The Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra (SJMO) is the national

jazz orchestra A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

of the United States. It is based at the National Museum of American History in

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, where it is the orchestra-in-residence. The SJMO was founded in 1990 with the dual mission of performing and preserving American jazz masterworks and raising public awareness and understanding of the genre.

History

An Act of Congress established the orchestra in 1990 with an appropriation to the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

of $242,000. In 1991

Gunther Schuller Gunther Alexander Schuller (November 22, 1925June 21, 2015) was an American composer, conductor, horn player, author, historian, educator, publisher, and jazz musician. Biography and works Early years Schuller was born in Queens, New York City ...

and David Baker became the original artistic and musical directors of the orchestra, which began performing in 1991. Five years later Baker became its sole artistic and musical director. The inaugural season, jointly conducted by Schuller and Baker, consisted of six weekends of free concerts for which the conductors collected or commissioned transcriptions of the original arrangements of the works to be presented and provided the orchestra's members with tapes of the original performances. David Baker (far left) leading the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra

David Baker (far left) leading the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra

Since 1991 the SJMO has performed in nine foreign countries and twenty-six U.S. states, in addition to numerous free concerts in Washington, D.C. Appearances outside their base at the National Museum of American History have included a performance at the

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in 1993 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the

Newport Jazz Festival The Newport Jazz Festival is an annual American multi-day jazz music festival held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island. Elaine Lorillard established the festival in 1954, and she and husband Louis Lorillard financed it for many years. They hir ...

; the Cultural Olympiad at the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

in Atlanta, Georgia; and a 1999 tour of the United States to present concerts in tribute to the 100th anniversary of Duke Ellington's birth that included a concert performance at the Monterey Jazz Festival featuring Ellington's ''Suite Thursday'', which was commissioned for the festival. Among the orchestra's notable performances under Baker's leadership outside the United States was a concert in

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in 2008, when it played at the

Cairo Opera House The Cairo Opera House ( ar, دار الأوبرا المصرية, ''Dār el-Opera el-Masreyya''; literally "Egyptian Opera House"), part of Cairo's National Cultural Centre, is the main performing arts venue in the Egyptian capital. Home to mos ...

, the Alexandra Opera House, and at the

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. In 2012, at the age of 80, Baker concluded his tenure as the SJMO's artistic director, and was named maestro emeritus in December 2012. The occasion was marked by a special concert consisting entirely of Baker's compositions. Charlie Young, a jazz saxophonist and educator at

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a Private university, private, University charter#Federal, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, classifie ...

, became artistic director after Baker's retirement.

Members

As of 2015, the orchestra's principal members were: Artistic and Musical Director *Charlie Young Executive Producer *Ken Kimery Reeds *Steve Williams *Bill Mulligan *Scott Silbert *Luis Hernandez *Leigh Pilzer Trumpets *Liesl Whitaker *Tom Williams *Kenny Rittenhouse Trombones *Jennifer Krupa *Matt Niess *Bill Holmes *Jeff Cortazzo Piano *Tony Nalker Bass *James King *Amy Shook Drums *Ken Kimery

Discography

The orchestra's recordings include: *''Bernstein Reimagined'' *''Tribute to a Generation: A Salute to the Big Bands'' *''Tri-C Jazzfest 2001'' *''Piano Grand! A Smithsonian Celebration'' *''Big Band Treasures Live'' *''Live at MCG''

References

External links

*
"Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra: A Tribute to John Levy"
Smithsonian's official YouTube channel {{Smithsonian museums Musical groups established in 1990 American jazz ensembles Smithsonian Institution