Biography
Van Alexander achieved his greatest renown as a big-band arranger and composer through a source far removed from the concert-piano background of his mother—namely, nursery rhymes. Working with vocalist Ella Fitzgerald, he crafted the 1938 arrangement of “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” that became the largest success either artist would enjoy. Although written as a showcase during her time with the Chick Webb band, the number grew into one of Fitzgerald’s most cherished signature pieces while supplying Alexander with lasting royalty income and a model for later works. Pieces such as “Where, Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone?” and “Got a Pebble in My Shoe” followed the same path, allowing a polished jazz singer to revisit childhood concerns.
Ocean imagery also drew his attention, surfacing in numbers like “Bouillya Baise” and “There’s a Ship Comin’ In.” These works mirrored the peripatetic nature of his own schedule, which encompassed recording dates and special projects alongside Kay Starr, Dakota Staton, Paul Whiteman, Benny Goodman, Dinah Shore, Doris Day, and Peggy Lee. Film noir scores formed another substantial part of his output; among them were Baby Face Nelson, The Big Operator, and The Private Lives of Adam and Eve. On the small screen he supplied original music for Hazel, The Farmer’s Daughter, Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, and Dennis the Menace. Some of his most inventive television writing arose in response to comedian Jonathan Winters on the series The Wacky World of Jonathan Winters. Variety programs hosted by Mickey Rooney, Gordon McRae, Jimmy Stewart, and Dean Martin likewise featured his arranging and conducting skills; he remained with Martin for more than seven seasons in those capacities.
Alexander’s first professional engagement came with Webb. Before that he had been a composition student captivated by the sounds of Black bands. While still known by his birth name, Al Feldman, he organized six- and seven-piece groups in high school and soon sold two arrangements to Webb for ten dollars apiece. The success of “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” quickly raised his rates, and by the close of 1938 he had formed his own ensemble, which toured the theater circuit into the early ’40s. Among the young musicians who passed through those ranks was drummer Shelly Manne, who joined at age sixteen. When opportunities on the road diminished, Bob Crosby invited Alexander to Hollywood, where he began leading sessions under his own name and working as an arranger and conductor for others.
After the Second World War, when most large touring bands folded, Alexander exemplified the successful pivot to studio work. He earned particular respect for his skill in underscoring—the unobtrusive incidental music that supports a scene yet is rarely noticed by audiences. In 1950 he published the textbook First Arrangement. Johnny Mandel, later an Oscar- and Grammy-winning composer and arranger, studied the craft with him in the early ’40s. Half a century after the fact, Alexander received a Grammy for “A-Tisket, A-Tasket,” shared with Fitzgerald and Webb; he also collected several Emmys for his television scores and ASCAP’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Ocean imagery also drew his attention, surfacing in numbers like “Bouillya Baise” and “There’s a Ship Comin’ In.” These works mirrored the peripatetic nature of his own schedule, which encompassed recording dates and special projects alongside Kay Starr, Dakota Staton, Paul Whiteman, Benny Goodman, Dinah Shore, Doris Day, and Peggy Lee. Film noir scores formed another substantial part of his output; among them were Baby Face Nelson, The Big Operator, and The Private Lives of Adam and Eve. On the small screen he supplied original music for Hazel, The Farmer’s Daughter, Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, and Dennis the Menace. Some of his most inventive television writing arose in response to comedian Jonathan Winters on the series The Wacky World of Jonathan Winters. Variety programs hosted by Mickey Rooney, Gordon McRae, Jimmy Stewart, and Dean Martin likewise featured his arranging and conducting skills; he remained with Martin for more than seven seasons in those capacities.
Alexander’s first professional engagement came with Webb. Before that he had been a composition student captivated by the sounds of Black bands. While still known by his birth name, Al Feldman, he organized six- and seven-piece groups in high school and soon sold two arrangements to Webb for ten dollars apiece. The success of “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” quickly raised his rates, and by the close of 1938 he had formed his own ensemble, which toured the theater circuit into the early ’40s. Among the young musicians who passed through those ranks was drummer Shelly Manne, who joined at age sixteen. When opportunities on the road diminished, Bob Crosby invited Alexander to Hollywood, where he began leading sessions under his own name and working as an arranger and conductor for others.
After the Second World War, when most large touring bands folded, Alexander exemplified the successful pivot to studio work. He earned particular respect for his skill in underscoring—the unobtrusive incidental music that supports a scene yet is rarely noticed by audiences. In 1950 he published the textbook First Arrangement. Johnny Mandel, later an Oscar- and Grammy-winning composer and arranger, studied the craft with him in the early ’40s. Half a century after the fact, Alexander received a Grammy for “A-Tisket, A-Tasket,” shared with Fitzgerald and Webb; he also collected several Emmys for his television scores and ASCAP’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Albums
