Marvin Stamm

Marvin Stamm

Musicians | Instrument: Trumpet | Location: New York City

Mr. Stamm is an accomplished performer whose technical skill is used as a means to stimulating original ends.

—Leonard Feather

Updated: July 15, 2023

Born: May 23, 1939

Throughout his distinguished career, Marvin Stamm has been praised for both the art and the craft of trumpet playing. Leonard Feather stated that Mr. Stamm is an accomplished performer whose technical skill is used as a means to stimulating original ends. While attending North Texas State University, Mr. Stamm was discovered by Stan Kenton. Upon graduation, he joined Kenton’s orchestra as his jazz trumpet soloist, touring with him in 1961-1962 recording five albums with the orchestra. In 1965-1966, he toured worldwide with Woody Herman.

Settling in New York in late 1966, Marvin Stamm quickly established himself as a busy jazz and studio trumpeter. New York was bustling with jazz activity during that period, and Stamm performed at key venues with many of the significant players in the business. He gained considerable recognition for his playing with the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra (1966- 72) and the Duke Pearson Big Band (1967-70), as well as performing with Frank Sinatra (1973-74) and the Benny Goodman Sextet (1974-75) among others.

Stamm was also a recognized first-call studio player (1966-89), recording with Quincy Jones, Oliver Nelson, Duke Pearson, Thad Jones, Wes Montgomery, Freddie Hubbard, Stanley Turrentine, Bill Evans, Patrick Williams, Michel Legrand, Frank Foster, Paul Desmond, George Benson and many more. Eschewing the lucrative studio scene in the late '80s, Mr. Stamm has focused his attention on his first love, playing jazz. Since that time, he has been a member of John Lewis’ American Jazz Orchestra, the Bob Mintzer Band, the George Gruntz Concert Jazz Band, and Louis Bellson’s big band and quintet.

Mr. Stamm’s small group activities have included performing and touring with pianist Bill Mays as a duo and also with the Inventions Trio, which included cellist Alisa Horn. Mr. Mays was also a member of Stamm’s quartet with bassist Rufus Reid and drummer Ed Soph. Mr. Stamm currently co-leads a quartet with pianist Mike Holober that includes drummer Dennis Mackrel and bassist Mike McGuirk.

Holober and Stamm began playing together after meeting through their work with the Westchester Jazz Orchestra. Regular Sunday afternoon duo sessions nurtured a close friendship and a unique musical connection. When joined by bassist Mike McGuirk and drummer Dennis Mackrel, the scope of their intimate conversation expanded, resulting in a deeply satisfying interactive dialogue.

Marvin Stamm’s first solo album, Machinations was released in 1968, composed and arranged by Jazz legend, John Carisi. This was followed in 1982 by Stammpede, which heralded his re- dedication to a solo jazz career. In 1991, Stamm released Bop Boy, a quintet CD featuring tenor saxophonist Bob Mintzer, drummer Terry Clarke, pianist Phil Markowitz and bassist Lincoln Goines. A follow-up CD, Mystery Man, was released in 1993, again featuring Mintzer and Clarke, but this time in the company of pianist Bill Charlap, bassist Mike Richmond and saxophonist Bob Malach.

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35
Album Review

Stan Kenton: Salute!

Read "Salute!" reviewed by Jack Bowers


Stan Kenton, one of the most renowned and influential bandleaders of the twentieth century, died on August 25, 1979. Fortunately—for the sake of history in general and creative music in particular—Kenton's remarkable legacy lives on, and in a perceptive and open-minded world would endure forever. Even to this day, small but devoted groups of enthusiasts share a wish that some previously hidden array of his material might come to light, satisfiying for the moment their craving for more memorable music ...

34
Album Review

Mike Holober & Balancing Act: Don't Let Go

Read "Don't Let Go" reviewed by Jack Bowers


With Don't Let Go, pianist Mike Holober and the octet Balancing Act seemed to have found an ideal way to cross-breed classical motifs and contemporary jazz to produce a pleasurable listening experience. Then he added lyrics. Granted, not all lyrics are superfluous—even those that are either nebulous or indecipherable, as is too often the case here. It's simply that some listeners may be more receptive to an alternative in the form of, say, Marvin Stamm's trumpet, Dick Oatts' or Jason ...

11
Interview

Marvin Stamm: Team Player

Read "Marvin Stamm: Team Player" reviewed by R.J. DeLuke


Trumpeter Marvin Stamm is known for being part of a gazillion albums, having that ability to go into a studio and play exactly what's required, whether it's for a records by pop singers, jazz artists, Paul McCartney, Donny Hathaway or touring with Frank Sinatra. It's a reputation the highly skilled player earned with hard work. But it's been awhile since the studio days. It's also been awhile since Stamm, 81, sat in the trumpet sections of some of ...

12
Album Review

Marvin Stamm, Mike Holober, Mike McGuirk, Dennis Mackrel: Live at Maureen's Jazz Cellar

Read "Live at Maureen's Jazz Cellar" reviewed by Jack Bowers


Marvin Stamm, Mike Holober, Mike McGuirk and Dennis Mackrel; when musicians of that caliber gather onstage to record a live supper club session, even the diners snap to attention and harken closely lest any phrase or nuance eludes the ears. Such was the case on a December evening in 2019 at Maureen's Jazz Cellar in Nyack, NY (once home to the incomparable Zoot Sims) when the quartet held its audience in thrall for more than an hour as the tape ...

17
Album Review

Mike Holober: Marvin Stamm/Mike Holober Quartet Live @ Maureen's Jazz Cellar

Read "Marvin Stamm/Mike Holober Quartet Live @ Maureen's Jazz Cellar" reviewed by Nicholas F. Mondello


One of the many things sorely missed in the 2020's COVID situation is that cornerstone of jazz—the live-in-a-club performance. Live at Maureen's Cellar provides a vivid recollection of what pre-plague joy we had.. This fine recording presents that intimate club vibe, offering engaging extended solos, ensemble (and audience) interaction, and the emotional range that jazz delivers uniquely in person. The four Aces—Marvin Stamm, Mike Holober, Mike McGuirk and Dennis Mackrel--offer seven selections: two fine Holober originals and ...

14
Album Review

Marvin Stamm/Mike Holober: Live @ Maureen's Jazz Cellar

Read "Live @ Maureen's Jazz Cellar" reviewed by Pierre Giroux


It is hard to overstate the value of long standing working relationships between musicians. When this musical symbiosis is at its best, the result is a genuine understanding and an interpretation of the music in a comprehensive way. Such is the case between flugelhornist Marvin Stamm and pianist Mike Holober on Live @ Maureen's Jazz Cellar. In order to best exemplify the recognition of a shared craft, they have chosen a series of titles from the jazz standard catalogue along ...

1
Album Review

Mike Holober: Hiding Out

Read "Hiding Out" reviewed by Angelo Leonardi


Un decennio dopo Quake (Sunnyside 2009), l'arrangiatore e bandleader Mike Holober riporta sotto i riflettori la newyorchese Gotham Jazz Orchestra in uno scintillante doppio compact che raccoglie due ricercate composizioni ("Flow" in tre movimenti, “Hiding Out" in cinque) e tre brani medio-lunghi (tra cui il delizioso “Caminhos Cruzados" di Jobim in due versioni). Come è ovvio che sia, l'organico registra alcune sostituzioni. Tra i nuovi ingressi il trombettista Marvin Stamm, i sassofonisti Jason Rigby e Bill Drewes, il ...

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Interview

Marvin Stamm on Bernie Glow

Marvin Stamm on Bernie Glow

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers

In the recording studios of the 1950s, '60s and '70s, trumpet players had specialties. Like baseball batters and Old West gunslingers, top trumpeters in the horn sections of big bands and pop orchestras became distinguished for a particular style. Each of the four trumpet seats were occupied by players known for acing notes and nuances in arrangements. There were jazz soloists, power players, classical-flavored players, low-note players, note benders and players with a specific accent. And then there was Bernie ...

Recording

Marvin Stamm & Mike Holober

Marvin Stamm & Mike Holober

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers

Trumpeter and flugelhornist Marvin Stamm's recording legacy is astonishing. If you sail through his discography at his Wikipedia entry, his list of recordings runs about a quarter of a mile. In addition to leadership albums starting in the early 1960s through to today, Marvin was on albums by every major artist from the period, from Thad Jone/Mel Lewis's Consummation to the Average White Band's exceptional first AWB album, from albums by Stan Kenton and Gary McFarland to Gato Barbieri, James ...

2

Interview

Marvin Stamm on Uncle Albert

Marvin Stamm on Uncle Albert

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers

Jazz fans are quicker than most to slap around other forms of music. Some fans are convinced that rock destroyed jazz (not so) while others insist that jazz sold out for commercial reasons (not so, either). New music comes with each generation, and that's how it played out in the mid-1950s and into the '60s. [Photo above of Marvin Stamm by Marvin S. Orling] Here's another revelation: Rock (and soul and disco) kept many jazz artists employed and meeting college ...

71

Performance / Tour

Berkshires Jazz Announces Free "Jazz Appreciation Month" Concert Featuring USAF Liberty Big Band with Guest Soloist Marvin Stamm

Berkshires Jazz Announces Free "Jazz Appreciation Month" Concert Featuring USAF Liberty Big Band with Guest Soloist Marvin Stamm

Source: Ed Bride Associates

An Alumnus of the Stan Kenton Orchestra, Trumpet Legend Stammto Appear at April 8 Performance Celebrating Pittsfield's 250th Birthday PITTSFIELD, Mass.— Berkshires Jazz today announced that the U.S. Air Force jazz ensemble, the Liberty Big Band, will appear in a special concert on April 8 with trumpet legend Marvin Stamm as guest soloist. With free admission, the 7:30pm concert at Pittsfield's historic Colonial Theatre is part of the city's 250th birthday celebration, as well as being part of the nationwide ...

196

Education

Marvin Stamm and the Russians

Marvin Stamm and the Russians

Source: Rifftides by Doug Ramsey


75

Performance / Tour

Trumpet Master Marvin Stamm to Headline Annual Open World Jazz Concert

Trumpet Master Marvin Stamm to Headline Annual Open World Jazz Concert

Source: All About Jazz

Famed trumpeter Marvin Stamm and four Russian jazz artists from the Open World Cultural Leadership Program will perform at University of the Pacific on Nov. 14, along with the Brubeck Institute Jazz Quintet. Their performance and visit is hosted by the Brubeck Institute, located on Pacifics Stockton campus. The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. in the Faye Spanos Concert Hall.

The Open World Cultural Leadership Program is the embodiment of Dave Brubecks belief that the most effective diplomatic efforts are ...

96

Video / DVD

Jazzed Media Releases Marvin Stamm Quartet DVD

Jazzed Media Releases Marvin Stamm Quartet DVD

Source: All About Jazz

Jazzed Media has released a new performance video of the Marvin Stamm Quartet on DVD. Jazz trumpeter Marvin Stamm is joined by quartet members Bill Mays on piano, Rufus Reid on bass, and Ed Soph on drums.

The Marvin Stamm Quartet DVD/CD Alone Together (JM9002) includes a live performance of the Marvin Stamm Quartet in Los Angeles, California recorded in late 2006. A CD compilation of the music from the live performance DVD is included in the combo package.

Currently, ...

115

Festival

Seventh Annual Sackets Harbor Jazz Festival Features Marvin Stamm and Ted Nash

Seventh Annual Sackets Harbor Jazz Festival Features Marvin Stamm and Ted Nash

Source: All About Jazz

The Seventh Annual Sackets Harbor Jazz Festival, on Saturday, August 12th, will feature world-renowned tenor saxophonist Ted Nash, whose professional career began at age 16 with a gig with Lionel Hampton, and star trumpeter Marvin Stamm, who was discovered by Stan Kenton and was his jazz trumpet soloist in the early 1960s.

The festival will begin at noon with its traditional New Orleans style parade down West Main Street to the Sentinel Bandstand, led by the Hon. Michael E. Hoagland, ...

115

Recording

Marvin Stamm/Ed Soph Project: "Live at Birdland" on Jazzed Media

Marvin Stamm/Ed Soph Project: "Live at Birdland" on Jazzed Media

Source: All About Jazz

Why a “live" CD? Why at Birdland? There are times when everything just seems right for doing something like this. The quartet had several bookings in the New York area within the space of eight days - a concert in Connecticut, the COTA Festival in Delaware Water Gap, PA, and four nights in Birdland in New York City. Ed Soph and I had been talking about recording another CD, and this seemed to be the perfect time. We’ve spoken often ...

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Music

Compelled

From: Hiding Out
By Marvin Stamm

When There Were Trains

From: Balancing Act
By Marvin Stamm