Victor Coulsen Victor Coulsen Victor "Vic" Coulsen (dates unknown) was an American jazz trumpeter. Often referred to as Vic Coulsen, Vic Coulson, and even Vic Couslen, Coulsen was a member of the resident band at the Monroe's club, under Al Tinney's direction from as early as 1940. Coulsen has often been remembered has having had a seminal influence on the phrasing of early bebop by the likes of Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie and several others - Charlie Parker among them. Parker remembers Coulsen (here spelled "Coulson") ""playing things I'd never heard before"", and states that the music he heard on
Horn in jazz compete directly with Basie's hard-swinging blues, the duo capitalized on their contrast from Basie’s sound, playing with a soft and mellow sound. By showcasing their different sound, Ruff and Mitchell continued to get bookings from Birdland to play intermission for other big name groups like Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Sarah Vaughan, Lester Young, Dinah Washington and others. After working with Claude Thornhill and arranging for his orchestra, he began arranging for Miles Davis. In 1948 the Miles Davis Nonet was formed with a sound completely unlike anything jazz listeners had heard before. The original idea for the nonet was to