Resume
General InformationBorn in Buffalo, New York March 25, 1950 Graduated from P.S. # 77, 1964 - Lafayette H.S., 1968 Private saxophone lessons with John Sedola 1966-68 Dearborn MI 1970 - 1973 (vocal/show group - The Showcasemen) Moved back to Buffalo 1973 Lived in Sugar Bush Vermont 1979 Lived in Sarasota Florida and performed in Jazz Club 1980 Lived in Buffalo, NY 1981 - 1983 formed Fusion group RPM Moved to Los Angeles, CA 1983 to 1992 Moved back to Buffalo, NY Fall 1992 Member of the Buffalo Musicians Local # 42 since 1966 Member of the Los Angeles Musicians Local # 47 from 1984-1995 Member Tonawanda/Niagara Falls Local # 106-209 since 1984 Part owner of The Bijou Grille Restaurant/Jazz Club Buffalo, NY 1992 to 2006 Pres. - G.P. Tralf, Inc. General Partner, Tralf L.P. 1997 to 06/2004 Owner/General Manager - The Tralf Night Club/ Buffalo, NY 1997 to 06/2004 Founder and President of RPM Entertainment Productions, Inc., 1994 to 06/2004 Founder and President of BMCE, Inc. 06/2004 to 2007 Entertainment Chairman Leukemia Society of WNY from 1994 - 2001 |
Live Performance Highlights1967 - 1970 Formed Quintet called Moxie, performing & arranging, original compositions of Mondo Galla 1970 - 1973 Showcasemen (Detroit based four part vocal group) 1974 - 1975 New Wave (Buffalo based jazz sextet) 1975 - 1979 Baritone sax and flute with Maynard Ferguson road Mgr....,1976 to 1979 1980 - 1981 Sarasota Florida jazz gig with Dick Fadale Quintet, recorded album Festive Dancer 1982 - 2006 Fusion group "RPM", Flute & Alto Sax with the Dave Brubeck Quartet 1995 - 1998 Tenor sax with Doc Severinson & The Tonight Show Band 1994 - 1998 Various performances with Doc Severinson & the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra 1993 - 1995 featured soloist with the Buffalo, San Francisco, London, Berlin, Munich, Vienna, New York, Chicago, Dallas and Minneapolis Philharmonics with the Dave Brubeck Quartet 1985 - 1995 Featured soloist with Buffalo Philharmonic 1994 - Concert with Phil Woods and the Bill Holman (Los Angeles) 1990 - 1998 Toured Europe with composer/guitarist/swordmaster/ Emiel van Egdom 1990 - 1993 Bob Florence Big Band (Los Angeles) 1993 - 1987 Toured Europe w/Emiel van Egdom featuring vocalist Tony Galla 1985 - 1992 Bill Holman Big Band (Los Angeles) |
Video and Film Highlightsincluding THE BIG SCORE - USA 1983 - Fred Williamson (2) CBC Television specials with Maynard Ferguson (2) PBS Television specials with Maynard Ferguson PBS special, JVC Jazz Festival and numerous European TV specials (Dave Brubeck) Charlie Brown special " CB in Outer Space " (Dave Brubeck) Vamping, movie with Patrick Duffy (Soundtrack & Technical Advisor) Occasional tracks for Dallas TV show Recorded new theme for Major Dad, TV show Recorded on soundtrack for movie " Old Gringo " Gregory Peck Numerous local commercials, both Buffalo & Los Angeles, for radio and television 1/2 hour special CBC, 1994 The Dave Brubeck Quartet BET Television show - Night Tracks - with Dave Brubeck Quartet 1995 TV Show & Taping - Dave Brubeck & Moscow Symphony, Moscow - 1997 Live from Birdland streaming audio/video, 12/15/99 ( GMN.com ) Newport Jazz Festival 2001, 2003 & 2006 (JVC) (PBS) |
|
Bobby Militello has played with many artists for the last 4 decades, along with leading his own groups.
Since 1982 he has been playing alto & flute with the Dave Brubeck Quartet and has recorded over 20 cds,
played with almost every major orchestra in the U.S., Canada and Europe, appeared in many International
jazz festivals, television and radio shows. A childhood dream come true, his tenure with Dave Brubeck
has proven to be one of the highlights of his life and career. From 1975 to 1979, Bobby played with Maynard Ferguson, also a childhood dream, on baritone sax and flute. During his tenure with Maynard, he appeared in the Downbeat Readers polls from 1976 to 1979 on bari and flute and received critical acclaim in numerous articles and reviews throughout the United States and Canada. He also became Maynard's road manager for 3 years. 1982 and 1983 were especially great years. In 1982 Rick James, who lived in Buffalo, heard Bobby's fusion group, RPM. After coming to many gigs, Rick set Bobby up with a contract with Motown Records to record his first solo album Bobby M Blow". That's right cats, albums were still being recorded then. This was a funk, R&B project. Executive producer Rick James and co-produced by Bobby and the great jazz drummer and producer Lenny White. While in the process of putting the project together and beginning to record, Bobby got a call from Dave Brubeck. Dave had heard Bobby in 1977 with Maynard Ferguson, in Sugarbush Vermont. He was looking for a new horn player and wanted Bobby to come to New York and audition for the band. He did and has been with Dave ever since. While living in Los Angeles from 1983 to 1991, Bobby worked with many of the local resident world renowned composers and arrangers. To name a few, The Don Menza Quintet, The Dee Barton Big Band, Chuck Flores Big Band and Quartet, Steve Hoffstetter Latin Big Band, the Jeff Stradling Fusion Quintet, The Kim Richmond Jazz Orchestra and Big Band, The Steve Segal Big Band and various television sessions at Lorimar Studios. Bobby played alto, flute and clarinet with The Bill Holman Big Band and recorded with him as well. He also played tenor, clarinet and flute with The Bob Florence Big Band, who he also recorded with. Through a calibration with pianist, arranger and composer Corey Allen, Bobby met Emiel van Egdom, composer, arranger and guitarist from Maastricht in the Netherlands. Emiel recorded his first of many recordings in Los Angeles and Bobby played alto, tenor and flute on six of Emiel's recordings, along with some of the greatest studio players in Los Angeles. Bobby and Emiel have remained good friends for almost 25 years now and still tour and record together. Again, through his association with Corey Allen, Bobby began playing with Cheryl Benteen, vocalist from the world acclaimed vocal group Manhattan Transfer, playing tenor and clarinet and recorded on her first solo album. When Bobby moved back to Buffalo, NY, in 1991, he was a contract player for the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra where he began playing for Doc Severinson. This lead to him joining Doc in various orchestra concerts, around the country, and then to a chair in the Tonight Show Band playing tenor, clarinet and flute, touring with the band for 2 years. Toward the end of 1991, Bobby moved back to Buffalo. While still playing with Brubeck and Doc Bobby began recording his first solo CDs, since recording "BobbyM Blow" for Motown. Over the next 3 years he recorded a Cd each year. Heart and Soul, Easy To Love, Straight Ahead. At the same time he was playing with a few big bands in Buffalo and began a collaboration with trumpeter, arranger and composer, Jeff Jarvis, performing on three of Jeff's CDs and various concerts throughout the U.S. Throughout his career, spanning some 40 years, he has formed various groups of his own ranging from Fusion/Funk to Bebop. His first national recording, Primal Scream, was with Maynard Ferguson in 1975 and his first solo album was recorded in 1982 on Motown Records, entitled BobbyM Blow. Enjoying a large range of musical styles, Bobby has merged his love for many types of music into his present style of bop. This, combined with his obvious ability to express emotion in his playing, makes for a unique sound and approach to playing the alto sax, tenor sax, flute and soprano. He is one of those artists that prefers to record live, when possible, in order to truly exhibit the qualities that make jazz so interesting. Bobby has been on over 150 recordings and various television and film scores.
|