Results for "band/orchestra"

Straight Ahead

Out of Detroit's lively jazz scene, which has produced some of the best musicians in the world, comes the ground breaking all female jazz group, Straight Ahead. A group of strong, inventive instrumentalists and vocalists, they have shown themselves to be powerful and imaginative composers and arrangers.

Widely recognized for their eclectic and soulful approach to creating music, the Straight Ahead sound ranges comfortably from mainstream jazz R&B ballads, avant-garde to Brazilian funk. Their live performances are a dynamic celebration of power and joy. The ladies delight in changing textures, moods, and tempos and love to throw in the occasional musical joke!

Spyro Gyra

s Spyro Gyra contemplates upcoming milestones to its storied career, it’s tempting to fall back on the Grateful Dead lyric, “What a long strange trip it’s been” to describe it. During that time, they have performed over five thousand shows, released twenty-nine albums (not counting “Best Of…” compilations) selling over ten million albums while also achieving one platinum and two gold albums. These upcoming milestones include 2012, which will be thirty-five years since their first album release and 2014 will be forty years as a band. They show little sign of wanting to slow down either, gaining Grammy® nominations for each of their last four albums. Born in Brooklyn, bandleader Jay Beckenstein grew up listening to the music of Louis Armstrong, Charlie Parker, Sonny Rollins and Dizzy Gillespie, and started playing the saxophone at age seven

Noble Sissle

Active since: July 10

Noble Sissle was one of African-American music's unsung tradition-builders. As half of the duo that composed “Shuffle Along,” he helped to bring creativity to a new level on the Broadway stage. As a bandleader, Sissle nurtured the careers of vocalist Lena Horne and other important musicians, and he participated fundamentally in the popularization of jazz and pop in Europe. Sissle was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on July 10, 1889. His father was a minister and church organist, and his first musical appearances came as a boy soprano in a Methodist church choir. Sissle studied music in the public schools of Indianapolis and Cleveland, Ohio, where his family moved for a time

Lalo Schifrin

Born: June 21, 1932

Lalo Schifrin is a true Renaissance man. As a pianist, composer and conductor, he is equally at home conducting a symphony orchestra, performing at an international jazz festival, scoring a film or television show, or creating works for the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, the London Philharmonic, and even The Sultan of Oman.

As a young man in his native Argentina, Lalo Schifrin received classical training in music, and also studied law. He came from a musical family, and his father, Luis Schifrin, was the concertmaster of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Buenos Aires at the Teatro Colon.

The Rolling Stones

Active since: 1962

By the time the Rolling Stones began calling themselves “The World's Greatest Rock & Roll Band” in the late '60s, they had already staked out an impressive claim on the title. As the self-consciously dangerous alternative to the bouncy Mersey beat of the Beatles in the British Invasion, the Stones had pioneered the gritty, hard-driving blues-based rock & roll that came to define hard rock. With assured front man Mick Jagger combining with the guitar talents of Keith Richards and Brian Jones, backed by the solid rhythm section of bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts, the Stones became the breakout band of the British blues scene, eclipsing many others. The Stones had an impressive and prolific output of popular hits during the 1960’s with a string of songs which are considered classics and standards

Bembeya Jazz National

Bembeya Jazz National - band/ensemble from Guinea. The year 2002 was a significant one,it marks the first new recording from Guinea's Bembeya Jazz in 14 years. It is also the started an exciting new chapter in the life of one of Africa's greatest dance bands. Bembeya Jazz's signature four-guitar section is crowned by the sterling lead guitar work of Sekou Bembeya Diabaté-a.k.a. "Diamond Fingers." The band's three singers still deliver timeless vocal harmonies topped by the sweet, high tenor of Salifou Kaba. Two of the three players in Bembeya's punchy brass section-Dory Clement on tenor sax, and chef d'orchestre Mohamed Kaba on trumpet-joined Bembeya back in the 1960s, and their lines still blare with the pride and enthusiasm of Guinea's first decade of independence

BeatleJazz

If one loves melodies and a blend of great harmonies with exciting rhythmic explorations, one will love Beatlejazz live or on CD. Brian Melvin and Dave Kikoski create a beautiful new standard for the music of The Beatles. Like the great modern jazz trios of Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett, "Beatlejazz" represents this type of clarity and consciousness in their playing. As the jazz artists of the past always paid homage to the popular standards of their days, Beatlejazz take their hats off to one of the greatest body of music ever written. All four Beatlejazz CDs have been in top 10 of USA radio charts.

Acoustic Alchemy

With the release of This Way, Acoustic Alchemy’s first album under Higher Octave/Narada Jazz’s association with Blue Note Records, guitarists Greg Carmichael and Miles Gilderdale celebrate a remarkable two decades since 1987’s Red Dust and Spanish Lace established the British ensemble as an ever evolving, powerhouse force in contemporary jazz. Their thousands of fans around the world may be feeling nostalgic, but the duo--while keeping their trademark acoustic guitar synergy front and center--is clearly committed to forging ahead, following the laid back pop-soul vibe of American/English (2005) with their most aggressive and swinging, hard rocking and artfully jazzy disc to date

Mace Francis Orchestra

Active since: August 23, 1978

The Mace Francis Orchestra (MFO) was formed late in 2004 by band-leader and composer Mace Francis to experiment with composition, in the style of the great modern big bands lead by Bob Brookmeyer, Thad Jones, Bill Holman and Maria Schneider. The result has been the coming together of some of Perth’s finest up and coming musician’s and composers to create exciting new music for big band.

In a very short time MFO has developed their own individual sound through a residency at the Brisbane Hotel since the start of 2005, and through special projects including a concert in August called “Chinese Whispers”. This concert, part of the Jazz Windows series at the WA Academy of Performing Arts, involved eight West Australian composers collaborating to write a new body of music especially for MFO.

Brown Baby Girl

The foundation for Brown Baby Girl, the inspired collaboration of Jamie Finegan and Lorenda Robinson, was laid in the fall of 1998 when Lorenda and Jamie wrote their first song together “Ignorant Bliss”. “Ignorant Bliss” was used as the title track on the soundtrack for the (Fisheye and Tonné Productions) film (of the same name). With Jamie serving as the creative facilitator, the song’s lyrics and melody, which up to that point, lived only in Lorenda’s head were given life. Jamie is a musician’s musician. Son of Grammy nominated composer/ arranger Bill Finegan, He composes, arranges, and plays trumpet and piano