Dodo Marmarosa
Piano
September 17, 2002 (Age 76) died
December 12, 1925 Birthday
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. Birthplace
About
Michael "Dodo" Marmarosa was a bebop pianist whose virtuosity and harmonic innovations placed him among the most gifted keyboard artists of the 1940s. A classically trained prodigy from Pittsburgh, he rose to prominence through the big bands of Gene Krupa, Charlie Barnet, Tommy Dorsey, and Artie Shaw, performing in Shaw's Gramercy Five alongside Barney Kessel and Roy Eldridge. His most significant work came during 1946-1947 in Los Angeles, where he was pianist on Charlie Parker's landmark Dial Records sessions, contributing to recordings of "Ornithology," "Yardbird Suite," and "A Night in Tunisia." He also recorded with Lester Young, Wardell Gray, Lucky Thompson, and Howard McGhee, and in 1947 Esquire magazine honored him with a "New Star" award. Struggles with mental illness led to his withdrawal from the national scene after 1950, though his brief recorded legacy remains essential listening in the bebop canon.
Trivia
Marmarosa's childhood nickname "Dodo" originated not from any musical trait but from his physical appearance as a boy: an unusually large head on a short, thin frame drew comparisons to the extinct flightless bird. While with Charlie Barnet's band, he once pushed a small piano off a third-floor balcony to hear what chord it would make when it hit the ground, earning Barnet's additional nickname for him, "The Moose." His 1946 leader sessions for Dial Records with cellist Harry Babasin are credited as the first pizzicato jazz cello recordings ever made.
Early Life
Michael Marmarosa was born on December 12, 1925, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the middle child of Joseph and Carmella Marmarosa, an Italian immigrant working-class family in the East Liberty neighborhood. Although he initially wanted to play trumpet, his parents steered him toward piano, and he began formal classical training at age nine. His transformation from classical prodigy to jazz musician was catalyzed by a friendship with fellow Pittsburgh pianist Erroll Garner, who introduced him to jazz during their high school years. Through Garner, Marmarosa gained access to informal mentoring sessions at the home of local pianist Tootsie Davis, absorbing the fundamentals of jazz performance. He was also deeply influenced by the recorded work of Art Tatum and Teddy Wilson. At just fifteen, Marmarosa left Pittsburgh to join the Johnny "Scat" Davis Orchestra, launching a professional career that would soon place him alongside the leading figures of the bebop movement.
Dodo Marmarosa Solos
1947
Piano solo - Relaxin' At Camarillo - 1947
4/4 swing in C major at 201 BPM
Piano solo - Cheers - 1947
4/4 swing in B♭ major at 229 BPM
Piano solo - Carvin' The Bird - 1947
4/4 swing in E♭ major at 232 BPM
Piano solo - Stupendous - 1947
4/4 swing in E♭ major at 231 BPM
1946
Piano solo - Moose the Mooche - 1946
4/4 swing in B♭ major at 213 BPM
Piano solo - Yardbird Suite - 1946
4/4 swing in C major at 215 BPM