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Family
History
These two people are the
reason I am here today. My parents, Wally and Marion Schuman. I was born to
them on Jan 31, 1958 in Buffalo, NY. I'm the youngest of two boys. My older
brother Tim was born four years before me. Marion & Wally met on the
bandstand in 1951 and were married a year later. My father was a Jazz bassist
and my mother was a Jazz singer. They they literally met on stage when my
father sat in with the band my mother was singing in.
Our home constantly rang with
the sounds of The Oscar Peterson Trio, Ella Fitzgerald,
Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughan and Nancy Wilson. These sounds obviously had a great influence on me at an
early age. I fell in love with the music and became obsessed with the elements
of swing and Jazz harmony. My idol at the age of six was Oscar
Peterson and still is today. I wanted to accomplish at least in part some of the ferocious performance
qualities that Oscar so effortlessly executed on the piano. Little did I know
then how difficult an undertaking that was in reality.
I took piano lessons at the
age of seven from a classically trained pianist. The classical regiment was
indeed challenging and gave me a structural approach to piano technique. But
the discouraging factor was the fact that every piano piece I played by either
Beethoven, Bach, Brahms, Chopin or Schumann had to be performed exactly
the same way each time I played it. I was far more interested in how Jazz
musicians managed to create intricate pieces of emotionally charged music on the
spot every time they performed. So I started jamming with my mom and dad at
home whenever I could.
My father, Wally, was my best
friend and one of the greatest musicians I ever had the pleasure of
playing with. He was a kind, gentle, talented and wonderful man. Very
sensitive to others and considerate to a fault. But when he played bass,
especially upright, his consummate professionalism and musical passion showed
off his enormous strength. He gave me a musical foundation that could not be
taught in any conservatory or college. He passed away April 4, 2000 of
cancer. I will miss him until the day I die.
The mp3 at the top of the
page is a sample of "Portrait of My Father". I wrote it as a loving memory of my
father, Walter Schuman. It's also one of the cuts on Into Your
Heart.
If you have any
questions for me or Yvonne, please feel free to contact us.
Thanks,
TOM
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