Photo: Carl Van Vechten / Public domain (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Paul Desmond is, for me, the soul of cool jazz. As the alto saxophonist of the Dave Brubeck Quartet and the author of "Take Five," he wrote the best-selling jazz single of all time around an oddball five-four pulse that should not work yet utterly does. What I love is his tone, famously likened to a dry martini: clear, restrained, almost shy, never showing off. He proved that understatement can outlast bombast. Losing him at fifty-two feels like a theft from the music. I return to his records the way one returns to an old, trusted friend.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Paul Desmond
- Name (Japanese)
- ポール・デスモンド
- Reading
- ぽーる・ですもんど
- Born
- November 25, 1924 – May 30, 1977
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Sagittarius / Rat
- Origin
- San Francisco, California, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- composer / saxophonist / jazz musician / recording artist / musician
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- San Francisco Polytechnic High School
- University
- San Francisco State University
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
- Official sitehttp://puredesmond.ca
- Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%9D%E3%83%BC%E3%83%AB%E3%83%BB%E3%83%87%E3%82%B9%E3%83%A2%E3%83%B3%E3%83%89
Frequently asked questions
When was Paul Desmond born?
November 25, 1924 – May 30, 1977.
Where is Paul Desmond from?
Paul Desmond is from San Francisco, California, United States.
What does Paul Desmond do?
Paul Desmond works as composer, saxophonist, jazz musician, recording artist, musician.
Composer — see all → · Saxophonist — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-21
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.