Stan Kenton was born on December 15, 1911 in Wichita, Kansas; he also had two sisters (Beulah and Erma Mae) born three and eight years after him. His parents, Floyd and Stella Kenton, had moved the family back to Colorado, then, finally in 1924 to the Greater Los Angeles Area, settling in suburban Bell, California. Kenton attended Bell High School; his high school yearbook picture has the prophetic notation "Old Man Jazz". Kenton started learning piano as a teen from a local pianist and organist.
Artistry in Rhythm
When composer/arranger Pete Rugolo joined the Stan Kenton Orchestra as staff arranger in late 1945 he brought with him his love of jazz, Stravinsky and Bartok. Given free rein by Kenton, he experimented constantly, creating a sound that was at the same time innovative and popular. Although Kenton himself was already creating somewhat experimental scores prior to Rugolo's tenure, it was Rugolo who brought to the band the extra-jazz influences and the ultra-experimental approach that were to dominate the band through much of its existence.  During his first six months on the staff Rugolo tried to copy Kenton's sound. But on encouragement from the leader, he explored his own voice. By incorporating compositional techniques borrowed from the modern classical music he had studied, with the dramatic excitement of the Kenton sound, Rugolo helped catapult the Kenton band into one of its most fertile and creative periods.  After a string of mostly arrangements, Rugolo turned out three originals that Kenton featured on the band's first album in 1946: (Artistry in Rhythm): "Artistry in Percussion", "Safranski" and "Artistry in Bolero". Added to this mix came "Machito", "Rhythm Incorporated", "Monotony" and "Interlude" in early 1947 (though some were not recorded until later in the year). These compositions, along with June Christy's voice, came to define the Artistry in Rhythm band.  It was during this period that Cuban rhythms started infiltrating the Kenton sound. Rugolo's 1946 composition "Machito", named after the great Cuban band leader that had impressed Kenton, was a regular on concerts in 1947 and 1948. During the subsequent Progressive Jazz era the Cuban sound would become more profound, an influence that was to remain with Kenton until his death.  The Artistry in Rhythm outfit was a powerful band, with outstanding soloists, but with one foot firmly in the tradition. By early 1947, the Stan Kenton Orchestra had reached its highest point of financial and popular success. They played in the best theaters and ballrooms in America, they had hit records ... and the schedule was killing Kenton. Dances at the many ballrooms were typically four hours a night. Theater dates generally involved playing mini concerts between each showing of the movie, sometimes five or six a day, stretching from morning to late night. Most days not on location were spent in buses or cars, racing from town to town. Days off from performing were rare. And for Kenton they just allowed for more record signing, radio station interviews, and pushing the Capitol brand. He was beat. Following an April performance in Tuscaloosa, he broke up the band.
Did kenton handle rhythm in a special way?
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