A brilliant improviser and prodigious technician, Buddy DeFranco reinvented jazz clarinet in the 1940s and 1950s, moving past traditional swing to become the premier bebop interpreter. It was a perilous undertaking on an instrument that requires nearly superhuman skill and dexterity to keep up with bebop’s sometimes freakishly fast tempos. Buddy spent a year with the famous Count Basie Septet; played with Charlie Barnet, Art Tatum, Oscar Peterson, and Gene Krupa; and led the Glenn Miller Orchestra from 1966 to 1974. 

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this presentation about Buddy DeFranco was produced in 1998 by Molly Murphy – and narrated by the show host Nancy Wilson. 

The “Jazz Profiles” shows – nearly 200 of them – are part of the Tim Owens Jazz & Broadcast Collection at the University of North Texas Music Library. In a partnership with Tim and UNTML, we’ve picked a handful of noteworthy shows to share with you. You can find more “Jazz Profiles” shows at the UNT Music Library’s Jazz Syndicate (www.library.unt.edu/jazzsyndicate), and learn more about 32 Bar Blues' clothing collection and commitment to the arts at 32barblues.com