March 21, 2024 • 39 mins
Frank Cunimondo (born 1934) is an American jazz pianist and educator based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In addition to performing, Cunimondo has taught at Duquesne University and the University of Pittsburgh. (From: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Cunimondo)
Bob Insko is a member of the “Phoenix Jazz Project”, a sextet that has wowed audiences from Pittsburgh to Prague. He has performed with nationally acclaimed artists, Harry Connick, Jr., Rob McConnell, and Phil Woods, among others. He is a Music Teacher for the Kiski Area Schools. (http://ronwilsonjazz.com/)
Bob Insko is a member of the “Phoenix Jazz Project”, a sextet that has wowed audiences from Pittsburgh to Prague. He has performed with nationally acclaimed artists, Harry Connick, Jr., Rob McConnell, and Phil Woods, among others. He is a Music Teacher for the Kiski Area Schools. (http://ronwilsonjazz.com/)
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(00:00):
I knows it. This is annvideo and you are oh, bless your
heart. This is the Coda Podcast, qual it in Pittsburgh's music scene,
and welcome in. I'm Johnny Hartwell, your host along with Andy Kugar,
(00:22):
and today we talked to a coupleof jazz legends, Bob Inscoe and Frank
Kunamundo. Bob Insko, thank youfor joining me. Now, I don't
know about how many times that you'vebeen on the Tonight Show? Have you
been on the Tonight Show? Ihave not been on the I've never been
on the he have you know?I have you know? So who in
(00:44):
here has been on the Tonight Show? Frank Kunamundo, thank you for joining
me. So yes, it's anice show. When I lived in New
York, I was playing in NewYork City and I was lad in a
place called the Absence House, whichwas a very good place to have music
there and I played there for quitesome time, and the people from the
(01:04):
Tonight Show came in to hear meplay and they really liked me, so
they wanted me to be on theshow, so they had me on their
show. That was a lot offun. All right, Well, let's
let's bookmark that because I want tofind out more about your life. So
when did you become interested in music. Did you have a family background in
music? Yeah, well, whenI first started the classical teaching, that
(01:30):
was with Evelina Paulmurray. She wasa woman, and she was an excellent
piano teacher. Of course, Istudied regular music with her, you know,
classical music with her. But inthe meantime, I was playing my
own jazz music because I'd listened everyday. I came home from school,
put on the radio and I listenedto the jazz program, and I said,
that's me, That's what I wantto do, you know. So
I listen every day. I listenedto that, you know, and I'd
(01:52):
sit down at the piano and startplaying and try to play like that,
you know. I started to playsaxophone also, you know. And by
the time I was start ten yearsold, I was I started to play
jobs all over at East Liberty.There's many many nightclubs in East Liberty.
And by the time I was thirteen, fourteen, fifteen years old, I
was playing all the night clubs inHeliberty. That was great for me.
I just loved it all right,let me go to Bomb same question to
(02:14):
you, When did you become interestedin music? When the very first time
that I became interested is when mydad was a guitar player and he would
leave his guitar in the corner andwhen he told me to not touch his
guitar, that was that was mysign that I have to do that.
(02:35):
Now did you have any siblings andwere they interested in music? Did they
become interested in music or were youthe only one that was drawn to that
music. I was the oldest,and I have a brother who was also
a trumpet player, and now he'sbut he and he went to college to
study music, but he is.Actually our family business was in the saddle
(02:58):
making business in Kentucky, so heis. I have two brothers that became
saddle makers. And then I wasthe rebel that became the musician. Now
you know that would be a bassplayer. Did you start with the bass?
The first instrument that I played wasguitar, So like when I was
when I was old enough to justlearn a couple of chords and stuff.
(03:20):
Look, but my dad was hebeing a musician. He didn't think that
I could make money doing that,so he really didn't want to. He
didn't teach me, but I wouldwhen he would he would play all the
time. And when he would play, I would just look at his hands
and see where he was putting hisfingers. And when he left and put
his guitar in the corner, Iwould try it out. And so what
(03:40):
kind of music did your dad listento? Well? Country music, bluegrass.
My grandfather was a was a fiddleplayer in Kentucky, so they did
a lot of bluegrass stuff down there. And uh, and then once I
got ahold of a bass, Ibecame like the bass player on family occasions
(04:01):
like Thanksgiving and Christmas, and whenthe family would get together, we would
always end up in the living roomplaying some songs and I would get to
hear them play. And then onceI got ahold of a bass, I
was holding down the low end withthat. So all right, let me
go back to Frank. So didyou was your family? Did you have
a family of musicians? No,it was just my father. My father
(04:24):
played guitar, and he played professionally. Also when he came here from Italy.
He came here and he got ajob. I forget what kind of
job he had then, but atat any rate, he started to play
his guitar and he started playing insome clubs in downtown Pittsburgh. My dad.
So he's playing some of the clubsand he was a good guitar player.
(04:45):
And what kind of music was Itwas more pop music, okay,
more pop music. And he camehere from Italy, so he had to
get a knowledge of the sort ofplaying that you would play on a program
like that. You know, hewouldn't be playing polkas or anything like that.
You know you'd be playing It waslike a jass what year, What
(05:06):
year is that? What year wasthat? When you're doing well? That
had to be in the years likeI'd say, like about nineteen when my
dad came here, when I waswell, I was born, Like I'm
not going to say what. No, my father came here from Italy and
joined my grandfather who was here.My grandfather was on the railroad. He
(05:29):
was in charge of the railroad thereand he had his own what do you
call it, the train on thetrain, his own car, his own
car, he had his own car, yea, his own car, train
car. And he became one ofthe big peoples in the industry there on
(05:50):
the railroad. And my dad gota job there fixing shoes. He was
very good at that, and yougot a job in one place. And
he was making shoes for crippled people, people that had something wrong with their
feet. He was good at that. He was making prepared shoes for certain
(06:11):
people, you know. So that'swhat my dad did. And he also
played the guitar. He played.I have pictures of him playing in some
of the clubs in Pittsburgh that heplayed in when he was young. And
he did that for quite a whileand then he just gave it up and
that was the end of that.Did you learn the guitar at all?
I never learned guitar. Now,what made you take piano? Yeah?
(06:33):
Yeah, Well, you know Ilistened to jazz every day I came home
from school, I turned on thejazz station. That's what I wanted to
do. I wanted to play thatkind of music, you know, which
we call jazz now, you know. And so I used to listen to
the piano players, you know,and I said, well, you know,
I can play like that, youknow, that's what I want to
do. I want to play jazz, you know. I mean I was
(06:54):
playing classical music for eighteen years,you know. It was my student my
teacher, I said, I wantto play jazz, you know. So
that's what I did. I satdown at my piano and I started to
learn how to play this thing,the American music that we call jazz.
And I loved it. And bythe time I was thirteen years old,
I was playing some of the clubsin East Liberty. You know. They
liked the way I played. Theytreated me good, they paid me good.
(07:16):
And from thirteen fourteen, fifteen sixteenup until twenty one years old,
I was playing like all the clubsin Pittsburgh and I had a really good
time. And then I got someengagements. I started to go on the
road. They call it going ona road, playing gigs on the road,
you know. I moved to NewYork for a while. I played
all over New York, played itall over in the Florida and some of
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the other places in Florida, theother places in Carolina. And I had
a good time. And I'm doingwhat I wanted to do. I always
wanted to just be a jazz musician. That's what I was born to be.
I knew that was in my head, you know. So that's what
I did all my life. Fromthe time I was five years old,
I'm still doing the same thing.All right, let me go to Bob.
So you grew up your your fatherplayed guitar like country music. Right
(08:09):
when you first started music, wereyou playing what your dad was listening to
or when did when did you startbranching out? Well? Yeah, I
just tried to like play what mydad would play and the chords that my
dad would play, and just youknow, it was it was I don't
(08:30):
know, it was just drawn tothat. But when I when I started
branching out is like as far aslike listening to jazz and stuff like that
and being and considering being a jazzmusician, was probably only my first year
in college, you know, becausebefore that, even my school, like
Frank was very fortunate because the schoolthat he was in in high school,
(08:52):
they had an established jazz program,you know, but where I was in
Kentucky, it wasn't it wasn't anestablished jazz program. So the very first
time I really was associated with,like influenced by jazz is my first year
in college. And it was justlike the same thing as Frank's, like,
Wow, this is what I wantto do, man, you know,
And I was playing trombone at thetime. So, but then my
(09:16):
second year is when I second yearin college is where I actually got the
bass back out and tried to dothat because my wife wanted me to play
back. She was like, allwe got to do is have a drummer
and we got a trio. Yeah, yeah, she's a keyboard player.
Well, not a lot of peopleknow or appreciate the history of jazz in
Pittsburgh. Oh my goodness, Yes, yes, you're You're exactly right.
(09:39):
There's so many great musicians that havecome from this place. So, Frank,
you went to Westinghouse. That wasYeah. I went from Lincoln School
up to sixth grade and seventh gradeI entered into Westinghouse High School and I
was just overwhelmed with everything there.Or Westinghouse is known for two things,
what are they? Football? Andmusic? And I mean they had a
(10:00):
band director there. He was incharge of the music department. It was
unbelievable. He had five different whatdo you call them? Sound people.
He had a thing called the Cadets. They were a jazz orchestra, eighteen
piece jazz orchestra. And some ofyour greatest musicians in the world came from
there. From westing Hus High School, and he had them. He had
(10:22):
a junior orchestra, junior band,senior orchestra, senior band, marching band
for the football. So football musicwas the big finn in the Westinghouse.
And I had just a good timethere. I don't know how I ever
graduated because I didn't do anything exceptplaying music. I really I don't know
what else I did. I wasnot interested in anything except music. So
(10:43):
mister McVicker, who was the banddirector there, or he was in charge
of the music, just gave mea key whatever you want to do,
Francasu. You know, so weknow where I was every day in the
practice room playing and you were playingclubs in East Liberty. Oh. I
was playing clubs at that time.Yeah. I was playing clubs at that
time whenever I was and going toWestinghouse and people like Freddie Jones who became
(11:05):
Alma Jamal. He was the pianoplayer there at that time. You know,
he was in twelfth grade and Iwas in seventh grade. Alma Jamal
was one of the great jazz musiciansjess pianists in America. Well, tell
us about you know, I wasjust talking to Bob about you know,
the history of jazz in Pittsburgh.We have a proud Pittsburgh. And New
York and Philadelphia. I mean,they were the places for jazz music,
(11:28):
you know. And everybody wanted togo to New York because that's where everybody
went when they became big time,so to speak, and they wanted to
go and perform in which I didthe same thing, you know, go
to New York and play in NewYork. And that was really a ball,
I'll tell you. That was reallysomething, you know. So I
did that for quite a while,lived in New York, played in all
the places in New York. Andat that time, people from the Johnny
(11:48):
Carson Show came in to hear me. They heard about me, and they
liked what I did, so theyput me on a Johnny Carson show.
So that was a biggie. Afterthe Johnny Carson Show, I started to
get a lot of work hold on. Wow, I can imagine. So
when they approached you to play theTonight Show, what was your first reaction.
My first reaction was like, yeah, man, I'm going to go
(12:09):
on here and really play the bestI can, because like, that's a
great show. I loved that showand everything about it, you know.
And music was a part of thatshow too. I want to go there
and play some music and then maybeI could get some more work, you
know. And that's what I did. Were you nervous at all? No,
I wasn't nervous. I had agood time. Oh, I mean
that that clip is still on itstill, I guess it's they're still on.
(12:31):
You have to go Carson shows stillon. Yeah, I don't know
if I still do the thing withthat. You can see Frank's performance on
YouTube. Yeah, and so andso you weren't nervous. You just like
did your thing. That's all Iwanted to do all my life. From
the time I was five years old, all I wanted to do was be
a musician. I used to goeverywhere where there's music. They had music
(12:52):
all over East Liberty, and Iwas so young I couldn't go there into
these clubs that were going into theseplaces. So I would stand outside and
just hope the door would open.People would start walking and so I could
hear the music. I said,this is me, this is what I
want to do. You know well, And you said the doors opened after
playing, you can hear the bandinside. They had what kind of opportunities
were presented to you after playing,Well, there were none then because I
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was just a young boy. Iwas eight nine, ten years old then,
you know. But when after youplayed the Tonight Show, then,
well, after I played the TonightShow, everybody wanted to book me in
their club, you know, becausethe Tonight Show is one of the big
things in America for music, youknow, and people like being that I
was from Pittsburgh and primarily from EastLiberty too, and playing all those clubs
I did in East Liberty. Geez, everybody wanted to hire me and he
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wanted me to play, which wasgreat, and not only played what I
wanted to play, but I madea few bucks. Anyhow, So when
did you start recording? When didI start recording? Whenever I was about
eighteen years old. A very goodguitar player by the name of Joe Negri
and I used to play with himonce in a while, and he gave
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me the interest in doing some recordingmyself. So when I was eighteen years
old, I did some recording andgee, I said, that's not too
bad, you know, I mean, it's not great. I don't think
I'm great or anything like that.But I says, at least I've made
some recordings. I said, Ireally wanted to do that, and so
eventually I started to do. WhenI got older, I did my recordings
and they're being played all over theworld now, you know, hopefully still
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doing the hard. Let me getback to Bob. So when we were
just talking to you, you're justleaving high school, you're going to college,
you teamed up with your wife,you're thinking about joining a trio.
So when did you come to Pittsburgh? I think, I, you know
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what. What what happened is Iwas on the ten year college degree program
because I would do about a yearof college and then I would go out
on the road and my wife.My wife and I both traveled together.
So from about nineteen eighty to aboutnineteen ninety, I was I would go
(15:03):
to a semester of college and thenwe would get a call to go out
with a show band or a travelingband on the road. So I did
college and the road, and solike nineteen ninety, it was like maybe
eighty nine when I got to Pittsburgh. And when when we got to Pittsburgh,
we were in the family way.So my first kid was on the
(15:26):
way and in nineteen ninety and atthat point, traveling on the road was
out, so I wasn't going todo that. So I was very,
very fortunate to get a teaching jobat Kiskiera School District, and I actually
taught there for I'm retired now,but I taught there for thirty years and
(15:48):
had the family and stuff like that. And in the in that thirty years,
though, I was playing in Pittsburghand in a lot of it.
And when did you and Frank wereWhen were you two introduced to each other?
Well, in nineteen eighty when mywife brought me up the very first
time we were introduced. But Frankat that time man had some bass players
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that were ridiculously awesome. There wasa guy named Dave Larroca, who I
think Dave is I'm not. Ithink the last time I heard he was
in Cincinnati, but Dave was oneof his bass players. He had a
bass player named John Hurd. Everybass player in town has been with Frank.
And I was fortunate that at thetime that I moved up, Frank
(16:37):
needed a bass player, so Igot to do a gig. And I
wasn't really good when I first startedplaying with Frank either, So you know,
with jazz music, and correct meif I'm wrong, because I don't
know a whole lot about music tobegin with, and less about jazz.
But with the instrument of jazz,with the instrument of the bass, it's
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more it's a little more prominent.Yeah, because you know, I don't
know a lot of jazz Jocko.Everybody knows Jocko, maybe Mingus, Stanley
Clark, but the bass has away of becoming more prominent in those kind
of bands. Am I wrong?You're right? Yeah, you're correct.
(17:21):
Well. The one thing that happenedto me too was when I was traveling
on the road. My first bassinstrument was an electric bass, so and
then I love jazz. So ifyou play jazz, upright bass is the
thing, and it's a whole differentit's a whole different thing. Electric bass
and the upright bass are similar butway different. So I bought an upright
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bass and I would just mess aroundwith it a little bit. And one
of the first gigs I ever didwith Frank was where I was still an
electric bass player, but I hadmy upright bass set up, and I
did a gig with Frank and andFrank even goes, boy, you've come
a long way. I remember that. I remember that. So tell me
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about Bob. How good of abass player is he? Well, I
consider him one of the best bassplayers like around anywhere, not only in
Pittsburgh. He's learned his his hisway of playing very very good. He's
an excellent musician, an excellent bassplayer. And I can't say enough about
Bob. Bob is his greatest.So Frank, getting back to you the
(18:30):
so we're oh I have something totell you? Oh yeah, I forgot.
For twenty nine years, I wasthe jazz piano teacher at the University
of Pittsburgh. So I talked therefor twenty nine years, and twenty nine
years. I just recently went onwhat do you call it, retire?
I quit teaching for a while,but I still teach privately, you know.
(18:53):
But I was the jazz teacher,jazz pano teacher for twenty nine years
the University of Pittsburgh, and thatwas really nice. I love doing it.
I had some great students that camefrom here, including what's the guy
that Jeff Jeff Goldbloom was one ofmy students. Yeah, he became big
time. I have like a lotof big times. Gold tell me,
(19:14):
well, what what kind of musicianis he? Well, he became a
jazz music is because he's one ofmy Studentsurassic Park. But he's an accomplished
musician. Oh yeah, he's anaccomplished musician. Now yeah. And he
was a great person. He wasa great person, and I was honored
to be one of his teachers.You know, And what what did did
you think? Did you think oneof your students would be as famous as
(19:41):
as Gold? Jeff Well, Ihave students all over the world that there
have been big time. Some ofthem are in Lee now, some over
in Russia and England. I gotstudents all over the world. You know.
I've been teaching for a long time. I never wanted to be a
piano teacher, but everybody kept comingto me, and I used to say
the same thing. Everybody said,you cannot teach jazz. That's what everybody
thought, you cannot teach jet.Well, people they pleaded with me,
(20:03):
please teach me. So I tookone guy, you know, he was
a guy about twenty six years old, that was only about eighteen years old
then, and I said, I'mgoing to learn how to teach jazz,
So I did, I came upwith my own Well, there's my jazz
book there. You know. Icame up with my own way of teaching
jazz music, which is very difficultto do. You know what makes it
difficult, Well, you have tolearn how to do your your what do
(20:27):
you call it, some metrics likeyour chord changes, and your different way
of playing, your technical abilities,and your technique on the keyboard. And
probably can tell you some things toowell with Frank a lot of it.
You have to have basic piano skillsfirst, and then his his book goes
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through like his special way of voicingchords, and then he has certain way
and all the inversions, right,yeah, yeah, both versions. My
son studied with Frank and my wifestudied with Frank, So Shelley, my
wife, Shelley has the original Thisis a nice book that he had printed
(21:08):
out here, but my wife hasthe original handwritten book that Frank Hann wrote.
And yaw, she was one ofmy good students, and she's a
very good player now herself, andshe's out playing professionally now and teaching also.
But I think a lot of timeswith jazz somebody hadn't taken Like a
lot of people didn't take the timeto actually write down what they have what
(21:30):
you have to know and learn asa keyboard player. And Frank was probably
one of the first people to everdo that. So how did people learn
just by listening? By listening atthe time, but there's so much information
now, there wasn't as much informationout like in the fifties sixties. People
(21:51):
would just listen. Even bass playersand horn players would have to they tall
to drop the needle. You know, you ever heard of that, ye
dropping the needle? Man, you'dwear you'd wear a record out in this
one spot of the solo that youwanted to learn. You listen to it
over and over and over again andover again and get it in your head,
you know. And Frank actually tookthe time to write out a method,
(22:11):
his method of like this is howyou learn all these chords, all
these inversions, And it's all inhis book. And and there's some of
his students that are actually using hisbook to teach. Yeah, that's the
same because there's a place where Ilive. But the guy took all my
(22:32):
students, I mean, like hewas he wound up teaching himself. He
was one of my students. Andhe was so good that way I taught
him. He's in the whole areawhere I live. He thought to be
the big jazz piano teacher there.He learned everything from you. It must
be good, right, And hewas good. He was. He was
good at it. He was agood, good musician himself. All right,
(22:53):
So let me take you back afterthe tonight show. You're getting bookings,
you're hitting the road. What waslife on the road like back then?
On the road playing? I lovedevery minute of it. I loved
everywhere. All I wanted to dowas get out of Pittsburgh at that time,
all us musicians, all us kids, musicians that were playing jazz.
Now we're sixteen, seventeen, eighteenyears old, Hey, we want to
(23:15):
go to the big time. Wewant to go to New York. We
want to go to Philadelphia. Weregoing to go here? Oh? We
were all, you know, Andthat's what we did. We did.
When I was eighteen years old,I went on a road. I was
playing in Atlantic City. I hada great job in Atlantic City. I
was only eighteen, playing right ona what do you call it? The
one walk? Yeah? And Istayed in Atlantic City for quite some time,
(23:36):
and then I started to play allover the world, you know,
and I got older offers to playin Japan and places like that, But
of course I didn't. I didn'twant to go there. I don't speak
Japanese, did you No, Ididn't go. I didn't go. They
really offered me a great deal togo there and teash in Japan, but
I didn't think that I should havegone there because I don't speak Japanese and
(23:57):
I would have had a hard timefrom will be trying to do my teaching
there. But you speak music,Oh, I speak music, but I
have to speak to it in Japanese, I think theyres But and you've interpreted
jazz for other people in that soyou've you're you're not unfamiliar with the concept
of interpreting things. Yeah, well, jazz is a very very difficult music
(24:22):
for people to play. In theold days, when I was young,
they says, well, you can'tteach jazz. You can't be a jazz
musician like and teach jazz. Youhave to just have it in your well,
truly, you have to hear itin your head. You know,
you have to have some kind ofuh inside yourself. That you are familiar
with this type of music and youcan play this kind of music, you
(24:42):
know, And it takes a lotof work to be a jazz musician,
particularly a jazz pianist. It takesa lot of work to be a jazz
pianist. There's a whole lot thatyou have to learn. So I got
myself down like when I was ateenager, and I learned how to do
that, and I wound up takinga lot of jobs like you in Pittsburgh
and the East Liberty, all thenightclub and it was worth my while.
I never had to like ask anybodyfor any money. My parents never had
(25:04):
to tea give me any money.I made my own, uh money,
teaching, playing in different clubs.So it was like a very good for
me at that time. You livedin New York and you you played and
you had Yeah, I played inNew York. I played for a long
time there at the Absent House.That was a great place there I played.
(25:26):
And when is that? How longof a time was it? You
were there a couple of years?I guess. So what what brought you
back to Pittsburgh? Uh? Well, I was pretty good in in uh
New York and starting to get.People wanted me to play for them,
and as a matter of fact,and they asked me to go on to
Johnny Carson Show. Once I wason a Carson Show, everybody wanted me
(25:48):
to come back to Pittsburgh and playingPittsburgh again. So these few people came
up. They were people that werebooking agents. They came all the way
to New to New York to seeme and bring me back to Pittsburgh.
They said, you're going in thecar with us. We're bringing you back
to Pittsburgh and we're going to play, make you play here. We're gonna
get jobs for you playing here therelike uri all over Pittsburgh. And that's
(26:11):
what they did. They brought meback to Pittsburgh and they had me playing
all over the place. So thatwas good financially and also good for my
own playing ability, you know,to keep on playing. So when you
were playing, did you play forsome of the TV stations, some of
the radio. Oh yeah, Iplayed for a lot of the TV stations.
Yeah, here in Pittsburgh and alsoout of town. Yeah, yeah,
(26:33):
I did. I did quite afew concerts on the radio. I
can't remember exactly where now, butthey were pretty pretty nice. You know
what's his name? What's the nameof that where Joe Niggery used to play
what's the name of that program?Oh, mister Rogers, mister Rogers.
Yeah, there were shows like misterRogers on and I played in some of
(26:55):
those, not not mister Rogers,but I played in some of those shows
that they were on a TV atthat time. So that was good for
me too, because watch you playon TV. Everybody else sees you from
the night clubs, they say,well, man, we're gonna harre Frank,
because you're gonna be drawing a lotof people in for us, and
we'll sell a lot of whiskey.All right, let's get back to Bob.
So you're a musician. You endedup teaching, but you've always had
(27:19):
the heart of a jazz musician forthe longest time. Oh and so how
difficult was it, you know,balancing performing and teaching at the same time.
When I think about it, whatI used to do, I can't.
I could never do that now becauseit was like, you know,
(27:42):
you get home from teaching, changeyour clothes, pack your stuff, boom,
you're out on a gig. Andthen at the time that I was
doing that gigs like after COVID gigsare finished about nine o'clock at night or
ten o'clock at night. But beforeor COVID and one out. While I
was teaching, it would be nineto two, ten to two. I'm
(28:06):
a firmal leader. I'm getting tothe age now that things need to wrap
up around Telne. Yeah, Iget work tomorrow, right. And then
Frank tells me, like when hewas actually playing, like he would have,
there was after hours clubs at thatwhen he was playing, so he
would A typical day for him wouldbe like do us six to ten?
(28:26):
Then there's another thing from ten totwelve, And then I didn't you play
an after hours place from like twelveto five? I played a little after
our clubs. After our clubs werebig in Pittsburgh at that time, and
particularly in East Liberty. The clubswere jam practice. You'd be playing all
night, seven days a week,sleep for four hours. Yeah, get
up, start playing again. Yeah, that's all I wanted to do.
(28:47):
You know, I'm very fortunate tohave been brought into a family that I've
been brought into, you know,that were musically inclined. You know,
do you remember who else have youplayed with. Oh. I played with
the Billy may Orchestra, played withfirst Yeah, you play with them?
No, I played piano with them. Yeah, I played piano, traveled
with them. Yeah. For quitea while, I was on the road
(29:08):
with some different people. I playedwith a lot of big names in New
York City, and that was theplace where you wanted to know. I
mean, that's whatever you'd really thinkthat you know, you have made it
now you're playing in New York That'swhat everybody said. Any hell, but
I wound up playing with some reallygood guys in the New York City.
Some of the best musicians, jazzmusicians in the world are in New York
(29:29):
City still, you know, andpeople like Bill Evans and Herbie Hancock and
those type of people. They wereexcellent, excellent musicians. Didn't you play
with? Sonny Stitt? I playedwith, Yeah, and a whole lot
of people. You're at the CrawfordGrill. I played the Crawford Grill here
in Pittsburgh quite often. Grill.Crawford Grill was a great place to play
music, legendary. That's what youplayed there. You played jazz music wasn't
(29:52):
anything but jazz. That was greatthere. Uh, the place was packed
six nights a week, was packedMonday through Saturday. And I had a
really good time playing at the CrawfordGrill, you know. And then they
opened up a new Crawford Grill andI also played there. But the old
Crawford Grill up in the Hill Districtwas a great place for jazz, you
know, and everybody was anybody inPittsburgh always played at the Crawford Grill.
(30:17):
And they also hired people from outof town musicians too, like Stan Getz
and Miles Davis and people like that. You know, how does Pittsburgh stack
up against New York? Very good? Very good? I mean Pittsburgh and
New York and Philadelphia there are thethree places where the music the jazz musicians
are like really great, you know. And I'm not saying there's not any
other places. But why why it'shardcore here? They call it hardcore the
(30:41):
way they play here. Like ifyou go to the West Coast now,
it's like more really soft music,like you know, I don't mean soft,
but like it wasn't like the musicin Pittsburgh and New York and Philadelphia,
you know, I mean this musicwas really tough. Your style what
would you consider your style? Idon't know what I would consider my style.
(31:03):
I had so many different styles Iplayed. Uh, I think you
have your own style I have.Yeah, I guess that's what I have.
I have. When you hear FrankQuinimando, it sounds like, yeah,
I guess it sounds like me.Yeah, because I had my own
sound that I got, you know, just through my practicing and everything.
And he knows how I play,you know. So what what what makes
(31:25):
him different? I think a lotof it is uh, his uh hit,
you know what, just from abass player perspective, his his voicings,
his piano, the way he voicesthe chords, and and and if
you heard plus, his improvisation isunique. It's it's Frank's improvisation. And
(31:48):
then, uh, I always heardlike before I actually got to play with
Frank because bass players were talking likeman, he's really hard on bass players,
you know, And I would hearthat, and and then I didn't
really understand it until until I wasreading his charts. And when I read
his charts, on his charts,he'll have like a specific note that he
(32:09):
wants you to play, so alow E or a low F. And
what I've from playing with Frank.If you play that note, it fits
with his voicings and it's a beautiful, beautiful sound. If you don't,
if you're like a guy's like,I'm not going to play his note,
I'll play whatever note I want.If you do that, it doesn't fit
(32:30):
with Frank's voicings. So if whenI'm reading him, when I'm doing his
charts and reading his charts, ifI play exactly what he wants me to
play, it fits perfectly with whatFrank is doing. And if you hear,
if you hear some of his music, you'll you'll know what I'm talking
about. It is beautiful, allright. So what makes Frank different than
other players? I mean, whatthe man? Probably a piano voicings your
(33:01):
voicelessly mostly yeah, no voicing,it's voicings. But like like I said,
there's certain keyboard players, there's certainmusicians that you hear and it's just
like when you hear Miles Davis,that's Miles Davis. There's no other trumpet
player that sounds like Miles Davis.When you hear Bill Evans, it's Bill
Evans. When you hear the greatmusicians play, when you hear Ray Brown
(33:22):
as Ray Brown on bass Man,there's no Christian McBride comes pretty close.
But uh but when you hear Frank, it's just like that's it's it's just
you have to hear it. Howgood is Frank? Frank to me is
like as good as he's world class. He's like as good as anybody anywhere.
And like I said, for someoneto develop their own sound and their
own style and their own voicings andthings like that, that's what That's what
(33:45):
the greats have done. Lewis Armstrongsounds like Lewis Armstrong. He has certain
things that he does. Chick Coreasounds like chick corea. You know.
So Frank, you got to hearhim. Frank, you covered up your
face when he started talking. You'rebeing modest. So how good is Frank?
How good is Frank? Well?I don't know. I don't consider
myself of being anything, you know, like like any other good player,
(34:08):
you know, but you're good mybook, No, I said you're good
though, Oh I hope. SoI try to be. I mean,
after all, part of my jobis playing for people, So I don't
want to play for people and notsound good. So I try to be
a good musician so that wherever Iplay, people will like my playing.
And if I'm playing some nightclubs,they'll drink a little bit too in the
(34:30):
nightclub, will make a little money. So what's your favorite part? My
favorite? What favorite part of music? My favorite part of music? Yeah?
What? What? What? Whatdo you love about music? Well?
I just love the way piano isbuilt first of all. I mean,
you have this big thing that's calleda piano with eighty eight keys,
(34:51):
and you can do whatever you wantin there. And every piano player has
their own Any piano player that's worthwhileof being a jazz musician has their own
style. And you create your ownstyle by how you're going to use these
eighty eight keys. And it isnot easy to do, you know.
So every musician and all your greatmusicians, George Schuring and all those type
(35:13):
of people, they have their ownstyle of playing. And I have my
own style. I mean I've developedmy own style because I want to play
and I want to entertain people whenI play. I don't play just for
myself. I having a good timeplaying by myself. I'm with Bobby,
but mainly I got to make thepeople happy. So the people that come
to hear me play, they wantto come to hear me play my music,
you know. So I love thatsame question to you, Bob,
(35:35):
what do you love about music?You know, music is the one of
the one of the consistent things that'smade me happy, like my whole life.
Even when I was three and mydad would go to work and I
would get to play a little hisguitar in the corner. It made me
(35:57):
happy. And the music has alwaysmade me happy, know what. And
then the fact that we can actuallymake a living and support a family doing
doing music is an amazing thing becauseeven like right now, I go to
gigs and I have so much funplaying and and interacting with all the other
musicians. And then h and thenthey give you money at the end.
(36:20):
It's really really cool you have thejoint music. But it's really nice getting
paid. I mean, the moneything is kind of cool, but but
it's not like the main thing,you know. But like that's what I'm
saying. At the end, theyjust come and give they give you.
Well, you marriage somebody who lovesmusic, and you have kids who are
musicians. I do I do totwo of my two of my guys what
(36:42):
were our musicians. One is atrumpet player. And the band in Pittsburgh
called the common Heart and they're anup and coming band that that is fabulous
with a guy named Clinton Claggness leadingthem. But yeah they are as he
has, yeah he does, andthen uh, the whole band is fabulous.
Man is full and you know whatfull of Pittsburgh family. Anton Defade
(37:06):
is their bass player and he's likefrom the Defade family, which all these
musicians in the Defade family. Andthen my son, my youngest son,
is a drummer and graduated from Berkeleyand he's doing really well. So yeah,
it's fun like that music. Musiccan give you, like all those
things I think when I didn't knowhow the music thing was going to go
(37:28):
my first year in college, butI told myself I'd really like to make
my living just doing music because beforethat, and you know what, Frank,
I think, is the only personthat I know who's only ever Frank's
only done music. Like I workedat a gas station, was a busboy,
I did all this stuff, youknow, like before I actually got
to make my live and doing music, which makes me really appreciate being a
(37:51):
musician and being able to make aliving playing music, But like that's all
you ever did. Huh. Inever done anything about music, That's all
I wanted to do. Yeah,didn't have the bust. I was a
bus boy, man. I haven'thad to clean up dishes and stuff.
You never did. So you prefermusic than than then saddle business? Well
yeah, well I was. Iwas the oldest. So my dad when
(38:13):
when when I was growing up,my dad was really uh, you know
it was it was hard work,you know, doing that stuff. And
I was like, you know,when you're when when the thing that you're
that makes you happy you can makeyou can? What do they say your
your vocation and your avocation are thesame. It's a pretty cool thing.
(38:34):
You know. You never have towork a day in your life when you
yeah, it's kind of like notwork. So what what is what is
Bob's legacy my life? No,your legacy, my legacy? Well,
what would people say my legacy hopefullyhopefully just that I'm a nice guy.
(38:59):
You know, I'm not true,that's true, Frank. What is your
legacy? My legacy? Just beinga pianist and being also now a teacher.
I've been teaching for a long timenow, and I really enjoy it
because I have students all over allover the world now that are playing,
and they write to me and tellme like they're having a good time playing
a job here, a job there. Some people like in the West Coast
(39:22):
watch to me a lot to tellme they're playing nice gigs there. So
it's made me happy to have helpedsome other people to continue with this thing
we call jazz, and me contributingto making other musicians do the same thing,
you know, and teach
I knows it. This is annvideo and you are oh, bless your
heart. This is the Coda Podcast, qual it in Pittsburgh's music scene,
and welcome in. I'm Johnny Hartwell, your host along with Andy Kugar,
(00:22):
and today we talked to a coupleof jazz legends, Bob Inscoe and Frank
Kunamundo. Bob Insko, thank youfor joining me. Now, I don't
know about how many times that you'vebeen on the Tonight Show? Have you
been on the Tonight Show? Ihave not been on the I've never been
on the he have you know?I have you know? So who in
(00:44):
here has been on the Tonight Show? Frank Kunamundo, thank you for joining
me. So yes, it's anice show. When I lived in New
York, I was playing in NewYork City and I was lad in a
place called the Absence House, whichwas a very good place to have music
there and I played there for quitesome time, and the people from the
(01:04):
Tonight Show came in to hear meplay and they really liked me, so
they wanted me to be on theshow, so they had me on their
show. That was a lot offun. All right, Well, let's
let's bookmark that because I want tofind out more about your life. So
when did you become interested in music. Did you have a family background in
music? Yeah, well, whenI first started the classical teaching, that
(01:30):
was with Evelina Paulmurray. She wasa woman, and she was an excellent
piano teacher. Of course, Istudied regular music with her, you know,
classical music with her. But inthe meantime, I was playing my
own jazz music because I'd listened everyday. I came home from school,
put on the radio and I listenedto the jazz program, and I said,
that's me, That's what I wantto do, you know. So
I listen every day. I listenedto that, you know, and I'd
(01:52):
sit down at the piano and startplaying and try to play like that,
you know. I started to playsaxophone also, you know. And by
the time I was start ten yearsold, I was I started to play
jobs all over at East Liberty.There's many many nightclubs in East Liberty.
And by the time I was thirteen, fourteen, fifteen years old, I
was playing all the night clubs inHeliberty. That was great for me.
I just loved it all right,let me go to Bomb same question to
(02:14):
you, When did you become interestedin music? When the very first time
that I became interested is when mydad was a guitar player and he would
leave his guitar in the corner andwhen he told me to not touch his
guitar, that was that was mysign that I have to do that.
(02:35):
Now did you have any siblings andwere they interested in music? Did they
become interested in music or were youthe only one that was drawn to that
music. I was the oldest,and I have a brother who was also
a trumpet player, and now he'sbut he and he went to college to
study music, but he is.Actually our family business was in the saddle
(02:58):
making business in Kentucky, so heis. I have two brothers that became
saddle makers. And then I wasthe rebel that became the musician. Now
you know that would be a bassplayer. Did you start with the bass?
The first instrument that I played wasguitar, So like when I was
when I was old enough to justlearn a couple of chords and stuff.
(03:20):
Look, but my dad was hebeing a musician. He didn't think that
I could make money doing that,so he really didn't want to. He
didn't teach me, but I wouldwhen he would he would play all the
time. And when he would play, I would just look at his hands
and see where he was putting hisfingers. And when he left and put
his guitar in the corner, Iwould try it out. And so what
(03:40):
kind of music did your dad listento? Well? Country music, bluegrass.
My grandfather was a was a fiddleplayer in Kentucky, so they did
a lot of bluegrass stuff down there. And uh, and then once I
got ahold of a bass, Ibecame like the bass player on family occasions
(04:01):
like Thanksgiving and Christmas, and whenthe family would get together, we would
always end up in the living roomplaying some songs and I would get to
hear them play. And then onceI got ahold of a bass, I
was holding down the low end withthat. So all right, let me
go back to Frank. So didyou was your family? Did you have
a family of musicians? No,it was just my father. My father
(04:24):
played guitar, and he played professionally. Also when he came here from Italy.
He came here and he got ajob. I forget what kind of
job he had then, but atat any rate, he started to play
his guitar and he started playing insome clubs in downtown Pittsburgh. My dad.
So he's playing some of the clubsand he was a good guitar player.
(04:45):
And what kind of music was Itwas more pop music, okay,
more pop music. And he camehere from Italy, so he had to
get a knowledge of the sort ofplaying that you would play on a program
like that. You know, hewouldn't be playing polkas or anything like that.
You know you'd be playing It waslike a jass what year, What
(05:06):
year is that? What year wasthat? When you're doing well? That
had to be in the years likeI'd say, like about nineteen when my
dad came here, when I waswell, I was born, Like I'm
not going to say what. No, my father came here from Italy and
joined my grandfather who was here.My grandfather was on the railroad. He
(05:29):
was in charge of the railroad thereand he had his own what do you
call it, the train on thetrain, his own car, his own
car, he had his own car, yea, his own car, train
car. And he became one ofthe big peoples in the industry there on
(05:50):
the railroad. And my dad gota job there fixing shoes. He was
very good at that, and yougot a job in one place. And
he was making shoes for crippled people, people that had something wrong with their
feet. He was good at that. He was making prepared shoes for certain
(06:11):
people, you know. So that'swhat my dad did. And he also
played the guitar. He played.I have pictures of him playing in some
of the clubs in Pittsburgh that heplayed in when he was young. And
he did that for quite a whileand then he just gave it up and
that was the end of that.Did you learn the guitar at all?
I never learned guitar. Now,what made you take piano? Yeah?
(06:33):
Yeah, Well, you know Ilistened to jazz every day I came home
from school, I turned on thejazz station. That's what I wanted to
do. I wanted to play thatkind of music, you know, which
we call jazz now, you know. And so I used to listen to
the piano players, you know,and I said, well, you know,
I can play like that, youknow, that's what I want to
do. I want to play jazz, you know. I mean I was
(06:54):
playing classical music for eighteen years,you know. It was my student my
teacher, I said, I wantto play jazz, you know. So
that's what I did. I satdown at my piano and I started to
learn how to play this thing,the American music that we call jazz.
And I loved it. And bythe time I was thirteen years old,
I was playing some of the clubsin East Liberty. You know. They
liked the way I played. Theytreated me good, they paid me good.
(07:16):
And from thirteen fourteen, fifteen sixteenup until twenty one years old,
I was playing like all the clubsin Pittsburgh and I had a really good
time. And then I got someengagements. I started to go on the
road. They call it going ona road, playing gigs on the road,
you know. I moved to NewYork for a while. I played
all over New York, played itall over in the Florida and some of
(07:42):
the other places in Florida, theother places in Carolina. And I had
a good time. And I'm doingwhat I wanted to do. I always
wanted to just be a jazz musician. That's what I was born to be.
I knew that was in my head, you know. So that's what
I did all my life. Fromthe time I was five years old,
I'm still doing the same thing.All right, let me go to Bob.
So you grew up your your fatherplayed guitar like country music. Right
(08:09):
when you first started music, wereyou playing what your dad was listening to
or when did when did you startbranching out? Well? Yeah, I
just tried to like play what mydad would play and the chords that my
dad would play, and just youknow, it was it was I don't
(08:30):
know, it was just drawn tothat. But when I when I started
branching out is like as far aslike listening to jazz and stuff like that
and being and considering being a jazzmusician, was probably only my first year
in college, you know, becausebefore that, even my school, like
Frank was very fortunate because the schoolthat he was in in high school,
(08:52):
they had an established jazz program,you know, but where I was in
Kentucky, it wasn't it wasn't anestablished jazz program. So the very first
time I really was associated with,like influenced by jazz is my first year
in college. And it was justlike the same thing as Frank's, like,
Wow, this is what I wantto do, man, you know,
And I was playing trombone at thetime. So, but then my
(09:16):
second year is when I second yearin college is where I actually got the
bass back out and tried to dothat because my wife wanted me to play
back. She was like, allwe got to do is have a drummer
and we got a trio. Yeah, yeah, she's a keyboard player.
Well, not a lot of peopleknow or appreciate the history of jazz in
Pittsburgh. Oh my goodness, Yes, yes, you're You're exactly right.
(09:39):
There's so many great musicians that havecome from this place. So, Frank,
you went to Westinghouse. That wasYeah. I went from Lincoln School
up to sixth grade and seventh gradeI entered into Westinghouse High School and I
was just overwhelmed with everything there.Or Westinghouse is known for two things,
what are they? Football? Andmusic? And I mean they had a
(10:00):
band director there. He was incharge of the music department. It was
unbelievable. He had five different whatdo you call them? Sound people.
He had a thing called the Cadets. They were a jazz orchestra, eighteen
piece jazz orchestra. And some ofyour greatest musicians in the world came from
there. From westing Hus High School, and he had them. He had
(10:22):
a junior orchestra, junior band,senior orchestra, senior band, marching band
for the football. So football musicwas the big finn in the Westinghouse.
And I had just a good timethere. I don't know how I ever
graduated because I didn't do anything exceptplaying music. I really I don't know
what else I did. I wasnot interested in anything except music. So
(10:43):
mister McVicker, who was the banddirector there, or he was in charge
of the music, just gave mea key whatever you want to do,
Francasu. You know, so weknow where I was every day in the
practice room playing and you were playingclubs in East Liberty. Oh. I
was playing clubs at that time.Yeah. I was playing clubs at that
time whenever I was and going toWestinghouse and people like Freddie Jones who became
(11:05):
Alma Jamal. He was the pianoplayer there at that time. You know,
he was in twelfth grade and Iwas in seventh grade. Alma Jamal
was one of the great jazz musiciansjess pianists in America. Well, tell
us about you know, I wasjust talking to Bob about you know,
the history of jazz in Pittsburgh.We have a proud Pittsburgh. And New
York and Philadelphia. I mean,they were the places for jazz music,
(11:28):
you know. And everybody wanted togo to New York because that's where everybody
went when they became big time,so to speak, and they wanted to
go and perform in which I didthe same thing, you know, go
to New York and play in NewYork. And that was really a ball,
I'll tell you. That was reallysomething, you know. So I
did that for quite a while,lived in New York, played in all
the places in New York. Andat that time, people from the Johnny
(11:48):
Carson Show came in to hear me. They heard about me, and they
liked what I did, so theyput me on a Johnny Carson show.
So that was a biggie. Afterthe Johnny Carson Show, I started to
get a lot of work hold on. Wow, I can imagine. So
when they approached you to play theTonight Show, what was your first reaction.
My first reaction was like, yeah, man, I'm going to go
(12:09):
on here and really play the bestI can, because like, that's a
great show. I loved that showand everything about it, you know.
And music was a part of thatshow too. I want to go there
and play some music and then maybeI could get some more work, you
know. And that's what I did. Were you nervous at all? No,
I wasn't nervous. I had agood time. Oh, I mean
that that clip is still on itstill, I guess it's they're still on.
(12:31):
You have to go Carson shows stillon. Yeah, I don't know
if I still do the thing withthat. You can see Frank's performance on
YouTube. Yeah, and so andso you weren't nervous. You just like
did your thing. That's all Iwanted to do all my life. From
the time I was five years old, all I wanted to do was be
a musician. I used to goeverywhere where there's music. They had music
(12:52):
all over East Liberty, and Iwas so young I couldn't go there into
these clubs that were going into theseplaces. So I would stand outside and
just hope the door would open.People would start walking and so I could
hear the music. I said,this is me, this is what I
want to do. You know well, And you said the doors opened after
playing, you can hear the bandinside. They had what kind of opportunities
were presented to you after playing,Well, there were none then because I
(13:13):
was just a young boy. Iwas eight nine, ten years old then,
you know. But when after youplayed the Tonight Show, then,
well, after I played the TonightShow, everybody wanted to book me in
their club, you know, becausethe Tonight Show is one of the big
things in America for music, youknow, and people like being that I
was from Pittsburgh and primarily from EastLiberty too, and playing all those clubs
I did in East Liberty. Geez, everybody wanted to hire me and he
(13:35):
wanted me to play, which wasgreat, and not only played what I
wanted to play, but I madea few bucks. Anyhow, So when
did you start recording? When didI start recording? Whenever I was about
eighteen years old. A very goodguitar player by the name of Joe Negri
and I used to play with himonce in a while, and he gave
(13:56):
me the interest in doing some recordingmyself. So when I was eighteen years
old, I did some recording andgee, I said, that's not too
bad, you know, I mean, it's not great. I don't think
I'm great or anything like that.But I says, at least I've made
some recordings. I said, Ireally wanted to do that, and so
eventually I started to do. WhenI got older, I did my recordings
and they're being played all over theworld now, you know, hopefully still
(14:18):
doing the hard. Let me getback to Bob. So when we were
just talking to you, you're justleaving high school, you're going to college,
you teamed up with your wife,you're thinking about joining a trio.
So when did you come to Pittsburgh? I think, I, you know
(14:39):
what. What what happened is Iwas on the ten year college degree program
because I would do about a yearof college and then I would go out
on the road and my wife.My wife and I both traveled together.
So from about nineteen eighty to aboutnineteen ninety, I was I would go
(15:03):
to a semester of college and thenwe would get a call to go out
with a show band or a travelingband on the road. So I did
college and the road, and solike nineteen ninety, it was like maybe
eighty nine when I got to Pittsburgh. And when when we got to Pittsburgh,
we were in the family way.So my first kid was on the
(15:26):
way and in nineteen ninety and atthat point, traveling on the road was
out, so I wasn't going todo that. So I was very,
very fortunate to get a teaching jobat Kiskiera School District, and I actually
taught there for I'm retired now,but I taught there for thirty years and
(15:48):
had the family and stuff like that. And in the in that thirty years,
though, I was playing in Pittsburghand in a lot of it.
And when did you and Frank wereWhen were you two introduced to each other?
Well, in nineteen eighty when mywife brought me up the very first
time we were introduced. But Frankat that time man had some bass players
(16:10):
that were ridiculously awesome. There wasa guy named Dave Larroca, who I
think Dave is I'm not. Ithink the last time I heard he was
in Cincinnati, but Dave was oneof his bass players. He had a
bass player named John Hurd. Everybass player in town has been with Frank.
And I was fortunate that at thetime that I moved up, Frank
(16:37):
needed a bass player, so Igot to do a gig. And I
wasn't really good when I first startedplaying with Frank either, So you know,
with jazz music, and correct meif I'm wrong, because I don't
know a whole lot about music tobegin with, and less about jazz.
But with the instrument of jazz,with the instrument of the bass, it's
(16:59):
more it's a little more prominent.Yeah, because you know, I don't
know a lot of jazz Jocko.Everybody knows Jocko, maybe Mingus, Stanley
Clark, but the bass has away of becoming more prominent in those kind
of bands. Am I wrong?You're right? Yeah, you're correct.
(17:21):
Well. The one thing that happenedto me too was when I was traveling
on the road. My first bassinstrument was an electric bass, so and
then I love jazz. So ifyou play jazz, upright bass is the
thing, and it's a whole differentit's a whole different thing. Electric bass
and the upright bass are similar butway different. So I bought an upright
(17:45):
bass and I would just mess aroundwith it a little bit. And one
of the first gigs I ever didwith Frank was where I was still an
electric bass player, but I hadmy upright bass set up, and I
did a gig with Frank and andFrank even goes, boy, you've come
a long way. I remember that. I remember that. So tell me
(18:06):
about Bob. How good of abass player is he? Well, I
consider him one of the best bassplayers like around anywhere, not only in
Pittsburgh. He's learned his his hisway of playing very very good. He's
an excellent musician, an excellent bassplayer. And I can't say enough about
Bob. Bob is his greatest.So Frank, getting back to you the
(18:30):
so we're oh I have something totell you? Oh yeah, I forgot.
For twenty nine years, I wasthe jazz piano teacher at the University
of Pittsburgh. So I talked therefor twenty nine years, and twenty nine
years. I just recently went onwhat do you call it, retire?
I quit teaching for a while,but I still teach privately, you know.
(18:53):
But I was the jazz teacher,jazz pano teacher for twenty nine years
the University of Pittsburgh, and thatwas really nice. I love doing it.
I had some great students that camefrom here, including what's the guy
that Jeff Jeff Goldbloom was one ofmy students. Yeah, he became big
time. I have like a lotof big times. Gold tell me,
(19:14):
well, what what kind of musicianis he? Well, he became a
jazz music is because he's one ofmy Studentsurassic Park. But he's an accomplished
musician. Oh yeah, he's anaccomplished musician. Now yeah. And he
was a great person. He wasa great person, and I was honored
to be one of his teachers.You know, And what what did did
you think? Did you think oneof your students would be as famous as
(19:41):
as Gold? Jeff Well, Ihave students all over the world that there
have been big time. Some ofthem are in Lee now, some over
in Russia and England. I gotstudents all over the world. You know.
I've been teaching for a long time. I never wanted to be a
piano teacher, but everybody kept comingto me, and I used to say
the same thing. Everybody said,you cannot teach jazz. That's what everybody
thought, you cannot teach jet.Well, people they pleaded with me,
(20:03):
please teach me. So I tookone guy, you know, he was
a guy about twenty six years old, that was only about eighteen years old
then, and I said, I'mgoing to learn how to teach jazz,
So I did, I came upwith my own Well, there's my jazz
book there. You know. Icame up with my own way of teaching
jazz music, which is very difficultto do. You know what makes it
difficult, Well, you have tolearn how to do your your what do
(20:27):
you call it, some metrics likeyour chord changes, and your different way
of playing, your technical abilities,and your technique on the keyboard. And
probably can tell you some things toowell with Frank a lot of it.
You have to have basic piano skillsfirst, and then his his book goes
(20:48):
through like his special way of voicingchords, and then he has certain way
and all the inversions, right,yeah, yeah, both versions. My
son studied with Frank and my wifestudied with Frank, So Shelley, my
wife, Shelley has the original Thisis a nice book that he had printed
(21:08):
out here, but my wife hasthe original handwritten book that Frank Hann wrote.
And yaw, she was one ofmy good students, and she's a
very good player now herself, andshe's out playing professionally now and teaching also.
But I think a lot of timeswith jazz somebody hadn't taken Like a
lot of people didn't take the timeto actually write down what they have what
(21:30):
you have to know and learn asa keyboard player. And Frank was probably
one of the first people to everdo that. So how did people learn
just by listening? By listening atthe time, but there's so much information
now, there wasn't as much informationout like in the fifties sixties. People
(21:51):
would just listen. Even bass playersand horn players would have to they tall
to drop the needle. You know, you ever heard of that, ye
dropping the needle? Man, you'dwear you'd wear a record out in this
one spot of the solo that youwanted to learn. You listen to it
over and over and over again andover again and get it in your head,
you know. And Frank actually tookthe time to write out a method,
(22:11):
his method of like this is howyou learn all these chords, all
these inversions, And it's all inhis book. And and there's some of
his students that are actually using hisbook to teach. Yeah, that's the
same because there's a place where Ilive. But the guy took all my
(22:32):
students, I mean, like hewas he wound up teaching himself. He
was one of my students. Andhe was so good that way I taught
him. He's in the whole areawhere I live. He thought to be
the big jazz piano teacher there.He learned everything from you. It must
be good, right, And hewas good. He was. He was
good at it. He was agood, good musician himself. All right,
(22:53):
So let me take you back afterthe tonight show. You're getting bookings,
you're hitting the road. What waslife on the road like back then?
On the road playing? I lovedevery minute of it. I loved
everywhere. All I wanted to dowas get out of Pittsburgh at that time,
all us musicians, all us kids, musicians that were playing jazz.
Now we're sixteen, seventeen, eighteenyears old, Hey, we want to
(23:15):
go to the big time. Wewant to go to New York. We
want to go to Philadelphia. Weregoing to go here? Oh? We
were all, you know, Andthat's what we did. We did.
When I was eighteen years old,I went on a road. I was
playing in Atlantic City. I hada great job in Atlantic City. I
was only eighteen, playing right ona what do you call it? The
one walk? Yeah? And Istayed in Atlantic City for quite some time,
(23:36):
and then I started to play allover the world, you know,
and I got older offers to playin Japan and places like that, But
of course I didn't. I didn'twant to go there. I don't speak
Japanese, did you No, Ididn't go. I didn't go. They
really offered me a great deal togo there and teash in Japan, but
I didn't think that I should havegone there because I don't speak Japanese and
(23:57):
I would have had a hard timefrom will be trying to do my teaching
there. But you speak music,Oh, I speak music, but I
have to speak to it in Japanese, I think theyres But and you've interpreted
jazz for other people in that soyou've you're you're not unfamiliar with the concept
of interpreting things. Yeah, well, jazz is a very very difficult music
(24:22):
for people to play. In theold days, when I was young,
they says, well, you can'tteach jazz. You can't be a jazz
musician like and teach jazz. Youhave to just have it in your well,
truly, you have to hear itin your head. You know,
you have to have some kind ofuh inside yourself. That you are familiar
with this type of music and youcan play this kind of music, you
(24:42):
know, And it takes a lotof work to be a jazz musician,
particularly a jazz pianist. It takesa lot of work to be a jazz
pianist. There's a whole lot thatyou have to learn. So I got
myself down like when I was ateenager, and I learned how to do
that, and I wound up takinga lot of jobs like you in Pittsburgh
and the East Liberty, all thenightclub and it was worth my while.
I never had to like ask anybodyfor any money. My parents never had
(25:04):
to tea give me any money.I made my own, uh money,
teaching, playing in different clubs.So it was like a very good for
me at that time. You livedin New York and you you played and
you had Yeah, I played inNew York. I played for a long
time there at the Absent House.That was a great place there I played.
(25:26):
And when is that? How longof a time was it? You
were there a couple of years?I guess. So what what brought you
back to Pittsburgh? Uh? Well, I was pretty good in in uh
New York and starting to get.People wanted me to play for them,
and as a matter of fact,and they asked me to go on to
Johnny Carson Show. Once I wason a Carson Show, everybody wanted me
(25:48):
to come back to Pittsburgh and playingPittsburgh again. So these few people came
up. They were people that werebooking agents. They came all the way
to New to New York to seeme and bring me back to Pittsburgh.
They said, you're going in thecar with us. We're bringing you back
to Pittsburgh and we're going to play, make you play here. We're gonna
get jobs for you playing here therelike uri all over Pittsburgh. And that's
(26:11):
what they did. They brought meback to Pittsburgh and they had me playing
all over the place. So thatwas good financially and also good for my
own playing ability, you know,to keep on playing. So when you
were playing, did you play forsome of the TV stations, some of
the radio. Oh yeah, Iplayed for a lot of the TV stations.
Yeah, here in Pittsburgh and alsoout of town. Yeah, yeah,
(26:33):
I did. I did quite afew concerts on the radio. I
can't remember exactly where now, butthey were pretty pretty nice. You know
what's his name? What's the nameof that where Joe Niggery used to play
what's the name of that program?Oh, mister Rogers, mister Rogers.
Yeah, there were shows like misterRogers on and I played in some of
(26:55):
those, not not mister Rogers,but I played in some of those shows
that they were on a TV atthat time. So that was good for
me too, because watch you playon TV. Everybody else sees you from
the night clubs, they say,well, man, we're gonna harre Frank,
because you're gonna be drawing a lotof people in for us, and
we'll sell a lot of whiskey.All right, let's get back to Bob.
So you're a musician. You endedup teaching, but you've always had
(27:19):
the heart of a jazz musician forthe longest time. Oh and so how
difficult was it, you know,balancing performing and teaching at the same time.
When I think about it, whatI used to do, I can't.
I could never do that now becauseit was like, you know,
(27:42):
you get home from teaching, changeyour clothes, pack your stuff, boom,
you're out on a gig. Andthen at the time that I was
doing that gigs like after COVID gigsare finished about nine o'clock at night or
ten o'clock at night. But beforeor COVID and one out. While I
was teaching, it would be nineto two, ten to two. I'm
(28:06):
a firmal leader. I'm getting tothe age now that things need to wrap
up around Telne. Yeah, Iget work tomorrow, right. And then
Frank tells me, like when hewas actually playing, like he would have,
there was after hours clubs at thatwhen he was playing, so he
would A typical day for him wouldbe like do us six to ten?
(28:26):
Then there's another thing from ten totwelve, And then I didn't you play
an after hours place from like twelveto five? I played a little after
our clubs. After our clubs werebig in Pittsburgh at that time, and
particularly in East Liberty. The clubswere jam practice. You'd be playing all
night, seven days a week,sleep for four hours. Yeah, get
up, start playing again. Yeah, that's all I wanted to do.
(28:47):
You know, I'm very fortunate tohave been brought into a family that I've
been brought into, you know,that were musically inclined. You know,
do you remember who else have youplayed with. Oh. I played with
the Billy may Orchestra, played withfirst Yeah, you play with them?
No, I played piano with them. Yeah, I played piano, traveled
with them. Yeah. For quitea while, I was on the road
(29:08):
with some different people. I playedwith a lot of big names in New
York City, and that was theplace where you wanted to know. I
mean, that's whatever you'd really thinkthat you know, you have made it
now you're playing in New York That'swhat everybody said. Any hell, but
I wound up playing with some reallygood guys in the New York City.
Some of the best musicians, jazzmusicians in the world are in New York
(29:29):
City still, you know, andpeople like Bill Evans and Herbie Hancock and
those type of people. They wereexcellent, excellent musicians. Didn't you play
with? Sonny Stitt? I playedwith, Yeah, and a whole lot
of people. You're at the CrawfordGrill. I played the Crawford Grill here
in Pittsburgh quite often. Grill.Crawford Grill was a great place to play
music, legendary. That's what youplayed there. You played jazz music wasn't
(29:52):
anything but jazz. That was greatthere. Uh, the place was packed
six nights a week, was packedMonday through Saturday. And I had a
really good time playing at the CrawfordGrill, you know. And then they
opened up a new Crawford Grill andI also played there. But the old
Crawford Grill up in the Hill Districtwas a great place for jazz, you
know, and everybody was anybody inPittsburgh always played at the Crawford Grill.
(30:17):
And they also hired people from outof town musicians too, like Stan Getz
and Miles Davis and people like that. You know, how does Pittsburgh stack
up against New York? Very good? Very good? I mean Pittsburgh and
New York and Philadelphia there are thethree places where the music the jazz musicians
are like really great, you know. And I'm not saying there's not any
other places. But why why it'shardcore here? They call it hardcore the
(30:41):
way they play here. Like ifyou go to the West Coast now,
it's like more really soft music,like you know, I don't mean soft,
but like it wasn't like the musicin Pittsburgh and New York and Philadelphia,
you know, I mean this musicwas really tough. Your style what
would you consider your style? Idon't know what I would consider my style.
(31:03):
I had so many different styles Iplayed. Uh, I think you
have your own style I have.Yeah, I guess that's what I have.
I have. When you hear FrankQuinimando, it sounds like, yeah,
I guess it sounds like me.Yeah, because I had my own
sound that I got, you know, just through my practicing and everything.
And he knows how I play,you know. So what what what makes
(31:25):
him different? I think a lotof it is uh, his uh hit,
you know what, just from abass player perspective, his his voicings,
his piano, the way he voicesthe chords, and and and if
you heard plus, his improvisation isunique. It's it's Frank's improvisation. And
(31:48):
then, uh, I always heardlike before I actually got to play with
Frank because bass players were talking likeman, he's really hard on bass players,
you know, And I would hearthat, and and then I didn't
really understand it until until I wasreading his charts. And when I read
his charts, on his charts,he'll have like a specific note that he
(32:09):
wants you to play, so alow E or a low F. And
what I've from playing with Frank.If you play that note, it fits
with his voicings and it's a beautiful, beautiful sound. If you don't,
if you're like a guy's like,I'm not going to play his note,
I'll play whatever note I want.If you do that, it doesn't fit
(32:30):
with Frank's voicings. So if whenI'm reading him, when I'm doing his
charts and reading his charts, ifI play exactly what he wants me to
play, it fits perfectly with whatFrank is doing. And if you hear,
if you hear some of his music, you'll you'll know what I'm talking
about. It is beautiful, allright. So what makes Frank different than
other players? I mean, whatthe man? Probably a piano voicings your
(33:01):
voicelessly mostly yeah, no voicing,it's voicings. But like like I said,
there's certain keyboard players, there's certainmusicians that you hear and it's just
like when you hear Miles Davis,that's Miles Davis. There's no other trumpet
player that sounds like Miles Davis.When you hear Bill Evans, it's Bill
Evans. When you hear the greatmusicians play, when you hear Ray Brown
(33:22):
as Ray Brown on bass Man,there's no Christian McBride comes pretty close.
But uh but when you hear Frank, it's just like that's it's it's just
you have to hear it. Howgood is Frank? Frank to me is
like as good as he's world class. He's like as good as anybody anywhere.
And like I said, for someoneto develop their own sound and their
own style and their own voicings andthings like that, that's what That's what
(33:45):
the greats have done. Lewis Armstrongsounds like Lewis Armstrong. He has certain
things that he does. Chick Coreasounds like chick corea. You know.
So Frank, you got to hearhim. Frank, you covered up your
face when he started talking. You'rebeing modest. So how good is Frank?
How good is Frank? Well?I don't know. I don't consider
myself of being anything, you know, like like any other good player,
(34:08):
you know, but you're good mybook, No, I said you're good
though, Oh I hope. SoI try to be. I mean,
after all, part of my jobis playing for people, So I don't
want to play for people and notsound good. So I try to be
a good musician so that wherever Iplay, people will like my playing.
And if I'm playing some nightclubs,they'll drink a little bit too in the
(34:30):
nightclub, will make a little money. So what's your favorite part? My
favorite? What favorite part of music? My favorite part of music? Yeah?
What? What? What? Whatdo you love about music? Well?
I just love the way piano isbuilt first of all. I mean,
you have this big thing that's calleda piano with eighty eight keys,
(34:51):
and you can do whatever you wantin there. And every piano player has
their own Any piano player that's worthwhileof being a jazz musician has their own
style. And you create your ownstyle by how you're going to use these
eighty eight keys. And it isnot easy to do, you know.
So every musician and all your greatmusicians, George Schuring and all those type
(35:13):
of people, they have their ownstyle of playing. And I have my
own style. I mean I've developedmy own style because I want to play
and I want to entertain people whenI play. I don't play just for
myself. I having a good timeplaying by myself. I'm with Bobby,
but mainly I got to make thepeople happy. So the people that come
to hear me play, they wantto come to hear me play my music,
you know. So I love thatsame question to you, Bob,
(35:35):
what do you love about music?You know, music is the one of
the one of the consistent things that'smade me happy, like my whole life.
Even when I was three and mydad would go to work and I
would get to play a little hisguitar in the corner. It made me
(35:57):
happy. And the music has alwaysmade me happy, know what. And
then the fact that we can actuallymake a living and support a family doing
doing music is an amazing thing becauseeven like right now, I go to
gigs and I have so much funplaying and and interacting with all the other
musicians. And then h and thenthey give you money at the end.
(36:20):
It's really really cool you have thejoint music. But it's really nice getting
paid. I mean, the moneything is kind of cool, but but
it's not like the main thing,you know. But like that's what I'm
saying. At the end, theyjust come and give they give you.
Well, you marriage somebody who lovesmusic, and you have kids who are
musicians. I do I do totwo of my two of my guys what
(36:42):
were our musicians. One is atrumpet player. And the band in Pittsburgh
called the common Heart and they're anup and coming band that that is fabulous
with a guy named Clinton Claggness leadingthem. But yeah they are as he
has, yeah he does, andthen uh, the whole band is fabulous.
Man is full and you know whatfull of Pittsburgh family. Anton Defade
(37:06):
is their bass player and he's likefrom the Defade family, which all these
musicians in the Defade family. Andthen my son, my youngest son,
is a drummer and graduated from Berkeleyand he's doing really well. So yeah,
it's fun like that music. Musiccan give you, like all those
things I think when I didn't knowhow the music thing was going to go
(37:28):
my first year in college, butI told myself I'd really like to make
my living just doing music because beforethat, and you know what, Frank,
I think, is the only personthat I know who's only ever Frank's
only done music. Like I workedat a gas station, was a busboy,
I did all this stuff, youknow, like before I actually got
to make my live and doing music, which makes me really appreciate being a
(37:51):
musician and being able to make aliving playing music, But like that's all
you ever did. Huh. Inever done anything about music, That's all
I wanted to do. Yeah,didn't have the bust. I was a
bus boy, man. I haven'thad to clean up dishes and stuff.
You never did. So you prefermusic than than then saddle business? Well
yeah, well I was. Iwas the oldest. So my dad when
(38:13):
when when I was growing up,my dad was really uh, you know
it was it was hard work,you know, doing that stuff. And
I was like, you know,when you're when when the thing that you're
that makes you happy you can makeyou can? What do they say your
your vocation and your avocation are thesame. It's a pretty cool thing.
(38:34):
You know. You never have towork a day in your life when you
yeah, it's kind of like notwork. So what what is what is
Bob's legacy my life? No,your legacy, my legacy? Well,
what would people say my legacy hopefullyhopefully just that I'm a nice guy.
(38:59):
You know, I'm not true,that's true, Frank. What is your
legacy? My legacy? Just beinga pianist and being also now a teacher.
I've been teaching for a long timenow, and I really enjoy it
because I have students all over allover the world now that are playing,
and they write to me and tellme like they're having a good time playing
a job here, a job there. Some people like in the West Coast
(39:22):
watch to me a lot to tellme they're playing nice gigs there. So
it's made me happy to have helpedsome other people to continue with this thing
we call jazz, and me contributingto making other musicians do the same thing,
you know, and teach
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