Volume 13 , Issue 35

Eddy Duchin, The 1930's & 1940's Pianist

This week we transferred some 78rpm vinyl records to MP3 to add to our Prairie Pioneer 78rpm Jukebox. Have you ever heard of Eddy Duchin, the pianist and band leader, from the 1930's to 1940's? We have put the Eddy Duchin and other NEW MP3 files in another playlist of our MP3 Flash player over at Prairie Pioneer 78rpm Jukebox.

Edwin Frank Duchin was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, April 1 (or 10), 1909 (or 1910) and died February 9, 1951 from a fight against Leukemia. Duchin first became a pharmacist before turning full-time to music, beginning his career with Leo Reisman's orchestra at the Central Park Casino in New York. This lead to eventually becoming the Reisman orchestra's leader by 1932. Duchin was one of the earliest pianists to lead a commercially successful large band, with his popularity soaring by his regular radio broadcasts which boosted his record sales.

Duchin played what some might call "sweet" music rather than jazz. Duchin success opened a new gate for similar piano playing sweet bandleaders such as Henry King, Joe Reichman, Nat Brandwynne, Dick Gasparre, Little Jack Little, and Carmen Cavallaro to compete with the large jazz bands for radio time and record sales.

Duchin had no formal music training, but he developed a style rooted in classical music that some saw as the forerunner of Liberace's ornate approach. Duchin was considered easy to listen to without being entirely predictable. Duchin would often use soft beautiful voices singers such as Durelle Alexander and Lew Sherwood to accommodate his sweet and romantic songs, which gave them era appeal and making them more interesting.

Duchin entered the U.S. Navy during World War II, serving as a combat officer in a destroyer squadron in the Pacific.[1] He attained the rank of lieutenant commander (O4). After his discharge from the military, Duchin was unable to reclaim his former stardom in spite of a stab at a new radio show in 1949.

On February 9, 1951, Eddy Duchin died at age 41 in New York City of acute myelogenous leukemia. He was cremated, and his ashes were scattered in the Atlantic Ocean.   |  View or Add Comments (0 Comments)   |   Receive updates ( subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

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