Mary Osborne facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mary Osborne
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Osborne in Rochester, New York, 1977
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Mary Osborne |
| Born | July 17, 1921 Minot, North Dakota, U.S. |
| Died | March 4, 1992 (aged 70) Bakersfield, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | Guitar |
| Years active | 1940s–1960s |
Mary Osborne (born July 17, 1921 – died March 4, 1992) was an amazing American jazz guitarist. She also became a guitar maker later in her life. Mary started playing music when she was very young. She even had her own show on the radio in North Dakota, where she grew up.
In the 1940s, Mary moved to New York City. There, she played with many famous jazz musicians. These included Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, Art Tatum, Coleman Hawkins, and Thelonious Monk. Later, in 1968, she moved to California. With her husband, she started a company that made guitars called the Osborne Guitar Company.
Contents
Mary Osborne's Early Life and Musical Journey
Mary Osborne was born in Minot, North Dakota. She was one of eleven children in her family. Music was a big part of her family's life. Her mother played the guitar. Her father built violins and let musicians meet in his barbershop.
Mary showed an interest in music when she was just three years old. She first learned to play the piano, ukulele, violin, and banjo. When she was nine, she started playing the guitar. At age ten, she joined her father's ragtime band, playing the banjo.
She also had her own radio show. She performed on it twice a week until she was fifteen. At twelve, Mary started her own trio with other girls. They performed in Bismarck, North Dakota. At this time, she mostly played "hillbilly" music, which is another name for country music. She used her guitar to play along while she sang.
How Mary Discovered the Electric Guitar
When Mary was fifteen, she joined a trio led by pianist Winifred McDonnell. Mary played guitar, double bass, and sang in this group. One day, she heard Charlie Christian play the electric guitar. He was playing in Al Trent's band in Bismarck.
Mary was really impressed by his sound. At first, she even thought his electric guitar was a saxophone! She said that his playing had a "relaxed, even beat." She thought it would still sound modern today.
Right away, Mary bought her own electric guitar. A friend helped her build an amplifier. She played with Charlie Christian and learned his guitar style. Later, Winifred McDonnell's trio joined Buddy Rogers's band. This happened after Buddy Rogers heard them play in St. Louis.
The band moved to New York in 1940. But within a year, Mary's trio left Rogers's band. The girls had found husbands. Mary married a trumpet player named Ralph Scaffidi. He really supported her music career.
Mary Osborne's Rise in Jazz Music
In the 1940s, Mary Osborne joined many jam sessions on 52nd Street in New York. This was a famous street for jazz music. She played with some of the biggest names in jazz.
In 1941, she toured with jazz violinist Joe Venuti. In 1942, she was working in Chicago and made a recording with Stuff Smith. By 1945, Mary was a headliner! She performed in Philadelphia with Dizzy Gillespie, Art Tatum, Coleman Hawkins, and Thelonious Monk. Audiences and critics loved her performance. After this, Mary, Art Tatum, and Coleman Hawkins recorded a concert together in New Orleans.
Leading Her Own Trio and Radio Shows
In 1945, Mary Osborne returned to New York. She recorded music with Mary Lou Williams that year. In 1946, she recorded with Coleman Hawkins, Mercer Ellington, and Beryl Booker. She also started her own swing trio.
Her trio played from 1945 to 1948. They performed in clubs on 52nd Street. They also had a year-long show at Kelly's Stables and made several recordings.
Throughout the 1950s, Mary played with Elliot Lawrence's Quartet. They were on The Jack Sterling Show, a daily morning radio program on CBS. She also appeared on the TV show Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts. Towards the end of the 1950s, she made more recordings. She recorded with Tyree Glenn and as a band leader.
Mary felt like she was doing the same musical things for too long. She wanted a change. So, in 1962, she started learning Spanish classical guitar. Her teacher was Alberto Valdez-Blaine. She began using classical techniques, like playing without a pick, in her jazz music.
Later Life and Legacy
In 1968, Mary Osborne moved to Bakersfield, California. She lived there for the rest of her life. With her husband, she started the Osborne Guitar Company. She taught music and kept playing jazz locally in Bakersfield and in Los Angeles.
She performed at the Newport and Concord festivals in the early 1970s. In 1981, she played at the Kool Jazz Festival in New York. In 1991, Mary returned to the Village Vanguard in New York for a week of performances. These were her last shows.
Mary Osborne passed away in March 1992. She was 70 years old. She died from a long-term illness called chronic leukemia. Mary Osborne left behind a great legacy as a pioneering jazz guitarist.
Discography
- A Girl and Her Guitar (Warwick, 1959)
- Now's the Time (Halcyon, 1977)
- Now and Then (Stash, 1981)
- Esquire's All-American Hot Jazz Sessions (RCA, 1988) with the 52nd Street All-Stars, RCA Studio 2, New York City, February 27, 1946. Produced by Leonard Feather
With Louis Bellson and Gene Krupa
- The Mighty Two (Roulette, 1963)
Images for kids
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Osborne in Rochester, New York, 1977
See also
In Spanish: Mary Osborne para niños
