Carmine Caruso

Carmine John Caruso
Born(1904-11-06)November 6, 1904
New York, New York, United States
DiedMay 26, 1987(1987-05-26) (aged 82)
New York, New York, United States
Known foreducator, musician

Carmine Caruso (November 6, 1904, in New York, New York – April 21, 1987, in New York, New York),[1][2] was a saxophonist and well-known brass instrument teacher, famous for his trumpet lessons in particular.

Early life

Carmine John Caruso was born in New York in 1904 of Italian immigrant parents.[1] By 1940, he and his wife Frances lived at 241 East 112th Street in East Harlem. This address was to become Caruso's home and office and the site of his early private lessons.[3] The house was demolished in 1957 to make way for a housing project.[4]

Musical career

Caruso played violin as a child, then took up the saxophone, eventually becoming a working saxophonist. He was employed regularly in big bands until in 1941 he decided to begin teaching and playing as a freelance musician. In 1942, he took his first trumpet student,[4] and by the next year he had 40 students.[5]

For a woodwind player such as Caruso to become known almost exclusively for brass instrument instruction was atypical. This circumstance lead to some unusual situations, including that Caruso sometimes brought players with him to musical conventions to play brass exercises, which, though written by him, he could not play himself.[6]

Caruso was known for helping brass players address their physical issues with producing sound rather than aesthetic musical instruction. Sometimes his teaching involved working with injured players. Noted trumpeter and music producer Herb Alpert was among these musicians.[7]

Some musicians, including former students of Caruso, have warned musicians against undertaking Caruso's concepts by themselves, suggesting that musicians could physically harm themselves without proper supervision.[8]

Notable students

Caruso taught hundreds of students over his lifetime. Among Caruso's prominent students were: Randy Brecker, Herb Alpert,[7] John D’Earth, Dave Douglas,[9] Jon Faddis,[10] Art Farmer, Chuck Findley, Laurie Frink, Jerry Hyman, Roger Ingram, Julie Landsman, Dmitri Matheny, John McNeil, Jimmy Owens,[11] Franck Pulcini, Enrico Rava,[12] Marvin Stamm, Markus Stockhausen, and Peter Zummo.

Carmine Caruso died on April 21, 1987 in New York City.[2]

Published works

  • Caruso on Breath Control: Dynamic Interval Exercises, 6 Note Publishing Company, 1971
  • Caruso, the Long Setting Method for Beginners: Trumpet, with Hal Graham, 6 Note Publishing Company, 1971
  • Musical Calisthenics for Brass, Almo Publications, 1979

Legacy

The International Trumpet Guild launched the Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Solo Competition in 1993.[13] The competition is held every two years, in October, at a different college or university. The competition was hosted in Europe for the first time in 2023, in Namur, Belgium.[14] The 2025 competition is set to take place at University of North Texas.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b "New York, New York City Births, 1846-1909", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2W48-9Q2 : Wed Mar 12 01:45:35 UTC 2025), Entry for Carmine John Caruso and Paul Caruso, 06 Nov 1904.
  2. ^ a b "United States, Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JPKS-H2L : 8 January 2021), Carmine Caruso, May 1987; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).
  3. ^ "New York, New York City, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1940-1947", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:W4DJ-366Z : Sat Apr 12 07:04:55 UTC 2025), Entry for Carmine John Caruso and Lamartinique Restaurant, 16 Oct 1940.
  4. ^ a b Harrison, Bill (1979). Musical Calisthenics for Brass, by Carmine Caruso, introductory essay by Bill Harrison. Almo Publications. pp. 56–59. ISBN 0634046411.
  5. ^ "Carmine Caruso - the master teacher". ojtrumpet.no. Archived from the original on 17 May 2025. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  6. ^ Knowing-how, showing, and epistemic norms Author(s): Joshua Habgood-Coote Source: Synthese, Vol. 195, No. 8, Special Issue on TRENDS IN PHILOSOPHY OF LANGUAGE AND MIND (August 2018), pp. 3597-3620 Published by: Springer Nature Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/26750493 Accessed: 02-07-2025 15:47 UTC
  7. ^ a b Jazz legend herb alpert releases his 50th album (2024). . Washington, D.C.: NPR. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/other-sources/jazz-legend-herb-alpert-releases-his-50th-album/docview/3110917614/se-2
  8. ^ Dalrymple, Dr. Glenn (October 2008). "Medical Issues, The Carmine Caruso Method". Horn Call: Journal of the International Horn Society. 39 (1): 71–72.
  9. ^ Feather, Leonard; Gitler, Ira (April 2007). The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz. Oxford University Press, USA. p. 191. ISBN 9780195320008.
  10. ^ Meckna, Michael (February 28, 1994). Twentieth-Century Brass Soloists. London, UK: Bloomsbury Academic. p. 84. ISBN 9780313264689.
  11. ^ Davis, John S. (September 15, 2020). Historical Dictionary of Jazz. New York, NY: Rowman & Littlefield. p. 318. ISBN 9781538128152.
  12. ^ Dezzani, Mark (July 2, 1994). "Scrapple Beyond the Apple, Jazz Notes from Around the World". Billboard. Vol. 106, no. 27. p. 50.
  13. ^ "ITG Carmine Caruso Jazz Trumpet Contest". ITG Journal. International Trumpet Guild: 11. 1999.
  14. ^ "Carmine Caruso International Jazz Solo Competition – Brass Promotion".
  15. ^ "2025 Carmine Caruso Competition". music.unt.edu. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
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