Frankie (Tram) Trumbauer (1901-1956) is one of the most prominent jazz saxophonists in the 1920s and 30s. He was a C melody saxophone player, which is roughly the size of an alto or tenor saxophone. Trumbauer is remembered most for being Bix Beiderbecke’s musical companion, which produced some of jazz’s greatest and most original records in the 1920s. Bix Beiderbecke was recruited by Trumbauer to join Jean Goldkette’s Victor Recording Orchestra. He became the musical director. He cut many popular sides with Beiderbecke in the 1920s, including the iconic “Singin’ the Blues.” After leaving Goldkette he worked briefly with Beiderbecke and then joined Paul Whiteman’s band in 1927. Whiteman was his partner for eight of the nine years he followed. He was a member of the Three T’s in 1936, which featured the Teagarden brothers. In 1938, he and Manny Klein co-founded a band, which they led together. He was a pilot for the Civil Aeronautics Authority during World War II. After the war, he continued to work at the CAA and was a member of the NBC Orchestra. He stopped recording and continued to play music after 1947. However, most of his income was earned outside of music. Many important saxophonists were influenced by Trumbauer’s cool style, slow vibrato, and Benny Carter’s influence. Text contributed by users is available under Creative Commons By–SA License. It may also be available under GNU FDL.
