[[2][3]]Musical career
Corky Siegel's professional music career began in 1964, when he met guitarist Jim Schwall. Both were studying music at Roosevelt University in Chicago. The two became a duo, performing blues music. They landed a regular gig at Pepper's Lounge, where well known, established blues musicians such as Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, and Willie Dixon would often sit in.[4] After a while the duo became a quartet, the Siegel-Schwall Band.
The Siegel-Schwall Band enjoyed increasing popularity, and by 1967 were touring nationally, playing at large rock venues like the Fillmore West and sharing the bill with famous rock bands.[5][6] Between 1966 and 1974, they released ten albums. After 1974, they stopped playing concerts, but the band re-formed in 1987. They released two albums of new material.[7] Until "Siegel-Schwall lovingly disbanded" in March 2016, they still played occasional live dates and featured drummer Sam Lay and bassist Rollo Radford; Lay played with Siegel in the Happy Year Band of 1973 which also featured Chicago blues guitarist Albert Joseph.[1]
The idea of combining blues and classical music was first suggested by classical conductor Seiji Ozawa. Ozawa brought together the Siegel-Schwall Band and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. They first performed "Three Pieces for Blues Band and Symphony Orchestra", by William Russo in 1968. In 1973, the band and Ozawa released a recording of this work performed with the San Francisco Symphony. In 1975, Siegel and Ozawa, with the San Francisco Symphony, first performed another William Russo work, "Street Music: A Blues Concerto". A recording of this piece was released in 1979.[9]
Inspired by his collaboration with Ozawa, Corky Siegel formed Chamber Blues in 1988. The group's music combines elements of classical, blues, and jazz. The band consists of a string quartet – two violins, a viola, and a cello – along with percussionist Frank Donaldson, and Siegel on harmonica and also sometimes doubling on piano. As of early 2019, Chamber Blues has released four albums,[10][11][12][13][14] and still tours nationally and internationally.[15]
Siegel has also worked on numerous other musical projects. In 2004, he was a member of the Chicago Blues Reunion band, which released the album Buried Alive in the Blues.[16]
Book
With Peter Krammer, Corky Siegel wrote a book for musicians and music students, called Let Your Music Soar: The Emotional Connection. It was published by Nova Vista Publishing in 2007.
Discography
For Siegel's recordings with the Siegel-Schwall Band, see Siegel-Schwall Band.
- Corky Siegel – Corky Siegel (1974 – Dharma)
- Street Music: A Blues Concerto – San Francisco Symphony and Corky Siegel (1979 – Deutsche Grammophon)
- Out of the Blue – Corky Siegel (1980 – Stuff)
- Goodbye California - Corky Siegel (1984 – Skitzo/Frenia Records [re-release of Out of the Blue])
- Corky Siegel's Chamber Blues – Chamber Blues (1994 – Alligator)
- Complementary Colors – Chamber Blues (1998 – Gadfly)
- Solo Flight – Corky Siegel (1999 – Gadfly)
- Corky Siegel's Traveling Chamber Blues Show – Chamber Blues (2005 – Alligator)
- Buried Alive in the Blues – Chicago Blues Reunion (2005 – 33rd Street)
- Different Voices – Chamber Blues (2017 – Dawnserly)
References
1. ^{{cite web |url=http://www.corkymusic.com/siegel-schwall |title=Corky Siegel: The Siegel-Schwall Band |date=June 13, 2017 |publisher=Siegel, Corky |accessdate=January 17, 2018}}
2. ^1 {{YouTube|5-DYJ5DUXfU|Corky Siegel interview}} on WTTW public television
3. ^1 Corky Siegel biograpny {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091225205633/http://www.chamberblues.com/ssb_bio_corky.html |date=December 25, 2009 }} at the official Siegel-Schwall Band web site
4. ^1 {{cite book |title=Tombstone Blues |last=Widen |first=Larry |year=2005 |publisher=Apple Core Publishing Group |isbn=1-4116-4823-4 |pages=55–60 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BMnNlHgAqWQC&pg=PT55&dq=corky+siegel&cd=3#v=onepage&q=corky%20siegel&f=false}}
5. ^1 [https://books.google.com/books?id=4AgEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA28&dq=%22siegel-schwall+band%22&cd=9#v=onepage&q=%22siegel-schwall%20band%22&f=false Concert review of the Siegel-Schwall Band at the Fillmore West], Billboard, March 27, 1971, pp. 28, 44
6. ^1 {{cite book |title=The Chicago Music Scene: 1960s and 1970s |last=Milano |first=Dean |year=2009 |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |isbn=0-7385-7729-4 |page=47 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E2D1kNHag9wC&pg=PA47&dq=corky+siegel&lr=&cd=14#v=onepage&q=corky%20siegel&f=false}}
7. ^1 {{Allmusic|class=artist|id=p522|label=Siegel-Schwall Band}}
8. ^1 "Corky Siegel's History and Tall Tales — The Symphonic Blues" {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090905035311/http://www.chamberblues.com/history/history_symphonic.html |date=September 5, 2009 }}, chamberblues.com
9. ^1 [https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5056799 "Corky Siegel's Triple Blues Threat"], National Public Radio, December 17, 2005
10. ^1 Bessman, Jim. [https://books.google.com/books?id=4Q0EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA39&dq=corky+siegel&cd=10#v=onepage&q=corky%20siegel&f=false "Siegel Makes Concerts Crystal Clear"] Billboard, February 12, 2000, pp. 38–39
11. ^1 "About Chamber Blues" {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100630180800/http://chamberblues.com/cb_about_brief_history.html |date=June 30, 2010 }}, chamberblues.com
12. ^1 {{cite web |url=http://www.corkymusic.com/shop/ |title=Corky Siegel: Shop |publisher=Siegel, Corky |accessdate=January 17, 2018}}
13. ^1 {{cite web |url=http://www.chamberblues.com/press-release/ |title=Press Release: Different Voices |publisher=Siegel, Corky |year=2017 |accessdate=January 1, 2019}}
14. ^1 {{cite web |url=http://www.chamberblues.com/dates/ |title=Corky Siegel Concert Dates 2018 -2019 |publisher=Siegel, Corky |year=2018 |accessdate=January 1, 2019}}
15. ^1 Fricke, David. [https://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/7496192/review/8798764/buriedaliveintheblues Buried Alive in the Blues review], Rolling Stone, November 17, 2005