Beginning of Essay
Born December 15, 1911 in Wichita, Kansas, Stanley Newcomb Kenton grew up in Los Angeles, California. Sometime around the age of 8, his mother, Stella, a traditionally-trained musician noticed her son's irrepressible aptitude for the piano and became his first tea ....

Middle of Essay
.... For Sunday,' 'Sunset Tower,' 'Concerto To End All Concertos.' Upon graduation from Bell High School he worked during the day as a rehearsal pianist in dance halls and theaters. At night he paid his dues in a succession of after-hours bars, clip joints and five dollar-a-night speakeasies prevalent throughout the depression-era southwest until he was able to assemble his own 14-piece orchestra in June of 1941. A dominant characteristic of this relatively small Kenton Orchestra was the choppy, staccato manner of phrasing that was especially noticeable in the writing for the reed section. In retrospect this continues to emerge as one of the most rea ....