Danny Pollo (December 22, 1901 – July 11, 1949) known professionally as Danny Polo was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

clarinetist.

Life

Polo was born in Toluca, Illinois and moved to

Clinton, Indiana Clinton is a city in Clinton Township, Vermillion County, Indiana, Clinton Township, Vermillion County, Indiana, Vermillion County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 4,893 at the 2010 census. History The city was established in 18 ...

as an infant, where his father worked as a coal miner. His father was also a clarinetist, and Danny learned to play from a young age, working in

marching band A marching band is a group of instrumental musicians who perform while marching, often for entertainment or competition. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. Most marching bands wear a uniform, ofte ...

s from age eight. In his youth he and

Claude Thornhill Claude Thornhill (August 10, 1908 – July 1, 1965) was an American pianist, arranger, composer, and bandleader. He composed the jazz and pop standards "Snowfall" and "I Wish I Had You". Early years Thornhill was the son of J. Chester Thornhill ...

had a duo. In the 1920s Polo played with

Elmer Schoebel Elmer Schoebel (September 8, 1896 – December 14, 1970) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger. Early life He was born in East St. Louis, Illinois, United States. Career Schoebel played along to silent films in Champaign, Illinoi ...

(1923),

Merritt Brunies Merritt Brunies (December 25, 1895 - February 5, 1973), was an American jazz trombonist and cornetist. Brunies was born into a well-known musical family in New Orleans, Louisiana; among its members were George Brunies and Albert Brunies. Merritt ...

, Arnold Johnson,

Ben Bernie Benjamin Anzelwitz, known professionally as Ben Bernie (May 30, 1891 – October 23, 1943),DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. ...

Jean Goldkette John Jean Goldkette (March 18, 1893 – March 24, 1962) was a jazz pianist and bandleader. Life Goldkette was reportedly born on March 18, 1893 in Valenciennes, France,Russel B. Nye (1976). Music in the Twenties: The Jean Goldkette Orchestra ...

(1926), and

Paul Ash Paul Robert Ash (February 11, 1891, Germany — July 13, 1958, Manhattan, New York) was a German orchestra leader, composer, vaudeville personality, and recording artist, who emigrated to the United States. He recorded several hit songs: "Rememb ...

. In 1927 he went to Europe with

Dave Tough Dave Tough (April 26, 1907 – December 9, 1948) was an American jazz drummer associated with Dixieland and swing jazz in the 1930s and 1940s. Biography Born in Oak Park, Illinois, United States, Tough was a friend of Bud Freeman, who was p ...

, where he played with several continental bandleaders including

Bert Firman Bert Firman (born Herbert Feuerman; 3 February 1906 – 9 April 1999) was an English bandleader of the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. He was born in London. His mother was of Polish stock and his father was a professional musician who had settled ...

Lud Gluskin Ludwig Elias "Lud" GluskinState of New York Certificate and Record of Birth, January 4, 1899. (December 16, 1898 – October 13, 1989) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader.Donnelly, K.J. and Philip Hayward (2012''Music in Science Fiction ...

, George Carhart,

Ben Berlin Ben Berlin (born Hermann Biek; 1896–1944) was a jazz musician born in Reval (now Tallinn, Estonia) in 1896. He married composer Vera Vinogradova around 1920 and they had two children, Leopold and Nina. Berlin founded the Ben Berlin Dance Orchest ...

and Arthur Briggs. From 1930 until 1935, Polo played with

Ambrose Ambrose of Milan ( la, Aurelius Ambrosius; ), venerated as Saint Ambrose, ; lmo, Sant Ambroeus . was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promo ...

, returning to the U.S. in December of 1935. Polo particularly enjoyed living in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and stayed there for several years, even after Germany was taken over by the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

regime. In 1938 Polo returned to Britain to play with Ambrose and in 1939 he worked with

Ray Ventura Raymond Ventura (16 April 1908, Paris, France – 29 March 1979, Palma de Mallorca, Spain) was a French jazz pianist and bandleader. He helped popularize jazz in France in the 1930s. His nephew was singer Sacha Distel. Career Ventura was born to ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. Late in 1939 he moved back to the U.S. permanently and spent the early 1940s working with

Joe Sullivan Michael Joseph O'Sullivan (November 4, 1906 – October 13, 1971) was an American jazz pianist. Sullivan was the ninth child of Irish immigrant parents. He studied classical piano for 12 years and at age 17, he began to play popular music in si ...

Jack Teagarden Weldon Leo "Jack" Teagarden (August 20, 1905 – January 15, 1964) was an American jazz trombonist and singer. According to critic Scott Yannow of Allmusic, Teagarden was the preeminent American jazz trombone player before the bebop era of the 19 ...

(1942, including on

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

's film ''

Birth of the Blues ''Birth of the Blues'' is a 1941 American musical film directed by Victor Schertzinger and starring Bing Crosby, Mary Martin and Brian Donlevy. The plot loosely follows the origins and breakthrough success of the Original Dixieland Jass Band i ...

''), and Claude Thornhill. He led his own Midwestern

territory band Territory bands were dance bands that crisscrossed specific regions of the United States from the 1920s through the 1960s. Beginning in the 1920s, the bands typically had 8 to 12 musicians. These bands typically played one-nighters, six or seven n ...

for a time, then returned to play with Thornhill in 1947. He recorded two sessions as a leader (which include

Alix Combelle Alix Combelle (15 June 1912 – 26 February 1978 :fr:Alix Combelle) was a French swing saxophonist, clarinetist, and bandleader. He recorded often with Django Reinhardt and the Quintette du Hot Club de France. Career A native of Paris, his ...

), both in Europe, in 1938-39, and played in several experimental sessions with

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

around 1947-1948. While with Thornhill he became ill, and died rather suddenly on July 11, 1949 in Chicago. His death was caused by hemorrhages that resulted from a peptic ulcer. He was 47. His gravestone gives his correct name as Pollo.

References

;Footnotes ;General references *

Scott Yanow Scott Yanow (born October 4, 1954) is an American jazz reviewer, historian, and author.Allmusic Biography/ref> Biography Yanow was born in New York City and grew up near Los Angeles. Since 1974, he was a regular reviewer of many jazz styles an ...

, Danny Poloat

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Polo, Danny 1901 births 1949 deaths American jazz clarinetists Musicians from Illinois 20th-century American musicians