[Woody Herman]]'s Four Brothers Second Herd. In the late 1940s, Roland played trombone with [[Georgie Auld]], trumpet with [[Count Basie]], [[Charlie Barnet]] and Lucky Millinder and contributed charts for the big bands of [[Claude Thornhill]] and [[Artie Shaw]]. After leading a giant rehearsal band in 1950 that included [[Dizzy Gillespie]] and [[Charlie Parker]], Roland wrote for Kenton in 1951, [[Dan Terry]] in 1954, and Woody Herman from 1956–58, for whom he contributed 65 arrangements. Roland was a major force in Kenton's [[mellophonium]] band of the early 1960s, not only writing for the ensemble but performing as one of the [[mellophoniums]]; he also occasionally doubled on soprano sax with the orchestra.
+Roland played [[piano]] and wrote for a group in 1946 that included [[Stan Getz]], [[Zoot Sims]], [[Jimmy Giuffre]] and [[Herbie Steward]] and would lead to [[Woody Herman]]'s Four Brothers Second Herd.<ref name="Larkin50"/> In the late 1940s, Roland played trombone with [[Georgie Auld]], trumpet with [[Count Basie]], [[Charlie Barnet]] and [[Lucky Millinder]] and contributed charts for the big bands of [[Claude Thornhill]] and [[Artie Shaw]].<ref name="Larkin50"/> After leading a giant rehearsal band in 1950 that included [[Dizzy Gillespie]] and [[Charlie 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's [[mellophonium]] band of the early 1960s, 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 in [[Copenhagen]] (1967) and contributing charts to Kenton as well as Dan Terry's ''D.T.B.B.B.'' album (Metronome Records, 1981); he also played trumpet, piano and tenor with his own groups.<ref name="Larkin50"/> In addition to writing an entire album for Kenton, Roland led his 1950 rehearsal band on a [[Spotlite Records|Spotlite]] release ([[Charlie Parker|Parker]] is one of his sidemen), led half of an album (recorded in 1957 and 1959) for [[Dawn Records]] in which he plays trumpet, and arranged a 1963 octet record for [[Brunswick Records]].
-Gene Roland provided the robust vocal on "Hawaiian Teenage Girl" (composed by Bob Bertram), issued on a 49th State Record Company as 45 rpm record HRC-314A.
-Roland remained active as a writer in the 1960s and 70s, working with the Radiohus Orchestra in [[Copenhagen]] (1967) and contributing charts to Kenton as well as Dan Terry's D.T.B.B.B. album (Metronome Records, 1981); he also played trumpet, piano and tenor with his own groups. In addition to writing an entire album for Kenton, Roland led his 1950 rehearsal band on a [[Spotlite Records|Spotlite]] release ([[Charlie Parker|Parker]] is one of his sidemen), led half of an album (recorded in 1957 and 1959) for [[Dawn Records]] in which he plays trumpet, and arranged a 1963 octet record for [[Brunswick Records]].
 ==Discography==
+===As leader===
-{{expand section|date=April 2016}}
+* ''Jazzville Vol. 4'' (Dawn, 1957)
+===As sideman===
 '''With [[Stan Kenton]]'''
-*''[[Stan Kenton Classics]]'' (Capitol, 1944-47 [1952])
+* ''[[Stan Kenton Classics]]'' (Capitol, 1952)
-*''[[The Kenton Era]]'' (Capitol, 1940–54, [1955])
+* ''[[The Kenton Era]]'' (Capitol, 1955)
-*''[[Kenton Live from the Las Vegas Tropicana]]'' (Capitol, 1959 [1961]) – as composer and arranger
+* ''[[A Merry Christmas!]]'' (Capitol, 1961)
-*''[[Viva Kenton!]]'' (Capitol, 1959 [1960]) – as composer and arranger
+* ''Kenton's West Side Story'' (Capitol, 1961)
-*''[[A Merry Christmas!]]'' (Capitol, 1961)
+* ''The Romantic Approach in the Ballad Style of Stan Kenton'' (Capitol, 1961)
-*''[[Sophisticated Approach]]'' (Capitol, 1961)
+* ''[[Sophisticated Approach]]'' (Capitol, 1962)
-*''[[Adventures in Blues]]'' (Capitol, 1961 [1963]) – as performer, composer, arranger and conductor
+* ''[[Stan Kenton! Tex Ritter!]]'' (Capitol, 1962)
-*''[[Stan Kenton! Tex Ritter!]]'' (Capitol, 1962) with [[Tex Ritter]]
+* ''Adventures in Blues'' (Capitol, 1963)
+* ''The Uncollected Stan Kenton and His Orchestra 1944-1945 Vol. 4'' (Hindsight, 1979)
-'''With [[Jimmy Knepper]]'''
-*''[[A Swinging Introduction to Jimmy Knepper]]'' (Bethlehem 1957)
+'''With others'''
+* [[June Christy]], ''June Time'' (Swing House, 1981)
+* [[Stan Getz]], Zoot Sims, Paul Quinichette, Wardell Grey, ''Tenors Anyone?'' (Dawn, 1958)
+* [[Jimmy Knepper]], ''[[A Swinging Introduction to Jimmy Knepper]]'' (Bethlehem 1957)
+* [[Lucky Millinder]], [[Cab Calloway]], ''Awful Natural'' (RCA, 1977)
+* [[Rita Reys]], Sylvia Pierce & Peggy Serra, ''New Voices'' (Dawn, 1957)
+* [[Tom Talbert]], ''1946–1949'' (Sea Breeze, 1995)
-== References ==
+==References==
-{{reflist|30em}}
+{{Reflist}}
-== External links ==
+==External links==
 * [http://home.comcast.net/~nwedder/roland2page.htm Gene Roland ''A Composer/Arranger For All The Right Reasons and Seasons'']
-* [http://www.honors.umd.edu/HONR269J/projects/boyd.html Stan Kenton: Progressive Concepts in Jazz]
+* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060912112700/http://honors.umd.edu/HONR269J//projects/boyd.html Stan Kenton: Progressive Concepts in Jazz]
 * [http://www.middlehornleader.com/Kenton%20Mellophoniums.htm Stan Kenton's Mellophonium Band]
-*[https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/frodd Biography in Handbook of Texas]
+* [https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/frodd Biography in Handbook of Texas]
 {{Authority control}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Roland, Gene}}
-[[Category:American jazz composers]]
+[[Category:American male jazz composers]]
 [[Category:American music arrangers]]
 [[Category:1921 births]]
 [[Category:1982 deaths]]
-[[Category:People from Dallas]]
+[[Category:Musicians from Dallas]]
 [[Category:University of North Texas College of Music alumni]]
-[[Category:20th-century composers]]
+[[Category:Jazz musicians from Texas]]
-[[Category:20th-century American musicians]]
+[[Category:20th-century American male musicians]]
+[[Category:20th-century American jazz composers]]

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