Trivia Question: The Andy Griffith Show & Jazz Euphonium

[davewerden]

OK, let's start this out at high difficulty. If no one gets it I'll add some clues.

In what way does The Andy Griffith Show have a connection to a professional jazz euphonium player?

[highpitch]

He plays some sort of tuba in that awful Mayberry band.

DG

[RickF]

Hmm? Could it have something to do with the theme song, “The Fishin’ Hole”? I know that song is useful in helping me remember intervals. The first interval is a 2nd, then a 3rd, then a 5th. The last note is also an octave above the first note.

[Shinn]

How about Ron Howard (Opie Taylor in ‘The Andy Griffith’ show) having a role in ‘The Music Man’ movie?

This picture is of him with a double bell euphonium taken during the filming of that movie.

[Shinn]

These are pictures of the Mayberry Band (actually 2 bands in this episode! One is the ringer jazz band to get the Mayor’s approval and the other is the town’s band members - Andy leads both.) referenced above by Dennis Gilliam (highpitch).

[RickF]

Andy Griffith was inspired to learn trombone after seeing the movie, “Birth of the Blues” when he was just 15 where he heard Jack Teagarden play. Mr Teagarden was an excellent jazz trombonist but also played euphonium when young. Andy learned trombone well enough to earn a scholarship to UNC.

[davewerden]

Andy Griffith was inspired to learn trombone after seeing the movie, “Birth of the Blues” when he was just 15 where he heard Jack Teagarden play. Mr Teagarden was an excellent jazz trombonist but also played euphonium when young. Andy learned trombone well enough to earn a scholarship to UNC.

That's a terrific guess! Not the connection I was thinking of, though. The connection I'm thinking for is to someone who was known primarily as a jazz euphonium player. (So far I have found only one recording of Teagarden playing euphonium.)

[davewerden]

HINT #1:

The connection is via someone who was on the show fewer than 10 times (although still a memorable character who performed music on screen a few times).

[MikeS]

Ok, hang with me here.
-Doug and Rodney Dillard appeared as themselves (along with Denver Pyle, Mitch Jayne, and Dean Webb) on Andy Griffith as the Dillards.
-When the Dillards, the actual group, went electric their electric guitar player was Richie Polodor.
-Richie Polodor was the music director for the movie Grindhouse/Death Proof
-Danny Trejo appeared in the Planet Terror segment in Grindhouse
-Danny Trejo beat up a whole bunch of guys while wearing a fanny pack in the movie Bad Ass
-Several Blood, Sweat and Tears songs were in the soundtrack for Bad Ass
-Dave Bargeron played with Blood, Sweat and Tears

(Dave Bargeron is the only jazz euphonium player I can think of other than Rich Matteson and, very occasionally, Maynard Ferguson.)

[davewerden]

MikeS - WOW! That is WAY YONDER more sophisticated than my own idea!

I'm enjoying the creativity of the answers, but here is the one I had in mind.

A jazz euphonium player who had a pretty good reputation during his time was Gus Mancuso. (He was featured on 3 albums with his bell-front American-style euphonium.)

Maggie Mancuso (Gus' wife) played the part of Charlene Darling (I always thought it was "Darlin" from the way they said it). While she was not actually a member of the real-life Dillards she DID perform with "the Darlings" on some of the 6 episodes that she was in.

Maggie performed with the Dillards a few times after TAGS show. Here is one televised example:

Not to be left out, here is Gus Mancuso from a 1956 album:

[MikeS]

Yeah, that’s right, they were the Darlings on the show. Actually, in playing around trying to answer this I did discover another jazz euphonium player, Kiane Zawadi.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZeFwIoBPLs

He played quite a bit with Freddie Hubbard and Cornell Dupree among many others. I am embarrassed that I didn’t know about him since he is a fellow son of the Motor City. His links to Andy Griffith I will leave for someone else to uncover.

[davewerden]

Yeah, that’s right, they were the Darlings on the show. Actually, in playing around trying to answer this I did discover another jazz euphonium player, Kiane Zawadi.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZeFwIoBPLs

He played quite a bit with Freddie Hubbard and Cornell Dupree among many others. I am embarrassed that I didn’t know about him since he is a fellow son of the Motor City. His links to Andy Griffith I will leave for someone else to uncover.

There are a few players like this who were respected and accomplished, but who are not household names today. Here is a list of recordings I had logged in my old Euphonium Music Guide from Zawadi:

http://www.dwerden.com/emg/recording...ane&doSearch=1

[MichaelSchott]

Yeah, that’s right, they were the Darlings on the show. Actually, in playing around trying to answer this I did discover another jazz euphonium player, Kiane Zawadi.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZeFwIoBPLs

He played quite a bit with Freddie Hubbard and Cornell Dupree among many others. I am embarrassed that I didn’t know about him since he is a fellow son of the Motor City. His links to Andy Griffith I will leave for someone else to uncover.

FYI Kiane is on Facebook but not very active. A few years ago he accepted my friend request.

[tokuno]

"So . . . how do you like your eggs in the morning? Scrambled, fried, or fertilized?"
:-o

[RickF]

Sadly Maggie Peterson (or Mancuso) just passed away this week at age 81. Just saw this on this morning’s Today Show.