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| On
February 12, 1966, John Wilson wrote in The
New York Times:
One
band that is not likely to leave New York is
The Jazz Band, an 18-piece group led by Thad
Jones, a former Count Basie trumpeter, and Mel
Lewis, a drummer who has served with Woody
Herman, Stan (Kenton) and Benny Goodman…This
all-star band (it includes Bob Brookmeyer,
Hank Jones, Richard Davis, Snooky Young and
Jerome Richardson, among others) ripped
through Thad Jones’ provocative,
down-to-earth arrangements with the surging
joy that one remembers in the early Basie band
or Woody Herman’s first Herd. Those were
young bands whose skills sometimes could not
keep up with their desires. But these are old
pros, having a wonderful time and rising to
each other’s challenges, even to such
adventures as three-part improvisation… |
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What
was obvious to everyone present at the
Vanguard on the night of February 7, 1966 was
that an exceptional ensemble had been born.
What no one could have predicted was that the
Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra would become
one of the most acclaimed and innovative big
bands in jazz history, that it would tour
extensively throughout three continents, and
that its offspring, the Vanguard Jazz
Orchestra, would still be in residence on
Monday nights twenty-eight years later.
Bill
Kirchner - February, 1994 |
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| For
over four decades the Vanguard
Jazz Orchestra has been committed
to engaging audiences in jazz and related
American music experiences. The orchestra
serves as a creative outlet for some of the
nation's foremost performers, composers, and
arrangers. One of the driving forces behind
the longevity and artistic excellence of this
ensemble is a commitment to the original Thad
Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra precepts of sound
and the nurturing and encouragement of
creativity and experimentation in the
creators, performers and listeners of jazz. |
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| Sixteen
as One Music Inc., a
not-for-profit 501(c)(3), was created by the
Vanguard Jazz Orchestra to promote the
development and growth of jazz music through
education and community outreach programs. The
goals of this endeavor are: To provide
world-wide performances, workshops, lectures
and symposia about jazz and related musical
genres; To commission new arrangements and
original compositions for jazz orchestra; To
document historical and innovative projects
through audio and video recordings; To
initiate partnerships and collaborations with
cultural, education and corporate
institutions; To help build and sustain an
international jazz audience; To foster and
promote jazz education in schools and
under-served communities. |
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| History
of the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra: The
Vanguard Jazz Orchestra is the current title
for a band that began life as the Thad
Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra in 1966 and has
performed continuously ever since.
The story is
familiar but bears repeating that in 1966
cornetist, composer, arranger, Thad Jones and
drummer Mel Lewis founded a band in New York.
Having settled in New York after leaving their
respective touring jobs with Basie and Kenton,
Thad and Mel along with many of their
colleagues needed an outlet for their creative
energies and relief from the tedium of the
studio work. With a handful of arrangements
they approached legendary club owner Max
Gordon and were booked at the Village Vanguard
for 3 Mondays in February. Critical acclaim,
awards and international success followed but
in 1979, tired of frequent traveling and the
economic uncertainty that even great jazz
musicians endure in America, Thad left the
band to accept leadership of the Danish Radio
Orchestra in Copenhagen. |
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| Mel
decided to continue the band now billed as Mel
Lewis and the Jazz Orchestra and
enlisted the talents of his old friend and
former band member Bob Brookmeyer who,
miraculously was just returning to active
playing and composing in New York. The band
not only survived but with Brookmeyer’s
writing continued the innovation and influence
that Thad and Mel had began. Bob moved on to
other projects and ultimately also settled in
Europe, the new material coming from within
the band now. In 1990 the band would endure a
terrible blow when Mel Lewis died after a 5
year battle with cancer. For the members, all
of whom had been there 5 years and several
over 10, losing Mel was a deep family tragedy,
for great bands invariably become families.
They are also teams; and in this spirit
decided to continue the band as a cooperative
effort. ( When asked who was
"fronting" the band one of the
veterans was heard snapping "...the
music".) |
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| So
three weeks have become a permanent gig
spanning over three decades and another name
change to; the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra.
Several of the current key members played for
Thad, so the original precepts of sound and
swinging are proudly held and displayed while
the other original precepts of creativity and
experimentation are nurtured and encouraged.
The Village Vanguard is still a great place to
be on a Monday night no matter which side of
the bandstand you’re on. |
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