Harry Goldson Memorial JazzFest honors late jazz extraordinaire

By Sandra Serra Bradshaw

Sun contributor

To know Harry Goldson was to know a man who truly “marched to his own tune” both professionally and in his personal life.

Harry Albert Goldson was born on Feb. 27, 1929, in Chicago, the son of Albert Rothschild and Rose Eileen (Schaeffer) Goldson and passed on Nov. 22, 2022. Harry rose above the crowd and not only on stage. In his personal life he was a kind and generous man, and always looked out for others. He was listed as a noteworthy financial company executive by the Marquis Who’s Who, people selected by “virtue of their positions and/or noteworthy achievements that have proved to be of significant value to society.”

The head caption on his website (HarryGoldson.com) sums it in its perfectly succinctly written words: “Harry Goldson’s pureness of tone, the sensitivity of his phrasing and his fresh innovative interpretations of jazz classics give new meaning to the art of playing jazz clarinet.”

Harry found that his passion in playing the clarinet was “more fun than ever,” and that is how he felt playing even at 93 years of age. He played what he wanted to play, and most importantly, he played his music in a way he thought it should sound. And what a sound his was! “Music flows from his clarinet like pure velvet… caressing every note … every phrase … creating an intimacy between himself and the listener that has become a hallmark of Harry’s inimitable style of jazz,” again notes his website.

“Harry played among the greatest,” said Piper, his wife of 43 years. “Harry played reeds with some of the most renowned musicians. He toured with and was a featured musician with the likes of Claude Thornhill, Randy Brooks and Teddy Phillip, and so many others. Harry started when he was only 15 years old, playing with major bands across the United States.”

On Saturday, July 8, from 1-9 pm, the Suttons Bay JazzFest will honor the memory of Harry under the Big Tent at Marina Park in Suttons Bay. The Harry Goldson Memorial JazzFest will celebrate the legacy Harry brought to American Classic Jazz with talented musicians who played with him. These include internationally acclaimed jazz pianist, composer, and producer Bob James, who headlines the event, along with Steve Sandner & Friends, the Jeff Haas Trio, David Chown Combo. The Interlochen Student Jazz Band will lead off the event.

Award-winning Leelanau Peninsula wineries and restaurants will provide selections of fine food and beverage to enhance the enjoyment of listening to an afternoon and evening of continuous live classic jazz (no coolers please). Proceeds from JazzFest benefit area students to attend summer music camps including Interlochen, Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, and CMU, as well as non-profit community projects. The Harry Goldson Memorial JazzFest is sponsored by the Suttons Bay JazzFest Foundation 501(c)3, Chatham Capital Corporation, Bahle’s of Suttons Bay, Bonek Insurance, NMC 90.7 FM, Interlochen Public Radio, WBLV Blue Lake Public Radio w/Lazaro Vega as MC, CMU Public Radio, and with support from Professional and Corporate Underwriting. Tickets for this limited seating under the Big Tent are $25 in advance or $35 at the gate. Visit MyNorthTickets.com or call 231-499-4850.

When the Korean War intervened in Harry’s young adulthood, he joined the U.S. Army in an intelligence role from 1950 to 1953. When his Army duties were behind him, he went on to continue his education earning his graduate degree in banking from Rutgers University. “When the Big Band era slowly dissolved, Harry began a highly successful career in the world finance and banking,” commented Piper.

“That was in the 1960s. He joined a major Los Angeles bank—this was during the Golden Age of Finance—Harry literally had clients who were to go on and reach pivotal moments in their lives; people whose occupations were in real estate, major retailers, film, theater… all on the West Coast,” said Piper.

“They were just beginning what would become major businesses, he was there at the ‘right time’ to secure financing, and they became moguls, running what became major companies. Even well into his 90s, Harry still practiced as a Certified Public Accountant, always keeping an eye on the market for investments into his extensive portfolio management,” explained Piper.

One deal Harry recalled he helped broker in the 1950s. “I knew Hugh Heffner personally,” Harry said during an interview for his biography. “I was able to arrange financing for him to keep Playboy Magazine running when it was just struggling, and publishing month-to-month,” he said.

Harry was well into his 60s when he took his horn out of its case and began playing his beloved clarinet once again. It was 1991 when he returned to that first love of his life, playing jazz with his tuneful clarinet melodiously keeping rhythm with his soul, touching ever so many listeners through the years. “Harry’s music is Classic Jazz,” Piper said. “It is timeless. It was originally written and performed, and it sounds great all these decades later.”

“A real distinction of Harry’s music is the authenticity he brought to his art when he played,” Piper continued. “He could relate to musicians like Arty Shaw, Benny Goodman, and Harry James… Harry could relate to them because he knew them personally. He would relate little anecdotes to his audience,” reminisced Piper. “Harry brought to them a genuine portrayal of the Golden Age of Jazz because Harry lived through it. People felt it; they knew when Harry played it was for real. He brought an authenticity which is so rare.”

Harry and Piper, moved from Chicago to the Leelanau Peninsula in 1986. Together, they opened Suttons Bay Galleries in 1989 which specializes in the collection of fine art for customers throughout the country. It was a chance encounter at the gallery when Harry’s interest in playing his clarinet was rekindled. “The founder and (former) conductor, Nancy Brammer, of the Encore Society of Music stopped by the gallery one day,” explained Piper. “She was selling ads for the band’s program. That’s what got Harry back into music, his meeting and later joining the group.”

“Then he met up with people in jazz… Harry was very fortunate to be at the right place at the right time throughout his life. I had told Nancy that Harry played clarinet, but he had not played for years and years,” said Piper. “Nancy asked Harry if he would like to join Encore, and he thought it would be fun to play some marches or at community band events.”

The rest they say is history, since that time Harry became known as one of northern Michigan’s top jazz artists, issuing nine of his own CDs. In 2008, one of his CDs, Let’s Dance, was chosen to fly aboard the United States Space Shuttle ‘Endeavour’ on its way to the International Space Station, making Harry one of very few to have his musical essence heard in outer space.