Big Band Era (c. 1936-1947)

[LoyalTubist]

For some time I have been trying to compile a definitive list of Big Bands who included tuba players in their rosters. Harry Goodman, who was originally a tuba player, was in his baby brother Benny's band as a bass player. But other groups actually had tuba players!

Here is a list of some of the groups that come to mind (listed by the leader's name):

_______________________________

• Sammy Kaye

• Kay Kyser

• Horace Heidt

• Spike Jones

• Harry James (the tuba was not a regular member of his group until the 1960s)

• Woody Herman (not until the 1960s)

• Stan Kenton (not until the 1960s)

Stan Kenton began his career as an arranger for the Gus Arnheim band in the early 1930s, which had a very prominent tuba player. But they were still playing music from the 1920s.

[LoyalTubist]

I didn't put Guy Lombardo's name on this list because he was still playing 1920s music until the day he died.

[Art Hovey]

Don't forget Claude Thornhill (1946) and Fletcher Henderson (earlier than 1936 but should certainly be mentioned!) And the Missourians had some serious tuba playing, also before your arbitrary starting date.

[LoyalTubist]

The dates came from Chuck Cecil, who considers these to be the years that this kind of music was the popular music. He considers Benny Goodman to be the first swing band to make the big time. It isn't so much style, it's popularity. Popularity is nothing new. It used to be how they determined when records would be played on the radio (by how many phone calls were received for requests).

My dates are not arbitrary. The ending date is when commercial television came to Los Angeles. I am not the one who came up with these dates.

There was "rock and roll" music long before Bill Hailey and the Comets and music swung many years before the Swingin' Years began.