Art Van Damme

Art Van Damme (April 9, 1920[1] – February 15, 2010[2]) was a jazz accordionist.

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Biography

Born in Norway, Michigan, he began playing the accordion at age nine and started classical study when his family moved to Chicago in 1934. In 1941 he joined Ben Bernie's band as an accordionist. He adapted Benny Goodman's music to the accordion. From 1945 to 1960 he worked for NBC, performing on The Dinah Shore Show, Tonight, The Dave Garroway Show and other radio and TV shows with Garroway. He recorded 130 episodes of the 15-minute The Art Van Damme Show for NBC Radio. He was no relation to Jean-Claude Van Damme.

Van Damme toured Europe and was popular with jazz listeners in Japan[3] and regularly won the domestic Down Beat reader's poll for his instrument in the same period.

Van Damme was married, had three children and six grandchildren. Although he retired to Florida, he continued to perform almost to the end of his life. He had been ill with pneumonia for several weeks when he died on February 15, 2010 at the age of 89.[2]

Discography

References

  1. ^ Allmusic biography
  2. ^ a b Accordion news weekly
  3. ^ 1960 Japanese Downbeat Readers Poll

External links