A Rhythm Ballet

NPR's "Songs We Love" premieres "A Rhythm Ballet," a track from the forthcoming Raymond Scott electronica album, Three Willow Park: Electronic Music from Inner Space, 1961–1971. The track is "performed" by Scott's Electronium—the "Mark II" version he built for Berry Gordy of Motown. Three Willow Park will be issued on June 30, on Basta.

The Portofino Variations

Raymond Scott's 1962 tune "Portofino" has become a belated "hit." It's been licensed for the TV show Narcos, the film Best of Enemies, used in a Gucci commercial, and garnered more single-track downloads than any track on Manhattan Research Inc., the Y2K anthology of vintage Scott electronica on which it was first released. Basta has commissioned 20 contemporary versions of the composition and collected them on a new album, The Portofino Variations. The album, officially released today, features "Portofino" recorded by Fay Lovsky, Arling & Cameron, the Metropole Orchestra, Ocobar, Davide Rossi (Goldfrapp, Coldplay, The Verve), Jacco Gardner, Eva Auad, and others. The tune is interpreted in a wide array of styles: surf guitar, whistling, electronica, chamber ensemble, minimalism, pop, rock guitar, and scat vocals. The compilation even contains two song versions with original lyrics. The album is available on CD and digitally on Basta, and on LP by Music on Vinyl (a limited edition of 1,000 numbered LPs on gold vinyl, featuring two previously unreleased 1962 takes by Scott). The cover art features an adaption of a painting by Jim Flora entitled Portofino—which by coincidence was rendered in 1962.

Listen here on Spotify.

Amber Alert

"Bernstein," a German name, means "amber" in English. In the early 1940s, a young composer-conductor in New York working under the pseudonym "Lenny Amber" produced piano transcriptions and arrangements of popular tunes. Among the titles arranged by young "Lenny" Bernstein are four compositions by Raymond Scott: "Powerhouse," "The Penguin," "Toy Trumpet," and "In an 18th Century Drawing Room." The sheet music is available for FREE download at RaymondScott.net. You can access the complete folder of Scott works arranged for piano and organ here. 

Powerhouse Passacaglia

Geoffrey Burleson performs "Powerhouse Passacaglia," a "Fantasy-Homage on Raymond Scott's 'Powerhouse'," composed by Burleson, at the New West Electronic Arts & Music Organization Festival, at Brooklyn’s ShapeShifter Lab, December 7, 2015.

Here's the work performed by the No Exit New Music Ensemble, November 2013:

Shooby Taylor Rewired

The new Basta album Raymond Scott Rewired features a radical overhaul of the entire Scott catalog by three of the music world's premiere remix artists — The Bran Flakes, Evolution Control Committee, and Go Home Productions. It was released on February 18.

The final track, Scott's iconic "Powerhouse," which was collaboratively layered by the three mixmeisters, features a special guest. The late, legendary outsider scat-master William "Shooby" Taylor, a.k.a. "The Human Horn," takes a few vocal turns throughout the mix. I chronicled Taylor's story over at a website devoted to my Y2K outsider music book and CDs, Songs in the Key of Z. Taylor's idiosyncratic vocal stylings were studio-recorded in the 1980s over commercial LPs by artists like Miles Davis, the Harmonicats, Erroll Garner, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, and Johnny Cash. Needless to say, these artists were not consulted about the collaborations, and all went to their graves none the wiser.

I own the dozen or so Shooby master reels, which contain 94 tracks, many of which I intend to release digitally in the near term. The samples used in "Powerhouse" originated from a series of a cappella recordings by Taylor. Buy the album — or at least the track — to appreciate Shooby in a remarkable setting. You can hear (and buy) four Shooby solo recordings in the iTunes Store: "Stout-Hearted Men," "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing," "Indiana," and "It Gets Better All the Time."

Marathon Cadenzas

Last August, Dance Heginbotham, led by John Heginbotham, danced to the music of Raymond Scott at New York's Lincoln Center Out of Doors. The work, Manhattan Research, was premiered with live accompaniment by the Raymond Scott Orchestrette.

The dance world's new-found romance with Raymond continues when the Paul Taylor Dance Company premieres MARATHON CADENZAS at Lincoln Center in March. The work features choreography to the Raymond Scott Quintette's classic 1937-39 recordings of "The Penguin," "Oil Gusher," "Minuet in Jazz," "Girl at the Typewriter," "Twilight in Turkey," and "Peter Tambourine." (What—no "Powerhouse"?) Four performances are scheduled at LC's David H. Koch Theater on March 14th, 20th, 22nd, and 30th.

The Taylor Dancers will be at LC for a three-week run, which will include other repertoire. Package deals for multiple performances can be purchased here.

Marathon Cadenzas will also be performed on tour, but venues have not yet been announced.

RS Orchestrette/Ghost Train Orchestra concert videos

If you missed the Raymond Scott Orchestrette/Ghost Train Orchestra double bill at Subculture on October 26, we have video with decent audio thanks to Mike Nogami, a well-known Japanese photographer who sat near the stage. Our mutual friend, Takashi Okada, has posted 14 clips (seven of each band) on YouTube for your enjoyment. (Links below by title.) Not captured was GTO's grand finale, a spectacular nine-minute-plus arrangement of Scott's "Celebration on the Planet Mars," which closes the band's new album, Book of Rhapsodies. Incidentally, the respective RSO and GTO drummers look remarkably similar. They are, in fact, one and the same: GTO's Rob Garcia filled for the RSO's Clem Waldmann, who had a prior commitment.

The Raymond Scott Orchestrette

(all titles by Raymond Scott)

Twilight in Turkey / Oil Gusher

Tobacco Auctioneer

Peter Tambourine

Manhattan Minuet

Little Miss Echo

Square Dance for Eight Egyptian Mummies

Powerhouse

The Ghost Train Orchestra

(all arrangements by Brian Carpenter)

Charlie's Prelude (Louis Singer)

Beethoven Riffs On (Louis Singer)

Volcanic (Reginald Foresythe)

Dawn on the Desert (Charlie Shavers)

It's Silk, Feel It! (Alec Wilder)

Her Old Man Was at Times Suspicious (Alec Wilder)

At An Arabian House Party  (Raymond Scott)

Would Daffy Approve?

The New York Times reviews the Dance Heginbotham/Raymond Scott Orchestrette collaborative choreographic premiere of Manhattan Research at Lincoln Center Out of Doors this past Thursday.

Excerpt:

Mr. Heginbotham — who founded his company, Dance Heginbotham, two years ago — comes with his own associations, primarily the 14 years he spent in the Mark Morris Dance Group. As a choreographer, his most obvious connection to Mr. Morris is a fidelity to music. With antic groupings, Egyptian arm bends and vaudeville steps, “Manhattan Research” doesn’t just capture the spirit of [Raymond] Scott; it makes visual the music’s form and offers an apt move or gesture for nearly every sound. Also, Mr. Heginbotham is funny.

Our take? Brilliant, exciting, vivacious, animated. We look forward to further collaborative projects between Heginbotham's young troupe and the RSO.

The Scott works performed by the RSO were: "Manhattan Minuet" (premiere), "Powerhouse," "Snake Woman" (premiere), "Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue," and "Siberian Sleighride."

Arnold Eidus (1922-2013)

Raymond Scott and Arnold Eidus, 1950

With sadness we note the passing on June 3 of world-renowned violinist Arnold Eidus, at age 90. With pride we note his Raymond Scott connection: in 1950 Eidus performed in a duet setting at Carnegie Hall the only 20th century public recital of Scott's Suite for Violin and Piano. The five-movement Suite was Scott's only known "serious," classical composition, and we've heard anecdotal accounts that it was composed specifically as a showcase for Mr. Eidus. Though he was only 27 at the time, it was not the first time Eidus had appeared at Carnegie Hall—he had performed there as soloist on Lalo's Symphonie Espagnole at age thirteen!

A rehearsal recording of the Suite was discovered in the Scott collection at the Marr Sound Archives, and was released last year on Basta, coupled with a 21st century recording by Davide Rossi and Ramon Dor.

While researching liner notes for the CD, I interviewed Eidus by phone at his Boca Raton home on August 24, 2011. He was a gracious man, and while he could not recall recording or performing the Suite ("I've done thousands of sessions over the years"), he did remember Scott—fondly. "I got along well with him, never had a problem," Mr. Eidus recounted. "I had a pleasant time with him." Unlike a number of musicians who worked in the 1940s and '50s under the demanding bandleader, Eidus said, "I can't say anything bad about him." (Not that we were asking.) The 1950 disc did not indicate the identity of the pianist, but subsequent research revealed it was Carlo Bussotti, who had accompanied Eidus at the 1950 Carnegie concert.

Eidus enjoyed a storied career as a studio accompanist in the jazz, classical, pop, and Latin fields. His session logs include dates for Sinatra, Perez Prado, Wes Montgomery, Lena Horne, Cal Tjader, Doris Day, Freddie Hubbard, and hundreds more. Among his other professional pursuits, Eidus facilitated the hiring of musicians for various projects. When Scott was named conductor on TV's Your Hit Parade in 1950, he needed a string section. Eidus contracted a half-dozen players, and landed a violin chair in the YHP orchestra himself for a year or two. He also recalled touring briefly with Scott, and launched his own classical record label, Stradivari Records, in the 1950s. A busy man, now eternally at rest. Condolences to his family.

War Dance for Tap, Tabla, and Tuba

Hungarian-born composer/percussionist Gábor Tarján, who lives in the Netherlands, arranged Scott's "War Dance for Wooden Indians" for an unusual ensemble. He recently provided us with video of a June 2010 performance, and the following notes:

The group does not actually have a name (as yet). I brought these musicians together for a project entitled "Tap 'n Tabla." The video was recorded at the Vredenburg Concert Hall, Utrecht, Netherlands. I'm playing marimba.

Scott's music has been an inspiration ever since I heard a recording of "Siberian Sleighride" on the radio years ago. I couldn't believe what I was hearing and fell in love with the music right away. It's a very controlled sort of chaos, and I love that Scott is basically just playing with all these notes. The music also has an openness. I can imagine many of his pieces being arranged for a wide array of different formations. The possibilities are endless!

Next week, I'm trying out a new (perhaps a bit bizarre) arrangement of "Powerhouse" for female vocals, marimba, bass guitar and tabla.

The others players in the video are Sandip Bhattacharya (tabla), Peter Kuit (tap dance), Yamila Bavio (sax), Frans Cornelissen (tuba), and Rembrandt Frerichs (piano).

New release: "SUITE FOR VIOLIN & PIANO"

Raymond Scott created a diverse body of work that included jazz novelties (often considered "cartoon music"), orchestral ballads, a Broadway musical, film scores, commercial jingles, electronic miniatures, and avant-garde musique concrète. However, the Suite for Violin and Piano, composed in 1950 and never commercially released, was unique in his catalog.

The same daredevil who gave the world “The Toy Trumpet” and “Powerhouse” composed this exquisitely crafted classical jewel. True, Scott was a 1931 Juilliard grad, but the closest his prior compositions had inched towards the classics were jazzed-up reinventions of Mozart, Verdi, and Schubert.
 
The five-movement work was publicly performed just once, at Carnegie Hall in 1950, by renowned violinist Arnold Eidus and pianist Carlo Bussotti. The work was then recorded by Eidus and Bussotti, under the supervision of the composer. However, Scott did not release it commercially for reasons historically unknown.

In 2004, after Scott's widow, Mitzi, discovered the score at home, a new recording was produced by Beau Hunks Orchestra leader Gert-Jan Blom in the Netherlands, featuring violinist Davide Rossi and pianist Ramon Dor.

The two versions are now coupled on this new Basta release. The package is adorned with vintage 1940s and '50s music illustrations by noted artist Jim Flora, and features liner notes co-written by Gert-Jan Blom and Scott authority Irwin Chusid.

Producer: Gert-Jan Blom
Executive Producer: Jeroen van der Schaaf
Art Direction: Piet Schreuders
Illustrations: Jim Flora
Research: Irwin Chusid and Jeff E. Winner

On a special note, we are offering free copies of the sheet music at http://bastamusic.com/suite

• Get the CD or download from Amazon.com here, or the iTunes Store: here

Watch two new TV Spots with Hugh Jackman and Stephen Fry

Two new television spots featuring Raymond Scott's music as their soundtracks have hit the air. Hugh Jackman stars in the ad above for Lipton Ice Tea with the 1938 classic "The Penguin," while Stephen Fry, Rupert Grint of "HARRY POTTER," Michelle Dockery, and Julie Walters are seen in the commercial below for British tourism, set to the 1939 tune, "In An 18th Century Drawing Room."

75 years ago today, in 1937...

1937 was a memorable year in US history. Disney released SNOW WHITE, the first full-color, feature-length animated movie. The Hindenburg disaster occurred on May 6. Howard Hughes established a record by flying from LA to NYC in under 8 hours. The Golden Gate Bridge opened in San Francisco. Amelia Earhart disappeared. George Gershwin died. And Daffy Duck was born — on April 17, in the animated short "Porky's Duck Hunt," directed by Tex Avery for the LOONEY TUNES series. This last factoid dovetails with a coincidence that would immortalize Raymond Scott's music in pop culture.

Exactly 75 years ago today, Raymond Scott recorded his iconic hit tune, "Powerhouse." On the same date, following 8 months of rehearsals with his Quintette at CBS, he also recorded "Twilight In Turkey," "Minuet In Jazz," and "The Toy Trumpet" — not a bad day's work. The 27 year-old couldn't have known at the time, but these compositions jump-started his stellar career, and came to underscore cartoon antics for future generations.

To celebrate the milestone, check out this collection of 75 YouTube clips of Scott's classic "Powerhouse," here — and see details about our year-long 75th anniversary events schedule here.

P.S. Thank you to Cory Doctorow at Boing Boing:
http://boingboing.net/2012/02/20/happy-75th-birthday-to-raymond.html

LEONARD BERNSTEIN Arrangements: "2 Pianos, 4 Hands"

In 1943, LEONARD BERNSTEIN wrote this piano duet arrangement of Raymond Scott's 1938 hit tune, "In An 18th Century Drawing Room," published under Bernstein's pseudonym Lenny Amber. (Bernstein is a German and Jewish name meaning "amber.") Bernstein, who, according to THE NEW YORK TIMES, was "one of the most prodigiously talented and successful musicians in American history," also arranged versions of Scott's classics, "Huckleberry Duck," "The Toy Trumpet," "The Penguin," and "Powerhouse," seen below:

Twilight(s) in Turkey

We offer a free pdf of Raymond Scott charts (which are available in pdf format for token sums). Recently, while scanning new additions to our inventory—which contains arrangements for solo piano, sextet, dance band, accordion, and some miscellaneous instruments and configurations—we discovered three identical solo piano arrangements of Scott's 1937 "Twilight in Turkey" with different covers. Herewith the scans (slightly restored) of published versions from (respectively) Australia, the UK, and the US: We've got most of your Scott favorites—"Powerhouse," "In an Eighteenth Century Drawing Room," "The Penguin," "War Dance for Wooden Indians," "Siberian Sleigh Ride," etc.—as well as more obscure Scott titles, such as "Dead End Blues," "Tenor Man's Headache," "Circle Themes," "Kodachrome," and "Coming Down to Earth." We even have a computer printout of Scott's last known composition, "Beautiful Little Butterfly," which he composed using MIDI software in 1987 shortly before a debilitating stroke.

New (free) organ arrangement of Scott's "In an 18th Century Drawing Room"

Our friend and fellow Scott-ologist Les Deutsch writes:

I have completed a second concert organ arrangement of a Raymond Scott title—"In an 18th Century Drawing Room." (I previously arranged "Powerhouse.") The setting is almost note-for-note accurate to the original Scott recording, including the use of an "organ harp," which is essentially a celesta keyed from the organ console. The organ in my recording is my latest virtual pipe organ design, the "Model 945." The organ is available free to those who already own the Hauptwerk virtual organ software, which is popular in many countries. The arrangement of 18CDR is also available for free to any organist with enough nerve to try it. It is not easy. Both the recording and the sheet music can be found on my web site.

"Christmas Night" with Louis Armstrong

Christmas figured prominently in the early career of Raymond Scott (the son of immigrant Jews). He wrote his first hit, "Christmas Night In Harlem," in 1934 at age 25. During Xmas 1936, he debuted his soon-to-be world-famous band live on the Saturday Night Swing Club radio show. Two Christmases later, Paul Whiteman featured the Quintette, accompanied by PW's huge orchestra, performing Scott compositions at Carnegie Hall as part of the long-running Experiments In Modern American Music series where Whiteman had debuted Gershwin's Rhapsody In Blue in 1924.

"Christmas Night In Harlem" was recorded as an instrumental in 1939 by Scott's Quintette. With lyrics by legendary Tin Pan Alley wordsmith Mitchell Parish, who co-wrote "Stardust," "Deep Purple," and another Yuletide standard, "Sleigh Ride," the tune was covered by Perry Como, Benny Carter, Johnny Mercer, Banu Gibson, The Beau Hunks, Clarence Williams, Paul Whiteman, Maria Muldaur, and Jack Teagarden. A new CD, 100 CHRISTMAS, presents Lester Lanin's version alongside classics by Bing Crosby, Willie Nelson, and Roy Orbison.

The most celebrated of all "Harlem" covers, however, is by Louis Armstrong, framed above alongside Scott during a 1938 CBS radio broadcast. Satchmo's recording is perennially reissued on holiday collections, including WHAT A WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS.

Download The Metropole Orchestra's version of "Christmas Night In Harlem" from the CHESTERFIELD ARRANGEMENTS album here, as our holiday gift to you. And explore more of the many incarnations of Raymond Scott's earliest hit at Amazon.com or the iTunes Store.

D'oh!

Last night's new episode of THE SIMPSONS, "The Fool Monty," was the fourth to feature Raymond Scott's 1937 hit, "Powerhouse" (in this case, twice: once during the show, and again under the closing credits). Not surprising — in a list of series creator Matt Groening's "100 Favorite Things," Scott's classic tune is #14, outranking Stanley Kubrick movies and David Letterman. For those keeping score at home, or Hulu-hunting, the previous episodes were, "And Maggie Makes Three" (1995), "Bart Has Two Mommies" (2006), and "Little Big Girl" (2007).

The music of Raymond Scott, John Williams, & Danny Elfman in Nottingham

Join the Nottingham University Wind Orchestra and Brass Ensemble in an evening celebrating all aspects of the silver screen: "Epic Melodies and Looney Tunes." The epic melodies of JOHN WILLIAMS's moving "Hymn to the Fallen" (from SAVING PRIVATE RYAN) and Hans Zimmer’s stirring portrait of noble sacrifice in GLADIATOR are counterbalanced by the sublime lunacy of RAYMOND SCOTT's "The Toy Trumpet," and "Powerhouse" — the music which launched a thousand cartoons — and Paul Hart’s blistering soundtrack to an imaginary cartoon, dished up with enormous wit and panache. Also featured will be DANNY ELFMAN's theme from THE SIMPSONS. Details: here

DE NUEVO EN EL INFIERNO

Madrid-based sextet Racalmuto have released a fantastic new CD titled DE NUEVO EN EL INFIERNO, featuring faithful renditions of seven classic Raymond Scott compositions from the 1930s-'40s:

• "Oil Gusher"

• "The Girl With The Light Blue Hair"

• "Birdlife In The Bronx"

• "Reckless Night on Board an Ocean Liner"

• "A Little Bit of Rigoletto"

• "Suicide Cliff"

• "Tobacco Auctioneer"

An eighth tune associated with (but not composed by) Scott, "Brass Buttons and Epaulets" (from the 1938 film Just Around the Corner), is also included, played in the RSQ arrangement. Other CD tracks include modern takes on vintage tunes by Ellington, Tchaikovsky, and Slim Gaillard, along with one original penned by group leader Miguel Malla.

CD artwork

CD cover artwork