A talented and advanced improviser, Anthony Ortega had his first major job with Earle Spencer's Orchestra in 1947. After serving in the Army, he was with Lionel Hampton's big band (1951-1953), including Hamp's ill-fated European tour. Ortega played with Milt Buckner, led his own group in Los Angeles, visited Scandinavia in 1954 (which resulted in an LP for Vantage), and then in 1955 relocated to New York. He had stints with Nat Pierce (1956-1958), Dizzy Gillespie, Maynard Ferguson, Paul Bley, and the Quincy Jones Big Band (1960). From then on, he often led his own group, moving back to Los Angeles by the mid-'60s and working with the big bands of Don Ellis and Gerald Wilson. As a leader, in addition to the Vantage album, Ortega recorded sets for Bethlehem, Herald, Revelation (including a 1967 session that was reissued on CD by Hat Art), and Discovery (1978); the latter featured his wife, Mona Orbeek Ortega, on piano and vibes. Anthony Ortega remained active into the last years of his life, regularly appearing at clubs in his adopted hometown of Encinitas, California; he died on October 30, 2022, at the age of 94. ~ Scott Yanow