Donald Gale Lanphere (June 26, 1928 – October 9, 2003) 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 ...

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

and

soprano saxophonist The soprano saxophone is a higher-register variety of the saxophone, a woodwind instrument invented in the 1840s. The soprano is the third-smallest member of the saxophone family, which consists (from smallest to largest) of the soprillo saxop ...

, known for his 1940s and 1950s work, and recordings with

Fats Navarro Theodore "Fats" Navarro (September 24, 1923 – July 6, 1950) was an American jazz trumpet player. He was a pioneer of the bebop style of jazz improvisation in the 1940s. He had a strong stylistic influence on many other players, including Cl ...

(in 1948),

Woody Herman Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading groups called "The Herd", Herman came to prominence in the late 1930s and was active until his dea ...

(1949),

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 ...

Sonny Dunham Elmer "Sonny" Dunham (November 16, 1911 – July 9, 1990) was an American trumpet player and bandleader. A versatile musician, he was one of the few trumpet players who could double on the trombone with equal skill. Biography Born in Brockton, ...

Billy May Edward William May Jr. (November 10, 1916 – January 22, 2004) was an American composer, arranger and trumpeter. He composed film and television music for ''The Green Hornet'' (1966), ''The Mod Squad'' (1968), ''Batman'' (with '' Batgirl'' them ...

, and

Charlie Barnet Charles Daly Barnet (October 26, 1913 – September 4, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. His major recordings were "Skyliner", "Cherokee", "The Wrong Idea", "Scotch and Soda", "In a Mizz", and "Southland Shuffle ...

Biography

He was born in

Wenatchee, Washington Wenatchee ( ) is the county seat and largest city of Chelan County, Washington, United States. The population within the city limits in 2010 was 31,925, and was estimated to have increased to 34,360 as of 2019. Located in the north-central part ...

, United States. Lanphere briefly studied music at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

in the 1940s, but moved to New York City as a member of

Johnny Bothwell Johnny Bothwell (May 23, 1919 – September 12, 1995) was an American jazz alto saxophonist and bandleader. Career Bothwell played in Chicago in 1940 and then moved to New York City, playing with Woody Herman (1943) and Sonny Dunham (1944&nda ...

's group to become part of the

bebop Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early-to-mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo, complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerous changes of key, instrumen ...

jazz scene. In New York, Lanphere was in a relationship with Chan Richardson, who later married

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...

and then

Phil Woods Philip Wells Woods (November 2, 1931 – September 29, 2015) was an American jazz alto saxophonist, clarinetist, bandleader, and composer. Biography Woods was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. After inheriting a saxophone at age 12, he began ...

.Siders, Harvey
"Don Lanphere"
, ''

JazzTimes ''JazzTimes'' is an American magazine devoted to jazz. Published 10 times a year, it was founded in Washington, D.C. in 1970 by Ira Sabin as the newsletter ''Radio Free Jazz'' to complement his record store. Coverage After a decade of growth ...

'', March 2002. (accessed 4 June 2015) In 1951, Lanphere was arrested and charged with heroin possession in New York City. After his release from jail, he worked in his family's music store in Wenatchee, where he met Midge Hess. They married in 1953. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Lanphere performed with

Herb Pomeroy Irving Herbert Pomeroy III (April 15, 1930 – August 11, 2007) was an American jazz trumpeter, teacher, and the founder of the MIT Festival Jazz Ensemble. Early life Pomeroy was born in Gloucester, Massachusetts, United States. He began playing ...

and with Woody Herman. Lanphere was mostly inactive musically throughout most of the 1960s, but began performing in the Seattle area after becoming a

born again Christian Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sepa ...

in 1969, at which time he also stopped using drugs and alcohol. In the 1980s, Lanphere began recording again and started releasing albums, doing tours in New York City and Kansas City in 1983 and a European tour in 1985. In his later years, Lanphere was a jazz educator in the Pacific Northwest, giving lessons out of his home in

Kirkland, Washington Kirkland is a city in King County, Washington, United States. A suburb east of Seattle, its population was 92,175 in the 2020 U.S. census which made it the sixth largest city in the county and the twelfth largest in the state. The city's downto ...

. He instructed clinics and small groups, as well as performed, at the Bud Shank Jazz Workshop, an annual, week-long summer camp in

Port Townsend, Washington Port Townsend is a city on the Quimper Peninsula in Jefferson County, Washington, United States. The population was 10,148 at the 2020 United States Census. It is the county seat and only incorporated city of Jefferson County. In addition to ...

for jazz students of all ages. The Bud Shank Jazz Workshop coincided with the annual Port Townsend Jazz Festival. He died in

Redmond, Washington Redmond is a city in King County, Washington, United States, located east of Seattle. The population was 73,256 at the 2020 census, up from 54,144 in 2010. Redmond is best known as the home of Microsoft and Nintendo of America. With an an ...

, of

hepatitis C Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) that primarily affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. During the initial infection people often have mild or no symptoms. Occasionally a fever, dark urine, a ...

at the age of 75.

Discography

* ''From Out of Nowhere'' ( Hep, 1982) * ''

Into Somewhere ''Into Somewhere'' is a studio album by Don Lanphere released by Hep Records in 1983. Track listing #Noble Indian Song, Pt. 2 #Dear Old Stockholm #Take the 'A' Train #Last Night When We Were Young #Brown Rock #I Heard You Cry Last Night #Here, No ...

'' (Hep, 1983) * ''Don Loves Midge'' (Hep, 1984) * ''

Stop Stop may refer to: Places * Stop, Kentucky, an unincorporated community in the United States * Stop (Rogatica), a village in Rogatica, Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina Facilities * Bus stop * Truck stop, a type of rest stop for truck d ...

'' (Hep, 1986) * ''Don Lanphere & Larry Coryell'' (Hep, 1990) * ''Lopin'' (Hep, 1992) * ''Jazz Worship/A Closer Walk'' (DGL, 1993) * ''Get Happy'' (

Origin Origin(s) or The Origin may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Comics and manga * Origin (comics), ''Origin'' (comics), a Wolverine comic book mini-series published by Marvel Comics in 2002 * The Origin (Buffy comic), ''The Origin'' (Bu ...

, 1996) * ''Don Still Loves Midge'' (Hep, 1997) * ''Year 'Round Christmas'' (Origin, 1999) * ''Like a Bird'' (Origin, 2000) * ''Home at Last'' (Origin, 2001) * ''Where Do You Start?'' (Origin, 2003) With

* ''Blues in Teddy's Flat'' ( Dial) * ''Fats Navarro Quintet'' (

Prestige Prestige refers to a good reputation or high esteem; in earlier usage, ''prestige'' meant "showiness". (19th c.) Prestige may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films * ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnett ...

) With the Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra * ''SRJO Live'' (Origin) * ''Sacred Music of Duke Ellington'' (Origin)

References

External links

obituary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lanphere, Don 1928 births 2003 deaths 20th-century American musicians Bebop saxophonists American male jazz musicians Members of the Foursquare Church Musicians from Washington (state) Bienen School of Music alumni People from Wenatchee, Washington 20th-century saxophonists American jazz tenor saxophonists American male saxophonists 20th-century American male musicians Hep Records artists Jazz musicians from Washington (state)