What got you into jazz?
We did some Glen Miller stuff for a talent show in jr hs. Then I was
asked to play bari with a stage band in hs. We did some Kenton,
Dorsey, etc. very badly. Anyhow I went to hear Basie, Kenton and
Ferguson live, and marveled at how the soloists stuck to their guns
while the band blasted around them, got more interested in what the
soloists were doing than the bands, per se. Pretty soon small groups is almost
all that intrigued me, e.g. Trane, Monk, Bill Evans, Cannonball, etc.
The energy level that these groups produced sealed it forever for me
for small group jazz.