How were the Jazz Ambassadors received in the Soviet Union during the Cold War?
Benny Goodman went first. He was well received. I went much later. They wanted us to play in stadiums, and I said, and my manager said, “You know, we don’t play in stadiums. We play in the best auditoriums or concert halls.” And they said, “It will be so mobbed that there’s no concert hall that’s gonna hold us.” Well, all 10 concerts sold out in two hours. That’s what they thought of jazz. Q: How big were the audiences? A: Usually around 3,000 people, till we got to Leningrad, where we requested a 3,000-seat auditorium. After the second night, they said we have to move at least to 7,000. The people are demanding that we move to a larger hall. So we did move to a larger hall, and I said, “How are you going to advertise that we’re moving tomorrow night?” He said, “Don’t worry.” It was full every night. How they found out, I don’t know. Q: What do you recall from your tour of Poland? A: When we played in Poland in 1958, I had gone to Chopin’s home, and I had seen the statue that the Nazis
