Hometown History
A Look At Jamestown In The Era Of Big BandsBy Karen E. Livsey
Article Photos
The Hometown History column is presented by the Fenton History Center and The Post-Journal. Each Tuesday, a distinct item from the Fenton History Center collections or archival special collections will be featured. Learn about your hometown history through parts of its past.
If one of the items featured brings back some memories or brings up a question, please contact the Fenton History Center at 664-6256 or information@fentonhistorycenter.org to share your memory or get an answer to your question.
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At first glance the trumpet in the collection of the Fenton History Center doesn't look quite right. To most non-musicians, it does not look like the trumpets most often seen in the United States.
The instrument does not have the three piston-type valves that the musician uses to change the sound of the instrument. Instead, this trumpet has rotary valves. This is the type more often seen in Europe or among some of the professional trumpet players in the United States. It is an older style than the piston valve trumpet.
Knowing this, it is not surprising to find that the trumpet was made in Italy. The maker's name engraved on the trumpet is A. Rampone of Milano. The Rampone family made musical instruments from the 1850s through the 20th century. By 1920, a merger had taken place so another name was added to the company logo. It is most likely that this trumpet was made before 1920 since only A. Rampone is on it.
Also engraved on the trumpet is ''The Tosi Music Co., Boston, Mass.'' This music company was established in Boston before 1915 and just recently went out of business. The company specialized in Italian music during the early years.
Ray Triscari donated this Italian-made trumpet to the Fenton History Center. The previous owner of the trumpet had been his father, Joseph Triscari, who from 1913 to 1917 was the director of the Imperial Band in Jamestown. At the death of Joseph in 1925, the trumpet was passed on to Ray. The Imperial Band was started by a group of Italian musicians who wanted to play for the fun of it. According to Rosella Agostine's book, ''Something about the Italians in Jamestown,'' the Imperial Band began in 1910 and lasted until 1940 when it disbanded.
Joseph Triscari taught music. He had three sons who became professional musicians during the 1930s through the next few decades. His sons, Joe, Mike and Ray, all played with the Gene Krupa Orchestra and many of the other big bands in the 1940s and 1950s. Ray, a trumpet player, appeared in more than 100 movies during his later career as a studio musician in Hollywood.
Throughout the years, many of the Big Bands visited the Jamestown area and played at the Casino in Bemus Point, the Pier Ballroom at Celoron Park and other venues in the area.
In addition, local musical groups played throughout the area, and listening and dancing to the Big Bands and the music made popular by them were popular entertainments before, during and after World War II.
In mid-February, the Fenton History Center will open an exhibit, ''In the Mood,'' recalling the days of the Big Bands and local bands that provided excitement and entertainment for the local area. This is some of the same music probably played by Ray Triscari on the rotary valve trumpet.
If anyone has further information or photographs about the Triscaris, the Imperial Band or the many other musical groups that played in this area from 1910 to 1960, please share them with the Fenton History Center by contacting the staff at 664-6256.
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The purpose of the Fenton History Center is to gather and teach about southern Chautauqua County's history through artifacts, ephemeral and oral histories, and other pieces of the past.
If you would like to donate to the collections or support the work of the Fenton History Center, call 664-6256 or visit the center at 67 Washington St., just south of the Washington Street Bridge.
Visit www.fentonhistorycenter.org for more information on upcoming events, education programs and other happenings at the Fenton History Center.
