Search - Hal Schaefer :: June 1st: A Date to Remember

A Date to Remember is a CD to Remember!

David C Fannin | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 05/17/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you love solo jazz piano, played to perfection, then you will certainly love this comeback album by noted jazz musician, composer, arranger and teacher, Hal Schaefer. At one time a dominant force in Hollywood movie musical circles, Schaefer recalls his close relationship with movie legend Marilyn Monroe (for whom he was her vocal coach for the film "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" and other films) with a new jazz composition in her honor (one guess as to the missing person from the photo on the cover of this album with Schaefer "coaching"). The title of this CD also reflects the fact that Marilyn and Schaefer's late wife, Brenda, shared the same birth date, June 1. His feelings for both "ladies" in his life are reflected in two original compositions, "Blues for Marilyn" and "Blues for Brenda". Once the toast of Broadway and Hollywood, Hal Schaefer now works primarily as a vocal coach to up and coming young singers in South Florida. But he's no retiree in the usual sense. When he sat down last December at Sunrise Studios in Florida, magic flowed from the keys of the piano, as he transformed standards like "Tenderly," "Baubles, Bangles and Beads" and others into unique and fresh new stylings. Listen particularly to Jobim's "Meditation" and the two Schaefer compositions on this album, and you will be won over. Emerging from the grief over the loss of his wife in the Spring of 2000, Schaefer honors her memory with a special gift to all lovers of jazz piano in this album. Here's hoping we hear much more from Hal in the near future. A final observation: the liner notes by Dr. Herb Wong are certainly a cut above the usual, and add considerably to the enjoyment of this fine album."

Great jazz piano!

operamaryc | DIAMOND BAR, CA United States | 12/17/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"David Fannin has written it all and I certainly agree with all he has said. Great jazz piano by a gifted performer! A must have in any collection. I hear his love of music in every note on some of the best songs of the era."