A Tribute to

1
A Tribute to Richard M. Sudhalter New York,
January 2009 Albert Haim http//bixbeiderbecke.co
m
2
Richard Merrill Sudhalter 1938-2008 Musician,
Author, Jazz Historian Educator A Celebration of
His Life January 2009
3
The Defining Moment in Richards Life Interview
in August 1999 www.allaboutjazz.com EJ Do you
recall the first time you were attracted to
music? DS Yes, with absolute clarity, though
it was nearly half a century ago. I was twelve,
and had flogged away at the piano for nearly
five years without discernible result, when one
day I found a Bix Beiderbecke record ("San," with
Paul Whiteman's orchestra) in my father's record
cabinet. He was an alto saxophonist, equally
adept at "legit" and "hot" styles, and among his
idols no one ranked higher than Bix and his
saxophone-playing partner, Frank Trumbauer. The
ringing, sweet-hot sound of Bix's cornet on that
record electrified me animated and astonished
me. I couldn't wait for my dad to get home so I
could ask him Who is Bix Beiderbecke?" From
that day on I was hooked on Beiderbecke in
particular, hot jazz in general.
4

• Jerry Jazz Musician
• Interview by Paul Morris, July 23, 2002
• If you could pick any event
• in jazz history to attend, what would it be?
• RMS  I guess I have to split it into three even
  parts.
• - To have been in the crowd at Roseland the night
  
• the Goldkette orchestra bested Henderson's
  band.
• To have been in the crowd at the Club New Yorker
  
• when Rollini unveiled his wonderful new band.
• To have heard the Whiteman orchestra live,
• anywhere, in the early weeks of 1928.

5
Courtesy of Norman Field
6
Richard was an educator Richards writings
provide an education, not just information!
7
Mr. Phillip D. Atteberry, Professor of Music at
the University of Pittsburgh, the Mississippi
Rag, April 1999 Most books embellish or refine
an existing way of thinking. Only a few books
prompt us to think in fundamentally new ways, to
see a subject through an entirely new lens. Lost
Chords is one of those rare books. Mr. William
Youngren, Atlantic Magazine, February 1999 Lost
Chords is a lifetime guide to its subject the
sort of book that in a sense one never finishes.
8
Norman Field Sep 20 2008 in Doug Ramseys
Rifftides writing about J.R.T. Davies and
Richard Sudhalter Both of them were mentors to
me John in person, and Richard mostly by his
books and recordings. Still, the only effective
tribute we can really pay to human beings of
this exalted stature, is to do our best to live
up, however modestly, to the very high standards
they set.
9
From  Richard Sudhalter ltrmsud_at_yahoo.comgt
To  haim_at_xray3.chem.sunysb.edu
Subject  Re Bix Web Page...
Date  Mon, 8 Feb 1999 215035 -0800 (PST)
Dear Albert, Finally it's Saturday, affording me
a chance at last to read through the printout of
your Beiderbecke web page, which arrived
yesterday. As you'd expect, I enjoyed it
certainly any Bix cyber-enthusiast is going to
have the time of his (or her) virtual life here.

1442 words of highly detailed
comments after reading ca. 200 pages in a few
hours. A bit of praise, but then
10
THE FINAL YEARS I fail to see in what way
"Friend With Pleasure" anticipates the swing
era.  Bix apart, it's an all-too-characteristic
arrangement of its time. You can argue that such
Casa Loma records as "San Sue Strut" anticipate
swing band methods and sounds, but this?  If
you're determined to contend that, you must
support it with firm musical evidence.
BOOKS "BB Sein Leben, etc." It's not
enough to say your Deutsch isn't up to it. Find
someone who speaks the language and knows the
subject. Scheuer does all right, but falls into
some familiar traps.  You owe your readers more
than a disclaimer that reads like a cop-out.
1442 words!!! Richard even corrected typos.
The educator in action. Another dimension to
Richards intellectual qualities. Generous, but
highly demanding.
11
(No Transcript)
12
The Mississippi Rag, October 2008 Richard
Sudhalter Obituary by Albert Haim I owe an
immense debt of gratitude to Richard Sudhalter.
His writings, in particular Bix, Man and Legend,
had a profound impact on me. Had it not been for
Richard's comprehensive, insightful, and deeply
moving account of Bix's life, my own life would
have charted a far less rewarding course.
Ultimately, I was inspired to create the
Bixography website (www.bixography.com),
embarking upon a marvelous and endlessly
evolving adventure. Thank you, Richard!
13
Richard Lives

• In his music
• In his brilliant scholarship
• In his ever-expanding field
• of influence and inspiration

14
Next 825-830 Classic Jazz Quartet Reunion JOE
MURANYI - clarinet MARTY GROSZ - guitar
Dick Sudhalter, cornet Joe Muranyi, clarinet
Dick Wellstood, piano Marty Grosz, acoustic
guitar