Morris "Moe" Koffman, OC (28 December 1928 – 28 March 2001) was a Canadian jazz saxophonist and flautist, as well as composer and arranger. During a career spanning from the 1950s into the 2000s, Koffman was one of Canada's most prolific musicians, working variously in clubs and sessions and releasing 30 albums. With his 1957 record ''Cool and Hot Sax'' on the New York-based Jubilee label, Koffman became one of the first Canadian jazz musicians to record a full-length album. Koffman was also a long-time member of Rob McConnell's Boss Brass.
His most famous pieces, "Curried Soul" and "Koff Drops", have been the theme music for the
CBC Radio One
CBC Radio One is the English-language news and information radio network of the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial-free and offers local and national programming. It is available on AM and FM to 98 percent o ...
Toronto
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
Koffman dropped out of school when he found work performing in dance bands. In 1950, he moved to the United States, where he played with
big band
A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...
s including those of Sonny Dunham and Jimmy Dorsey. In 1955, he returned to Toronto where he formed a quartet and later a quintet. He recorded '' Swinging Shepherd Blues'' in 1957 which helped establish his reputation as a flautist. "Swinging Shepherd Blues" was a hit in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, reaching #4, the United States, reaching #38 on the
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
pop chart, and #23 on the UK Singles Chart.
Koffman was inspired by
Rahsaan Roland Kirk
Rahsaan Roland Kirk (born Ronald Theodore Kirk; August 7, 1935Kernfeld, Barry.Kirk, Roland" ''The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz'', 2nd ed. Ed. Barry Kernfeld. ''Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Grove Music Online''. ''Grove Dictionary of M ...
to play multiple instruments at once; and had a modified set of straps to hold a tenor and an alto saxophone so that he could put forward incredible chords and improvise at the same time. One of the more famous session musicians in Toronto, he appeared in countless commercials, background music, and film and TV soundtracks. Most work on bass flute in Canadian soundtracks from 1950 to 1990 in Toronto sessions was done by Koffman on this rare instrument. Koffman was also an exponent of circular breathing techniques for his large volumes of sound, and joined fellow Canadian Maynard Ferguson and new age multi-instrumentalist musician Ron Allen in this talent.
During the 1970s, Koffman recorded several albums with arrangements of works by classical composers including Bach,
Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...
and
Vivaldi
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist, impresario of Baroque music and Roman Catholic priest. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lif ...
. The albums were released by GRT Canada and later by Universal. He also was a guest performer with a number of symphony orchestras across Canada.
He performed with
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie ( ; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improvisation, improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy El ...
and Peter Appleyard during the 1980s, as well as continuing to front the Moe Koffman Quintet. He often performed with Rob McConnell's Boss Brass. From 1956 to 1990, Koffman booked performers for George's Spaghetti House in Toronto, where he performed weekly. His compositions "Curried Soul" and "Koff Drops" have been used as the opening and closing themes respectively for the CBC radio show '' As It Happens'' since 1972.
He was appointed to the
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit.
To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...
By May 1970, Koffman's album, ''Moe's Curried Soul'' was out on the
Revolver
A revolver is a repeating handgun with at least one barrel and a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold six cartridges before needing to be reloaded, ...
In 2002, Moe Koffman was a MasterWorks honouree by the
Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada The Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada (or the AV Trust). originally the Alliance for the Preservation of Canada's Audio-Visual Heritage,Duke Street Records was unreleased at the time of his death. ''Music for the Night'' was released and re-issued in 2007, and ''Devil's Brew'' was re-issued in 2009.
Discography (Selective)
LPs:
*''Cool and Hot Sax'' (1957) (Jubilee)
*''The Shepherd Swings Again'' (1958) (Jubilee)
*''Moe Koffman The Swinging Shepherd Plays for Teens'' (1962) (Ascot)
*''Tales of Koffman'' (1962) (UA)
*''The Moe Koffman Quartet'' (1963) (CTA)
*''Moe Koffman'' (1967) (Universal)
*''1967'' (1967) (Just A Memory)
*''Moe Koffman Quartet'' (1967) (CBC/RCI)
*''Moe Koffman Goes Electric'' (1967) (Jubilee)
*''Turned On Moe Koffman'' (1968) (Jubilee)
*''Moe's Curried Soul'' with Doug Riley & Lenny Breau (1969) (
Revolver
A revolver is a repeating handgun with at least one barrel and a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold six cartridges before needing to be reloaded, ...
)
*''Moe Koffman Plays Bach'' (1971) (GRT)
*''The Four Seasons'' (1972) (GRT)
*''Master Session'' (1974) (GRT)
*''Solar Explorations'' (1974) (GRT)
*''Swinging Shepherd'' (1975) (Universal)
*''Live at George's'' (1975) (GRT)
*''Jungle Man'' (1976) (GRT)
*''Museum Pieces'' (1977) (Janus)
*''Things Are Looking Up'' (1978) (GRT), a Juno Award for Best Jazz Album nominee
*''Back to Bach'' (1979) (Anthem)
*''Project'' (1980) (Universal)
*''If You Don't Know Me By Now...'' (1982) (Elektra)
*''Moe-Mentum'' (1986) (Universal)
*''One Moe Time'' (1986) (Duke)
*''Oop.Pop.A.Da'' featuring
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie ( ; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improvisation, improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy El ...
(1989) (Universal)
*''Moe Koffman Quintet Plays'' (1990) (Duke Street Records)
*''Music for the Night'' arranged by Doug Riley (1991) (Universal)
*''Collection'' (1993) (Universal)
*''Devil's Brew'' (1996) (Universal)
With the Ron Collier Orchestra featuring
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life.
Born and raised in Washington, D ...
Music of Canada
The music of Canada reflects the diverse influences that have History of Canada, shaped the country. Indigenous Peoples, the Irish-Canadians, Irish, British, and the French have all made unique contributions to the musical Culture of Canada, herit ...