Carmen Leggio was an American jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 musician. He played tenor saxophone

Saxophone

The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...

.

Leggio was born in Tarrytown

Tarrytown, New York

Tarrytown is a village in the town of Greenburgh in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, about north of midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by a stop on the Metro-North Hudson Line...

, New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 and died there on April 17, 2009. In his final years, he performed in various clubs and restaurants throughout Westchester

Westchester County, New York

Westchester County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. Westchester covers an area of and has a population of 949,113 according to the 2010 Census, residing in 45 municipalities...

, like the Red Hat Bistro in Irvington. In 2006 he recorded Three Legends Live At The Division Street Grill with Bucky Pizzarelli

Bucky Pizzarelli

John Paul "Bucky" Pizzarelli is an American Jazz guitarist and banjoist, and the father of jazz guitarist John Pizzarelli and upright bassist Martin Pizzarelli. Pizzarelli has also worked for NBC as a staffman for Dick Cavett and also ABC with Bobby Rosengarden in...

 and Bill Crow

Bill Crow

Bill Crow is an American jazz bassist and author.Crow was born in Othello, Washington in the United States of America, but spent his childhood in Kirkland, Washington. After high school, he briefly played sousaphone at the University of Washington in Seattle...

 at one of these dates. On April 17, 2009, he suffered a heart attack in front of his home in Tarrytown, and died later that day.

From Leggio's interview:

"I quit high school, because I knew I was meant to be a musician," he said. "But my father was so angry that he didn't speak to me for years. On his deathbed, he admitted I was right to leave school."

That admission came after Leggio had played with Woody Herman

Woody Herman

Woodrow Charles Herman , known as Woody Herman, was an American jazz clarinetist, alto and soprano saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading various groups called "The Herd," Herman was one of the most popular of the 1930s and '40s bandleaders...

, Benny Goodman

Benny Goodman

Benjamin David “Benny” Goodman was an American jazz and swing musician, clarinetist and bandleader; widely known as the "King of Swing".In the mid-1930s, Benny Goodman led one of the most popular musical groups in America...

, Maynard Ferguson

Maynard Ferguson

Maynard Ferguson was a Canadian jazz musician and bandleader. He came to prominence playing in Stan Kenton's orchestra, before forming his own band in 1957...

, Gene Krupa

Gene Krupa

Gene Krupa was an American jazz and big band drummer and composer, known for his highly energetic and flamboyant style.-Biography:...

, Buddy Rich

Buddy Rich

Bernard "Buddy" Rich was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. Rich was billed as "the world's greatest drummer" and was known for his virtuosic technique, power, groove, and speed.-Early life:...

, Dizzy Gillespie

Dizzy Gillespie

John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...

, Mel Lewis

Mel Lewis

Mel Lewis was an American drummer, jazz musician and band leader. He was born Melvin Sokoloff in Buffalo, New York to Russian immigrant parents....

 and Thad Jones

Thad Jones

Thaddeus Joseph Jones was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader.-Biography:Thad Jones was born in Pontiac, Michigan to a musical family of ten . Thad Jones was a self taught musician, performing professionally by the age of sixteen...

 and Doc Severinson. There have also been television shows, movies, the Newport Jazz Festival, Birdland and, yes, Carnegie Hall.

Carmen Leggio was not very particular of his saxophone. He was playing the same instrument since 1961, a Gold Medal SML

Marigaux

Marigaux, also known as SML is a French manufacturer of high quality woodwind instruments.Marigaux is considered one of the world's best oboe-makers...

 made in France by Strasser, Marigaux & Lemaire. And the same mouthpiece

Mouthpiece (brass)

On brass instruments the mouthpiece is the part of the instrument which is placed upon the player's lips. The purpose of the mouthpiece is a resonator, which passes vibration from the lips to the column of air contained within the instrument, giving rise to the standing wave pattern of vibration in...

, a Selmer

Selmer

Selmer can refer to:People*Elisabeth Schweigaard Selmer, Norwegian judge and politician*Ernst S. Selmer, Norwegian mathematician*Ernst W. Selmer, Norwegian phoneticist*Christian August Selmer, Norwegian lawyer and statesmanOther...

 D:

"I don't know much about horns and mouthpieces. A friend of mine got me to the right sax and set-up and I just stayed with it because it worked for me. A sax is like a pair of shoes. If you get a pair that are comfortable, you can learn how to do any kind of dance in them."

Select discography

• A Sax For Christmas (2007, Leggio Records)
• Sax After Midnight (1996, The Good Music Record Company)

With Bill Crow and Bucky Pizzarelli

• Three Legends Live At The Division Street Grill (2006, Leggio Records)

With Donnie O'Brien

• Donnie O´Brien Meets Manhattan Swing: In a Basie Mood (2004, Arbors Records
  Arbors Records
  Arbors Records is an independent American jazz record label based in Clearwater, Florida. It was founded by the family team of Mat and Rachel Domber in 1989, initially devoted to the recordings of their friend Rick Fay.-History:...
  
  )

With Bill Crow

• From Birdland to Broadway: The Bill Crow Quartet (1996, Venus Records)
• Jazz Anecdotes: The Bill Crow Quartet (1997, Venus Records)