"When Gabe Baltazar Jr., the most influential jazz artist in the history of Hawaii, died on June 12, it marked the end of an era. He was 92. Baltazar’s family confirmed he’d been under hospice care at his home in Waialua. I got to know Baltazar in the late 1970s and early ’80s, when jazz was thriving at night spots in Honolulu. I had started hosting a jazz show on KGU Radio, where he’d often stop by to talk story. By then, he was already a local hero. In the 1960s, Baltazar got his big break playing lead alto saxophone in the Stan Kenton Orchestra, and toured internationally; his signature tune with the band was “Stairway To The Stars.” In 1973, millions saw and heard him play a flute solo in an Aloha From Hawaii satellite concert with Elvis." Heidi Chang remembers influential jazz artist Gabe Baltazar (November 1, 1929 – June 12, 2022). Read the full article here >> https://www.jazziz.com/requiem-for-a-hawaii-jazz-king-remembering-gabe-baltazar/ #jazz #gabebaltazar #music #musician #rip #hawaii