September 26, 2011(2011-09-26) (aged 90) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres
Jazz
pop
classical
Occupation(s)
Musician
Instrument(s)
Trumpet
Musical artist
Uan Rasey (August 22, 1921 – September 26, 2011)[1] was an American musician, best known for his studio work as a trumpet player.
Biography
Rasey was born in Glasgow, Montana, on August 22, 1921. He taught himself to play the trumpet as a child. He moved with his family to Los Angeles in 1937, where he began playing professionally with such band leaders as Sonny Dunham, Ozzie Nelson and Alvino Rey.[2]
He contracted polio as a child and spent his career playing trumpet while using crutches. Despite his condition, Rasey was a track and field fan, regularly attending events.[3] He reportedly turned down MGM’s initial offer to join their film studio orchestra because he wanted his contract to stipulate that he would not be required to work Saturdays, when he attended track meets, and that he could go on leave during the 1952 Summer Olympics.[3]
He lived in Southern California, where he taught privately into his old age. His pupils included Arturo Sandoval and Jack Sheldon.[2] He died in Los Angeles on September 26, 2011, at the Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills Medical Center, from a heart disorder.[1]
Legacy
Rasey was widely considered one of the finest musicians in Hollywood history.[2][4] In May 2009 he received the International Trumpet Guild's Honorary Award, their highest honor.[5]
Instrument
Rasey originally used an Olds Recording-model trumpet, made for him in 1949 shortly after he was hired by MGM. In an interview, he related how they made it using the Olds' Ambassador valve section, with the bell length the same as the Super, and the mouthpipe from the old Super Recording. In 1974 he also began playing a King Silver Flair trumpet, which he used for the Chinatown soundtrack, and alternated between the two.[6]