The Final Chorus

Chris Strachwitz died on May 5th. Born in 1931 in what is now Poland and displaced at the end of WWII his family settled in

Danny Matson passed away on April 25, 2023. Not a musician himself he was a ragtime superfan, a regular attendee of ragtime and jazz festivals,

Harry Belafonte died on April 25th, he was 96 years old. Born in 1927, Belafonte grew up in Harlem during the 1930s and 40s. He

Wally Fawkes, one of the most recognizable figures in the British Trad movement, and a prominent satirical cartoonist, died on March 1st, he was 98

Burt Bacharach died on February 8th, he was 94. Bacharach was a songwriter, composer, pianist, and producer, he was considered one of the most influential

Jazz singer Carol Sloane died on January 23rd she was 85. Though she was a Columbia artist in the 1960s, it is for her late

Jürgen Hintsche, a veteran banjo player in the German vintage jazz scene died on January 9 at the age of 79. Born in Celle in 1943,

Guitarist, banjoist, and mandolin player Dix Bruce has died at age 70. he was well known in the Bay Area traditional jazz community as a

Clarinetist and woodwind specialist Ted Casher passed away on January 22nd, he was 85. He graduated from Boston Conservatory/Berklee College of Music and studied at

Notable Drummer Butch Miles passed away on February 2nd, he was 78 years old. He drummed for Count Basie’s band in the 1970s and joined

Chris Daniels, the founder, leader, and bassist of the Climax Jazz Band has died, he was a youthful and vigorous 84. Daniels was born in

Jazz guitar virtuoso, bandleader, composer, and teacher Carmen Caramanica died January 16, 2023; he was 77 years old. Carmen was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, in

Louise Tobin, the last surviving musician to have recorded in the 1930s, died on November 26th; she was 104. Her place in popular history was

Peter Sokolow, a bridge between the classic era of Klezmer and the revivalists of today, has died. Born in 1940, by the 1950s he was

The world of Trad Jazz has lost another light. Jim Maihack died on April 30, 2022, of a massive brain hemorrhage that none of us

“I could see that, if not entirely disgruntled, he was far from being gruntled.” P.G. Wodehouse, The Code of the Woosters Dave Jasen always seemed

Tom Tucker passed away on July 2nd, he was 86. According to his family obituary “his best life began” when after retirement he became a member

Charlie Devore died on September 24th, he was 89. He was part of the reason Minneapolis became a hotbed of New Orleans jazz in the 60s

When you think of the early collectors of 78 rpm records, the guys driving into Appalachia or knocking on doors in rural Mississippi to find

Ted Butterman, jazz trumpet player, age 87, of Arlington Heights, Illinois, passed away August 31, 2022. He was best known for leading his Chicago Cubs

Davenport Iowa based bandleader Kenneth R. “Kenny” Paulsen passed away on July 10th, he was 82. He had a career in law enforcement, working for

The jazz community lost a true legend with the passing of vocalist-bandleader Pat Yankee on Memorial Day, May 30, at the age of 94. The

Clarinetist and bandleader George “Skip” Parsons, died April 21, following a stroke. He was 86. For 66 years, Skip Parsons’ Riverboat Jazz Band reigned as