Benny Goodman even to use new fingering techniques. He had his old finger calluses removed and started to learn how to play his clarinet again—almost from scratch." Goodman commissioned compositions for clarinet and chamber ensembles or orchestra that have become standard pieces of classical repertoire. He premiered works by composers, such as "Contrasts" by Béla Bartók; "Clarinet Concerto No. 2, Op. 115" by Malcolm Arnold; "Derivations for Clarinet and Band" by Morton Gould; "Sonata for Clarinet and Piano" by Francis Poulenc, and "Clarinet Concerto" by Aaron Copland. "Prelude, Fugue, and Riffs" by Leonard Bernstein was commissioned for Woody Herman's big band, but
Rusty Goodman Speers, The Happy Goodman Family, Michael English and Gaither Vocal Band. Goodman performed with The Plainsmen Quartet but he is better known with his family group, The Happy Goodman Family, where he sang along with his brothers Howard, Sam, Bobby and his sister-in-law Vestal Goodman. He is also the father of Tanya Goodman Sykes, singer/songwriter and former member of The Goodmans and Heirloom. Goodman launched his solo career in 1975 when Canaan Records founder Marvin Norcross approached him to record his first solo album. Goodman agreed and recorded "The Singer". He frequently performed both as a soloist and with his