und nochmal zu dem Foto der Cee Pee Johnson Band oben… ich hab noch immer kein gescheites Foto von Kirt Bradford gefunden, aber eine Passage aus der kanadischen Tageszeitung The Varsity vom 19 Februar 1945, Rezension eines Jimmie Lunceford Konzerts… bei Lunceford war er wohl ab Sommer 1943.
Stand-by Joe Thomas still plays that frantic toneless tenor and sings in his groovy manner, but the star of the sax section is diminutive, bepectacled Kirt Bradford. His jumpy alto was a standout on everything from Outskirts of Town to Pistol Packin‘ Mama.
wir lernen also, dass Bradford ein kleiner Mann mit Brille war – was wunderbar zu dem Herrn zwischen Robeson und Banks passt… noch wegen Bradford, die Saxophonistin Virginia Mayhew war auch eine Schuelerin und ist recht oft zu ihrem Werdegang interviewt wurden, etwa hier
My other main mentor was alto saxophonist Kirt Bradford (aka Mustafa Hashim). I studied with him for several years. He had been the lead alto with Jimmy Lunceford after Willie Smith left. John Coppola suggested I study with him and he really, really helped me with my sound, improvisation and confidence. Kirt taught me the art of how to play lead alto. There are s ofew people today that can play lead alto. Playing lead alto is a lot of fun, and I feel very fortunate to have learned how to do it. I got to play in a band with him for several years with him playing lead alto and me playing third alto. Then he moved away [nach Hawaii, steht anderswo] and I got to move up to play lead alto. That was a really great experience. Having a good sound and confidence has helped me all along in my career.
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