Hey Saxtek and Chitown,
Thanks for that info. I looked up Merle Johnston and found him referenced in a very long (20 hrs?) Buddy Collette autobiographical interview called "Central Avenue Sounds".
But see, Eric, later on- Eric and Frank Morgan-and guys later, but at that time the two of them-followed me into studying with Merle Johnston, who was the first big New York teacher who came out here. And he was teaching a New York system.
Isoardi
He was a reed teacher or-?
Collette
Saxophone teacher. Merle Johnston, yeah, was one of the biggest teachers in New York for a while. He taught some of the guys who are teaching now, like Joe Allard and Romeo Pinquay, the guys who used to do all the studio work. You know, Merle Johnston's students- In fact, Merle, they say, was like king in New York, because he had all the saxophone players. He was kind of a nut, a brilliant guy, but I'm saying he had you blowing six or eight hours a day, full volume, with the metronome and everything. But if nothing more, you got a hell of a sound and you got your fingers going. In fact, it was almost like a production line: "Give me a year with you and you'll be out there doing it." But you paid dues, because that was the only thing you should have been doing. Because he'd say, "Gosh, you're not practicing for me." He would be so unhappy with you. You'd say, "Yeah, but my wife and-" He says, "Well, look now, are you going to be a musician or not?" You know. He was really something dynamite.
Isoardi
I take it he was single.
Collette
Yeah, but he had screwed up his old lady, too. Well, musically, he was probably- Like I say, he got so busy. He had studios and musicians would come there and practice. He was, I mean, sharp. When he came out here-
Isoardi
Which was when?
Collette
When he came out here? Oh, probably around '45 or '46, because when I came back he was just coming out here. But, I say, in New York he was king. He was like the president of some big company with his saxophones and stuff. He had The Saxophone Quartets of Merle Johnston. He's the one also who made mouthpieces, and he told you what mouthpiece and what number, or he could reface it. "Well, it's not sounding good? Let me see. Put that on." He was a giant of a player, giant of a guy. And I got a chance to catch him on kind of the last end- He came out, and people were kind of afraid to study with him, too.
More at Online Archive of California...
http://content.cdlib.org/xtf/view?d...iv00018&toc.depth=1&brand=oac&anchor.id=p92#X
