| Art Farmer | |
|---|---|
Art Farmer |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Arthur Stewart Farmer |
| Also known as | Art |
| Born | August 21, 1928 |
| Origin | Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States |
| Died | October 4, 1999 (aged 71) |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupations | Trumpeter |
| Instruments | Trumpet, flugelhorn and flumpet |
| Associated acts | Benny Golson |
Arthur Stewart "Art" Farmer (August 21, 1928, Council Bluffs, Iowa – October 4, 1999) was an American jazz trumpeter and flugelhorn player. He also played flumpet, a trumpet/flugelhorn combination designed for him by David Monette. His identical twin brother, Addison Farmer (d. 1963), was a bassist.
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The son of a steelworker, Art Farmer worked as a musician from the mid-1940s onwards. Based in Los Angeles, he played in the bands of Benny Carter and Jay McShann among others.
He joined Lionel Hampton's orchestra around 1953, fellow trumpeters Clifford Brown and Quincy Jones were also with Hampton at the time), and having relocated to New York, later worked with Gigi Gryce, Horace Silver and Gerry Mulligan among others. From the middle of the decade he featured in recordings by leading arrangers of the day, including George Russell, Jones and Oliver Nelson. He also formed "The Jazztet" with the composer and tenor saxophonist Benny Golson; both men had independently come to the decision that the other should be a member of their group. "The Jazztet" did not gain sufficient club engagements to last beyond 1962, but it did assist the careers of pianist McCoy Tyner and trombonist Grachan Moncur III, and the group recorded several albums for Argo and Mercury Records. In the early 1960s Farmer established a trio with guitarist Jim Hall and bassist Steve Swallow. Later, with drummer Pete La Roca and pianist Steve Kuhn, Farmer and Swallow recorded the album Sing Me Softly of the Blues (1965) for the Atlantic label.
Farmer then moved to Europe, ultimately based in Vienna, where he performed with The Kenny Clarke-Francy Boland Big Band. Farmer also recorded extensively as a leader throughout his later career. With Golson he revived 'The Jazztet' in the 1980s for a number of engagements, with the original trombonist Curtis Fuller returning to the group.
With Sonny Clark
With Curtis Fuller
With Bennie Green
With Dizzy Gillespie
With Clifford Jordan
With Gil Mellé
With Chico O'Farrill
With Heikki Sarmanto
With Mal Waldron