George Gruntz

George Gruntz's Concert Jazz Band, an orchestra that emphasized originals by bandmembers (both past and present) and the leader's arrangements, was one of the most stimulating of all jazz big bands, with a history spanning a number of decades. Gruntz, a fine pianist, played locally in Switzerland and then debuted in the United States when he appeared with Marshall Brown's International Youth Band at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival. His trio in Europe accompanied touring American musicians in the 1960s including Dexter Gordon and Rahsaan Roland Kirk, and formed three-quarters of...