Rolf Kühn

Rolf Kühn's style evolved over the course of his career. The clarinetist started out playing in German dance bands in the late '40s. He worked with radio orchestras starting in 1952 and moved to the U.S. in 1956. Kühn subbed for Benny Goodman on a few occasions in 1957 and 1958, played in the Tommy Dorsey ghost band (1958), and worked in a big band led by Urbie Green (1958-1960). In 1962, he returned to Germany, where he explored more adventurous styles of jazz (including dates with his younger brother, keyboardist Joachim Kühn), but he still occasionally showed off his ties to swing. Kühn recorded with an all-star group called Winner's Circle (1957), Toshiko Akiyoshi (1958), and as a leader starting in 1953, including a 1956 New York quartet date for Vanguard. Rolf Kühn died on August 18, 2022, in Berlin at the age of 92. ~ Scott Yanow, Rovi