| Hello Mr Wise,
I'm sorry about the mis-credit (I edited it out) Strangly, I actually knew that Gino B. had done the long run as first trumpet with " West Side Story " on Broadway.
In fact, Gino's Buzzaco’s name came up in a conversation I had with Bob Reeves just 2 weeks ago. We were discussing playing long runs of Broadway shows (because playing” The Producers “was driving me nuts, the pit is under the stage and you watch the conductor on a monitor and we were all starting to act like big kids) and how you lose your concentration after a while. We both mentioned Gino and how he (Gino) had thought that he had lost some of his skills in concentration and sight reading doing the West Side Story for so long. Bob had actually heard the show live. ( His wife is from NY and they were visiting relatives )
As far as I remember, Gino played a Conn 60b. and was in the Conn book " Conn album of Stars " that Conn put out in the late 60's.
For everyone else, here's a little history of Mr. Wise:
Wilmer Wise has performed as soloist with the Phidelphia Symphony playing the Haydn Concerto. He has played with the Baltimore Symphony, Detroit Symphony, and New York Philharmonic and was solo trumpet with the Brooklyn Philharmonic, plus recordings with Pablo Casals and most of the work of music writer Phillip Glass. ( “ Thin Blue Line “, “ Kundum”, “ Glass Works “ )
He tenure playing trumpet on Broadway includes Gigi, Goodtime Charlie, Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods, Drood, Nine, A Doll’s Life and Assassins to name a few.
He also did the Purcell trumpet sonata in the film ‘Kramer V Kramer “and, of course, West Side Story. He, along with Rick Henly, played the theme to “Newhour with Jim Lehr “on PBS. He also taught at Princeton, Morgan State Univ. and the Peabody Conservatory.
Thanks you Mr. Wise for letting me know my error. Trying to cover that great era of trumpet playing and the legendary men associated with it in words cannot truly give it the “ Credit “ and “ Justice “ it deserves.
I sorry to say, I believe we will never see the likes of it again.
Larry |