Rod Levitt

WARDSBORO -- Rod Levitt, jazz trombonist, composer and arranger, 77, died quietly in his sleep late Tuesday night, May 8, 2007, at his home in Wardsboro, after a courageous battle with Alzheimer's disease.

Born in Sept. 16, 1929, and raised in Portland, Ore., Mr. Levitt took his love for jazz and his trombone to the University of Washington. It was there he studied music theory, harmony and arranging. Many top bands come through the city of Seattle.

It was there that he met a talented young trumpeter, still in high school, named Quincy Jones. This association put Mr. Levitt to work in Jones' band, which featured another young jazz artist, singer Ernestine Anderson.

Four years in the Air Force allowed Mr. Levitt to hone his arranging skills. He played piano and trombone and arranged for the 722nd Regiment Air Force band. They would play dances five or six nights a week.

Upon finishing his military career, Mr. Levitt made his way to New York City, found an apartment and started picking up work as a versatile trombonist, continuing his graduate education at Mannes School of Music.

The musician's union building was the place to meet other musicians and band leaders and find out about work. On his way there one day, he again bumped into his old friend Quincy Jones. He quickly offered Mr. Levitt a gig on the road with the Dizzy Gillespie Orchestra, and he was soon on his way.

Mr. Levitt spent a year touring with Gillespie, and his association with Gillespie carried on throughout much of his own career. But upon returning from this first tour, Mr. Levitt began to find session work in New York.

His reputation brought him into the elite rank as a strong player with many tools -- reading, improvising and arranging. Evidence of his work is clear on recordings from that time with Dinah Washington, Billy Eckstine, Benny Golson, Gil Evans and many others.

In 1958, Mr. Levitt took a job playing in the symphony orchestra at New York's famed Radio City Music Hall, which he maintained for 13 years.

In 1959, he caught the eye of one of the newest member of the legendary Rockettes. “Who is that man with the trombone?” she asked on her very first day of work. When she found out, she said, “Rod Levitt! I have all of his records!”

Rod and Jean Levitt were married in 1962. They never stopped giggling like school kids about meeting and finding one another.

With a good job and a strong work ethic, Mr. Levitt found opportunities for writing more and more for various musical settings. With a growing demand musicians who could play and write “jingles” for TV commercials and theme music and soundtracks for shows.

He found he liked the challenge and diversity of writing music for commercials and moved in that direction. In a very challenging and competitive field, he was in demand as a top writer, creating the music for thousands of commercials for every product imaginable.

This dedication to excellence and strong work ethic also produced the Rod Levitt Orchestra in the 1960s, perhaps his crowning achievement. This eight-piece ensemble earned its title of orchestra with the brilliant arrangements and the virtuosity it demanded of his players as strong readers, the ability to play several instruments, thus expanding his palette of musical ‘colors' and top level improvising.

From 1962-65, Mr. Levitt wrote prolifically for this group and recorded four celebrated albums. His “Dynamic Sound Patterns” is currently available on CD. These recordings put him in the pantheon of jazz arrangers. Although critically a hit, he never was able to get enough attention with this ensemble. Though they never released a recording after 1966, the dedicated members played his music and he continued to write for the orchestra for at least a decade more.

Soft spoken and very wise, Mr. Levitt had done the nearly impossible in music many times over. He made a fine living, he stayed on a clean path of health, raised a family and he even retired!

He lived out his last few years in rural Vermont with his wife. Despite the years and advancing Alzheimer's, he could always sing the music he wrote and tell you exactly when he did what and with whom.

Mr. Levitt is survived by his wife Jean, of Wardsboro, and son Barry, of Miami. Funeral arrangements are pending at this time.u