I was just made aware that
Ib Glindemann passed away a short while ago, on April 5th.
While perhaps more notable in his native Denmark for his contributions to the Danish jazz scene as a prominent big band leader and composer, he also had a considerable library output on Capitol (and Chappell), as both himself, "Dan Kirsten" and "Erik Markmann". His Capitol cues can be heard in, among many other films, George A. Romero's
Night of the Living Dead and
Creepshow.
- but jazz was his passion.
Story goes, a 15-year old Glindemann went to see Louis Armstrong when he was playing at KB-Hallen, Copenhagen in 1949. Though he couldn't afford a ticket, he was snuck in at the last minute by a kind ticketeer, and seated right in front of the stage. Blown away by the experience, he soon sold off his collection of model airplanes and bought his first trumpet. One thing lead to another, and after finishing his music studies at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in 1956, he had various engagements as an orchestra leaeder at National Scala and ABC-Teatret, and established his own big band, enlisting talent from the music academy and local amateurs. Modelling his band after Stan Kenton's, it was no joke - he gathered a large ensemble that performed arrangements of songs in the repertoire of the big international orchestra leaders. The band, among other things, performed several concerts with Stan Getz.
In 1958 was employed as music director of Radio Mercur, Denmark's infamous naval pirate radio station. Radio Mercur's programming director, Ole Georg (Hansen), was soon to move to the US and became head of
Capitol Hi-"Q”, Capitol's production music division in Hollywood. Dates are a bit sketchy here, but Glindemann seems to have been enlisted by Georg in the mid-to-late 50's to write for Capitol.
In 1965, he started work at DR, the Danish state broadcaster, and founded "Det Ny Radiodanseorkester", later known as the DR Big Band, which from its inception quickly grew to be a highly regarded band and home to several notable Danish jazz musicians.
- The band even played a concert with Stan Kenton in 1966.
All the while, he also wrote music for film and TV in Denmark, scoring around 30 movies between 1957 and 1968.
- Not to mention his works for theatre and several classical works, including a ballet and a trumpet concerto.
Glindemann was buried April 12th in Odense, leaving behind a great body of works, recordings and history.
Rest in peace.
