Chico O'Farrill
| Chico O'Farrill | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Arturo O’Farrill |
| Also known as | "Chico" |
| Born |
October 28, 1921 Havana, Cuba |
| Died | June 27, 2001 (aged 79) New York, New York, United States |
| Genres | Latin jazz, Afro-Cuban jazz, bebop, blues, big band, mambo |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, composer, arranger, conductor |
| Years active | 1951–2001 |
| Labels | Clef, Norgran, Verve, Impulse!, Milestone |
Arturo "Chico" O'Farrill (October 28, 1921 – June 27, 2001) was a Cuban composer, arranger, and conductor, best known for his work in the Latin idiom, specifically Afro-Cuban jazz or "Cubop", although he also composed traditional jazz pieces and even symphonic works.
Born to an Irish father and a German mother, he played the trumpet early in his career. He composed works for Machito (Afro-Cuban suite with Charlie Parker, 1950) and Benny Goodman's Bebop Orchestra ("Undercurrent Blues"), and arranged for Dizzy Gillespie and Stan Kenton, among others.
In the 1990s O'Farrill led a big band that took up residence at New York's Birdland nightclub. Chico's son, pianist Arturo O'Farrill, eventually took over the band.
O’Farrill was born in Havana, Cuba on October 28, 1921. He was raised to follow family tradition and enter into law practice, though before he could, he became enamored with jazz music and pursued that instead. He discovered big band jazz when he attended military boarding school in Florida, where he first learned to play the trumpet, and after returning to Havana began studying classical music under Felix Guerrero at the Havana Conservatory and playing in local nightclubs alongside figures like Isidro Perez and Armando Romeu. In 1948, he relocated to New York City, where he continued his classical music studies under Stefan Wolpe, Bernard Wagenaar, and others at the Juilliard School, and began to pursue the jazz scene in his free time.
Soon after moving to New York City, he began working as an arranger for Benny Goodman, and wrote "Undercurrent Blues". It was at this point his nickname was born: Goodman had trouble pronouncing his name, and began referring to him as "Chico" instead. During this period, he also worked as an arranger with Stan Kenton (Cuban Episode), Count Basie, Art Farmer, and Machito (the Afro-Cuban Jazz Suite), and contributed to several Afro-Cuban jazz works by Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie (The Manteca Suite). He also started his own band, the Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra, during this time, which toured the country, recorded, and played weekly gigs at the Birdland jazz club. In 1957 he moved to Mexico and lived with his wife, singer Lupe Valero, until 1965; while there he wrote a suite for Art Farmer in 1959 and performed concerts in Mexico City.
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