Kenny Wheeler discusses his start in music.

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Kenny Wheeler discusses the Dankworth Orchestra.

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Kenny Wheeler discusses playing music versus recording.

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Q: “Ken, you’re not the most aggressive person, I can’t see you going up and knocking on doors and saying ‘hey, I’m a good trumpet player, give me a job!’ – I don’t think you would do that. How did it all come about, how did you start playing? Did you just work in with some little, local bands or what?”

A: “What do you mean, when I first got to England? Oh, the dance band was still in full flight when I arrived, you know. So there was all kinds of big bands on the road, and they all had three or four trumpets. So there was plenty of work around. And they had this street where they used to collect every Monday afternoon. All the musicians in London would just go and stand there. It's like a marketplace, you know, and there’s a lot of wheeling and dealing and hustling going on, but even if you didn’t push yourself or didn’t say anything, eventually somebody would say, “Hey, I need four trumpets, do you know anybody?” You know, and somebody would say, “I think that guy there plays the trumpet or something so.”