Carl Hilding "Doc" Severinsen (born July 7, 1927) is an American pop and jazz trumpeter. He is best known for leading the NBC Orchestra on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
Severinsen was born in Arlington, Oregon, the son of Minnie Mae and Carl Severinsen, who was a dentist. He was nicknamed "Little Doc" after his father, and had originally wanted to play the trombone. But the senior Severinsen, a gifted amateur violinist, urged him to study the violin. The younger Severinsen insisted on the trombone, but had to settle for the only horn available in Arlington's small music store — a trumpet. A week later, with the help of his father and a manual of instructions, the seven-year-old was so good that he was invited to join the high school band. At the age of twelve, Little Doc won the Music Educator's National Contest and, while still in high school, was hired to go on the road with the Ted Fio Rito Orchestra. However, his stay with the group was cut short by the draft. He served in the Army during World War II.
In the 1950s, during Steve Allen's tenure as host of NBC-TV's Tonight, Doc Severinsen played first trumpet in the band, which was directed by Skitch Henderson. Severinsen took over as bandleader in 1967, and soon became noted for his flashy, trendy stage wardrobe.
Under Severinsen, the Tonight Show's NBC Orchestra was the most visible big band in America. Severinsen took the opportunity to update many well-known swing and jazz standards for the show's audiences, often introducing new listeners to classics by Cole Porter, Dizzy Gillespie, and others.
Severinsen would sometimes substitute for Ed McMahon as announcer and sidekick. Although adept at comic interplay, Severinsen took his role as band leader on The Tonight Show seriously. The band played both incidental music for comedy sketches and guest introductions, and intermission music during station breaks. Severinsen campaigned for the band to get featured slots during the show, but for the most part the band was seen on camera during the frequent "Stump the Band" segments, Audience members would challenge the band with obscure song titles, and Severinsen and his crew would attempt to play something appropriate to the titles. Severinsen often cried, "Key of E!", his signal for the band to strike up a western theme, and then he would enthusiastically sing a country-flavored nonsense song.
Severinsen continued as bandleader until Carson's retirement in 1992.
During the 1950s and 1960s, Severinsen put out a number of albums of jazz standards, over which he performed very melodic solos. Severinsen certainly had a well-developed high-note range with an incredible amount of control and melodic sense. In the 1960s, Severinsen also recorded with the Clarke/Boland Big Band and the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis band. Severinsen was also the second trumpeter whose recording of the fanfare "Abblasen," composed by Gottfried Reiche, has been used as the theme for the CBS News program Sunday Morning.
During his years with the Tonight Show and afterwards, Severinsen released albums that had a pop-rock basis, some of which had electronic instrumentation components, such as Brass Roots, Good Medicine and Facets. These albums had varying degrees of acceptance by the public.
The Tonight Show Orchestra recorded several albums as a group.
Severinsen arranged the score for the nudist-themed cult film Nude on the Moon (1961).
Several recent recordings feature him playing classical trumpet repertoire. In addition, Severinsen co-wrote the Top 10 hit single "Stop and Smell the Roses" with singer-songwriter Mac Davis.
Severinsen was the principal pops conductor for several American orchestras during and after his tenure on the Tonight Show. His first was with the Phoenix Symphony in 1983. He held similar positions with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, the Minnesota Orchestra, and the Pacific Symphony Orchestra. He retired from active conducting in 2007, and was named Pops Conductor Emeritus in Milwaukee and Pops Conductor Laureate in Minnesota. Severinsen was also Distinguished Visiting Professor of Music and Katherine K. Herberger Heritage Chair for Visiting Artists at Arizona State University School of Music in 2001-2002. He has also conducted the New York Pops at the world-famous Carnegie Hall in New York City.
He lives in San Miguel, Mexico with his wife, Emily. His adult children are Nancy Severinsen, Cindy Reinhard and Allen Severinsen. He has three grandchildren in New Jersey (Blaire, Gray, and Richard Reinhard), all of them musicians. Blaire Reinhard is a professional session singer and has composed for several television shows and films. Along with Gray, she formed the soul/funk/rock band known as "The Blaire Reinhard Band."
Doc owns Severinsen Custom Trumpets, manufacturer of custom-made horns, including his Destino line of trumpets (and he play-tests each one). Severinsen also enjoys cooking and collecting American art.
