Maurice Winnick

Maurice Winnick
Birth name	Maurice Winnick
Born	28 March 1902(1902-03-28) Manchester, England
Died	26 May 1962(1962-05-26) (aged 60)
Genres	Big Band
Occupations	Bandleader
Instruments	Violin
Labels	Regal, Panachord, Eddison Bell Winner

Maurice Winnick (28 March 1902 – 26 May 1962) was an English musician and dance band leader. Born in Manchester, Winnick studied violin at the Manchester College of Music, where he proved to be a "child prodigy". He took a job in a cinema orchestra, playing the accompaniment for silent films, and while still in his teens he became leader of a dance band on a transatlantic liner. Winnick formed his own small band in 1928, before moving to Nottingham to take over the city's Palais band from Jan Ralfini. He based his style of music on that of fellow band leader Guy Lombardo, and by the 1930s Winnick was performing regularly in several prestigious London venues including the Hammersmith Palais de Danse, the Carlton Hotel, and the San Marco Restaurant, with singer Sam Costa. Winnick and Costa had a popular recording success with "A Little Bit Independent", and the band produced several recordings of dance band music with labels such as Regal, Panachord, and Edison Bell Winner. They also appeared in films of the '30s, including Gay Love in 1934; their theme tune during this period was "The Sweetest Music This Side Of Heaven".^[1]

In 1939 Winnick took over from Harry Roy at London's Dorchester Hotel, but he was obliged to reduce his band to only 11 members. Nevertheless, he employed some of the best musicians of the period, including trombone player and future bandleader Ted Heath, trumpeter Bill Shakespeare and saxophonist Don Barrigo. He also hired top-class singers for his radio broadcasts, such as Al Bowlly and Dorothy Carless. Winnick toured Europe and the Middle East with ENSA during the Second World War,^[1] but by the 1950s he realised that the popularity of big bands was in decline and turned his attention to promoting radio and television game shows for the rest of his life.^[2] Among his imports from America were the popular BBC shows Twenty Questions and What's My Line?^[1]

References

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b c} Larkin, Colin, ed. (2009), "Winnick, Maurice (subscription required)", Encyclopedia of Popular Music (online ed.), Muze Inc and Oxford University Press, http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t270.e30688, retrieved 2 September 2010 
2. ^ Moss 1994, p. 20

Bibliography

• Moss, Phil (1994), Manchester's Music Makers, Neil Richardson, ISBN 1-85216-086-1 

Persondata
Name	Winnick, Maurice
Alternative names
Short description	Dance band leader
Date of birth	28 March 1902
Place of birth	Manchester
Date of death	26 May 1962
Place of death