Jim Torok - clarinet & soprano sax sub
We were pleased to have Jim fill in on reeds at the Pratt Ice Cream Social on May 30, 2014.
Jim is well-known to Twin Cities traditional-jazz aficionados as the leader of the Pig's Eye Jass Band, the longest continually active group of the genre in the area. Virtually everybody involved in early jazz around here has had the pleasure of working with Jim over the years, either with the "Pigs" or with any of several other groups. Most members of Lazy Does It are either regulars with the Pigs or occasional substitutes.
Jim is a retired physicist. Besides playing clarinet and sax, he is an accomplished cornetist.
=====================================
Jim Torok died in November, 2016, at the age of 80. His death is a tragic loss of a great musician and, more importantly, a wonderful person. For half a century, Jim shared his music with others, not merely as a performer but also as an enthusiastic proponent of the traditional-jazz idiom and as a mentor to many musicians getting started in the field. Most of the Lazy Doers owe much of their success as jazz musicians to the influence of Jim Torok. The generous support, encouragement, and tutelage of this kind and gentle man will always be remembered by the many musicians who had the pleasure of knowing him and working with him. He is sorely missed.