Leroy Ostransky
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Leroy Ostransky (January 17, 1918 – October 11, 1993) was an American composer, music educator, and the author of multiple books on jazz.
Early life
Ostransky grew up in a Jewish ghetto on the Lower East Side in New York city, the son of Russian Jewish immigrant parents, Max Ostransky and Sophie Ostransky (née Friedman). Ostransky's father, a saloon owner during prohibition known to the neighborhood as "Sharkey," had greater aspirations of success for his son Leroy as a violinist. Ostransky's memoir details his difficult relationship with his father, who could be both physically and emotionally manipulative and even abusive.[1]
Musical career
After leaving home at seventeen, Ostransky worked as a pianist in a jazz club before getting his Doctorate in musical arts at the State University of Iowa in 1959. Ostransky went on to found the Workshop Band, one of America's early experimental jazz bands. In addition to his published books, Ostransky composed seventy five educational pieces, and had five of his compositions performed by the Seattle Symphony.[1] Additionally, Ostransky was the professor emeritus of music and composer-in-residence at the University of Puget Sound. In 1975, Ostransky was named one of the twelve greatest teachers in America by People magazine.[2]
Literary work
As an author about the history of Jazz, Ostransky has written multiple books on the subject. Paul Oliver has found that few authors, “were as liberal with their catalogue of influences ,“ as Ostransky, as his The Anatomy of Jazz attributed everything from country life to Italian arias as influences of Jazz [3]
Publications
The Anatomy of Jazz, 1960
Understanding Jazz, 1977
Jazz City: The Impact of Our Cities on the Development of Jazz, 1978
Sharkey's Kid: A Memoir, 1991
References
External links
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