- Vic Berton
Vic Berton (May 7, 1896,
Chicago - December 26, 1951,Hollywood ) was an Americanjazz drummer.Berton's father was a violinist and began his son on string instruments around age five. He was hired as a percussionist at the
Alhambra Theater inMilwaukee in 1903 when he was only seven years old. By age 16 he was playing with theMilwaukee Symphony Orchestra and theChicago Symphony Orchestra . While serving inWorld War I he played drums forJohn Philip Sousa 's Navy band.Early in the 1920s Berton played in various Chicago bands, including those of
Art Kahn ,Paul Beise , and Arnold Johnson. He led his own ensemble as well, which played at the Merry Gardens club. In 1924 he became the manager ofThe Wolverines , and occasionally played alongsideBix Beiderbecke in the ensemble. Later in the 1920s he played withRoger Wolfe Kahn ,Don Voorhees , andRed Nichols , and worked extensively as asession musician . In 1927 he played withPaul Whiteman , and then moved toLos Angeles later that year.In Los Angeles Berton played with
Abe Lyman and played in the studios for film soundtracks. He served as director ofParamount Films 's music division for a time, and worked in theLos Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra . In the 1940s he worked as a percussionist in the studios for20th Century Fox .Berton's brother
Ralph Berton also became a jazz drummer, in addition to his writings on jazz.References
* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:0cftxqt5ldke~T1 Vic Berton] at
Allmusic
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