Life Member. Bass
(11/7/1917 – 7/15/2015)
by Glenn A. Mitchell, Life Member, Local 47
Howard Rumsey was a true jazz music entrepreneur. He was also the last survivor of the original Stan Kenton Orchestra playing upright contra bass. Rumsey passed away July 15, 2015, at age of 97 years. Continue reading
Life Member. Violin
(9/7/1922 – 6/2/2015)
by Susan Chatman
Violinist Arnold Belnick, soloist and studio musician, made his transition in Granada Hills on June 2, 2015. He was 92 years old. A New York native and child prodigy since the age of 4, Arnold won his first major American competition at the age of 15 and played his concert debut in Town Hall. Hailed as a “young Joseph Sziget,” Arnold was a featured soloist with the New York Philharmonic and gained critical acclaim after he recorded for Columbia Records. Continue reading
Former Life Member. Piano
(May 6, 1930 – April 23, 2015)
By Vince Fanelli
We lost a good friend and a fine musician when Local 47 member of over 60 years, Mark Anthony Traversino passed away on April 23, 2015. Continue reading
Life Member. Piano
10/12/1928 – 10/3/2014
by Gail Shaw, daughter
Carolyn was a member of Local 47 for over 40 years. She valued her membership and often shared her professional journey with young musicians in an attempt to encourage them to join. Continue reading
It is with deep sadness that we mourn the tragic loss of composer James Horner.
The Academy-Award winning composer was piloting his single-engine plane which crashed Monday in Ventura County, Variety has confirmed. He was the sole person on board the aircraft. Continue reading
Life Member. Piano
10/17/1916 – 3/2/2015
by Jacqueline Rankin, daughter
Esther Klein Roth, a classical pianist and long-time life member of Local 47, died March 2, 2015, at the age of 98. Esther was a child prodigy whose teachers included Olga Steeb, Alfred Mirovitch, and Alexis Kall. Josef Hofmann, the eminent pianist and director of the Curtis Institute of Music heard her play and urged her to attend the Institute, but she had to pass up this opportunity because of the hard economic times. Continue reading
Honorary Member
11/23/1925 – 4/2/2015
by Heather Gold, wife
Ralph R. Gold, M.D., affectionately aka “The Jazz Doc,” Honorary Local 47 Musicians’ Union Member since 2002, died April 2, 2015, in Rancho Mirage, CA. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Nov. 23, 1925, he began playing bass at L.A. High School and played with the L.A. All-City High-school Orchestra and was principal bassist with the Peter Merenblum California Youth Symphony two of his high-school years. After a stint in the Navy, he had dance bands all through his undergraduate years at UCLA and later at USC’s Keck School of Medicine, getting his M.D. in 1953. He also played two seasons with the Doctors’ Symphony. He had an equal passion for running and was a cross-country runner starting in high-school, also at UCLA, and while there, was a record-holding half-miler. Continue reading
Life Member. French Horn
(8/8/1921 – 12/7/2014)
by the Acton family
Raymond Denny Acton, an accomplished French horn player and manufacturing engineer has passed away at 93. Ray was born in Roundup, Montana and was the youngest of four children. Ray was very passionate about music and developed a love for the French horn at a very young age playing in his elementary school band in Phoenix. After moving to Hollywood, he continued playing the French horn at Fairfax High School. Continue reading
Life Member. Vibraphone
5/16/1916 – 7/13/2014
By Jim Bigsby, nephew
Bob was born in Everett, WA, and grew up in Tacoma, WA, where he often had the lead role in Stadium High School’s musicals. In the summer of 1936 he drove his little Austin 1,500 miles south carrying his vibes on its back in wooden cases built by his father. Continue reading
In December 2014, Local 47 lost one of the most loyal, hard-working, and sweet employees we’ve ever known.
Longtime computer systems administrator Candi Busapavanij passed away peacefully at her home during the night of Dec. 16, 2014. Her sudden loss was a sudden shock to us all, as she had been responding well to cancer treatment and planning to return to the Local in the spring. Just a few days before, friends described her as feeling happy, active and energetic. Continue reading