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| Lalo Schifrin Celebrates 75th Birthday Lalo Schifrin returns to his jazz roots with Lalo Schifrin & Friends, released by Aleph Records on September 11. The recording features Alex Acua (drums/percussion), Brian Bromberg (bass), Dennis Budimir (guitar), James Moody (tenor sax), and James Morrison (trumpet, trombone). Schifrin, who recently turned 75, has also completed the score for the film Rush Hour 3. Lalo Schifrin is a true Renaissance man. As a pianist, composer and conductor, he is equally at home conducting a symphony orchestra, performing at an international jazz festival, scoring a film or television show, or creating works for the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, the London Philharmonic and even The Sultan of Oman. As a young man in his native Argentina, Lalo Schifrin received classical training in music, and also studied law. He came from a musical family, and his father, Luis Schifrin, was the concertmaster of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Buenos Aires at the Teatro Colon. When Schifrin returned to Buenos Aires, after his studies at the Paris Conservatory, in the mid 1950's, he formed his own big concert band. It was during a performance of this band that Dizzy Gillespie heard Schifrin play and asked him to become his pianist and arranger. In 1958, Schifrin moved to the United States and thus began a remarkable career. Since then Schifrin's career has taken him in many directions. It is Schifrin's ability to switch musical gears which makes him so unique in the music world. As a jazz musician he has performed and recorded with great personalities such as Dizzy Gillespie, Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, Stan Getz, Count Basie, Dee Dee Bridgewater, and George Benson. Schifrin has written more than 100 scores for films and television including Mission Impossible, Mannix, Cool Hand Luke, Bullitt, The Cincinnati Kid, Amityville Horror, four of the five films in the Dirty Harry series, and more recently Bringing Down The House, After the Sunset, Abominable and Rush Hour, Rush Hour 2, and Rush Hour 3. To date, Lalo Schifrin has won four Grammy Awards (with twenty-one nominations), one Cable ACE Award, and received six Academy Award nominations. It is only fitting that with this new CD, and for his 75th birthday, Schifrin takes both a look back and a peek at what the future holds in store. Lalo Schifrin & Friends features Gillespie's “Tin Tin Daeo”, Oscar Peterson's “Hymn to Freedom”, the classic “Besame Mucho”, and 6 new tracks penned by Schifrin. write your comments about the article :: © 2007 Jazz News :: home page |