The Airmen of Note is a

jazz ensemble Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, hymns, m ...

that forms part of the

United States Air Force Band The United States Air Force Band is a U.S. military band consisting of 184 active-duty members of the United States Air Force. It is the Air Force's premier musical organization and is based at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, Washington, D.C. Wi ...

. Created in 1950 to carry on the tradition of the Major Glenn Miller Army Air Forces Orchestra, the "Note" is a touring big band that consists of 18 professional jazz musicians. The band has presented jazz performances to audiences throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia and produces broadcasts and recordings, with one release, ''Cool Yule'', reaching number two on the ''

JazzWeek ''JazzWeek'' is a jazz magazine that was co-founded by Ed Trefzger in August 2001. ''Jazzweek'' publishes industry news and a weekly top 100 ranking of music played by jazz radio stations. Collection Method Originally, the company gathered its ...

'' jazz album chart. In 1954, the Airmen of Note played Miller's band in the movie ''

The Glenn Miller Story ''The Glenn Miller Story'' is a 1954 American biographical film about the eponymous American band-leader, directed by Anthony Mann. It stars James Stewart as Miller (in his second non-western collaboration with Mann), alongside June Allyson. ...

''.

Musical style

The

Glenn Miller Alton Glen "Glenn" Miller (March 1, 1904 – December 15, 1944) was an American big band conductor, arranger, composer, trombonist, and recording artist before and during World War II, when he was an officer in the United States Army Air Forces ...

sound has remained central, but the band adopted a more contemporary sound in the 1950s and 1960s largely due to staff arrangers such as

Sammy Nestico Samuel Louis Nistico (February 6, 1924 – January 17, 2021), better known as Sammy Nestico, was an American composer and arranger. Nestico is best known for his arrangements for the Count Basie orchestra. Early life and education Samuel Luigi ...

. Over the past four decades, Mike Crotty and Alan Baylock have taken that role. To augment its writing staff, the Airmen of Note has commissioned works by

Bob Florence Bob Florence (May 20, 1932 – May 15, 2008) was an American pianist, composer, arranger, and big band leader. Career A child prodigy, Florence began piano lessons before he was five years old and at seven gave his first recital. Although hi ...

Bob Mintzer Robert Alan Mintzer (born January 27, 1953) is an American jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and big band leader. Early life Mintzer was born and raised in a Jewish family in New Rochelle, New York, on January 27, 1953. He attended the Inte ...

Rob McConnell Robert Murray Gordon McConnell (14 February 1935 – 1 May 2010) was a Canadian jazz trombonist, composer, and arranger.Jeff Sultanof. Experiencing Big Band Jazz: A Listener's Companion'. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers; 8 November 2017. . p ...

, and Bill Holman. Sammy Nestico and former band member

Tommy Newsom Thomas Penn Newsom (February 25, 1929 – April 28, 2007) was a saxophone player in the NBC Orchestra on ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'', for which he later became assistant director. Newsom was frequently the band's substitute dir ...

have composed works for the group. The group took a further step in diversifying their sound in their 2019 album ''Global Reach'', which featured tunes inspired by cultures from across the world. The United States Air Force Band - Airmen of Note

The United States Air Force Band - Airmen of Note

Music education

Many of its members have backgrounds in music education. They lead clinics at high schools and colleges across the country and have been invited to perform at conventions such as the

International Association of Jazz Educators International Association for Jazz Education (IAJE), formerly a not-for-profit corporation based in Manhattan, Kansas, was a volunteer-run organization that, among other things, allocated student scholarships through its approved festivals program. ...

Music Educators National Conference The National Association for Music Education (NAfME) is an organization of American music educators dedicated to advancing and preserving music education as part of the core curriculum of schools in the United States. Founded in 1907 as the Mus ...

, and The Midwest Clinic.

Guests

The Airmen of Note have recorded and performed with Allen Vizzutti,

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie ( ; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improvisation, improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy El ...

, Joe Williams,

Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (, March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer and pianist. Nicknamed "Sassy" and "List of nicknames of jazz musicians, The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, ...

and Nancy Wilson. In 1990, the Airmen of Note established the Jazz Heritage Series, featuring the "Note" in concert with icons of jazz. Musicians that have joined the "Note" for the program include

Al Jarreau Alwin Lopez Jarreau (March 12, 1940 – February 12, 2017) was an American singer and songwriter. His 1981 album '' Breakin' Away'' spent two years on the ''Billboard'' 200 and is considered one of the finest examples of the Los Angeles pop and ...

Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American Swing music, swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948� ...

Phil Woods Philip Wells Woods (November 2, 1931 – September 29, 2015) was an American jazz alto saxophonist, clarinetist, bandleader, and composer. Biography Woods was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. After inheriting a saxophone at age 12, he began t ...

Kurt Elling Kurt Elling (born November 2, 1967) is an American jazz singer and songwriter. Born in Chicago, Illinois, and raised in Rockford, Elling became interested in music through his father, who was Kapellmeister at a Lutheran church. He sang in cho ...

Kurt Rosenwinkel Kurt Rosenwinkel (born October 28, 1970) is an American jazz guitarist, composer, bandleader, producer, educator, keyboardist and record label owner. Biography Born in Philadelphia to a musical family, Rosenwinkel began taking piano lessons when ...

Paquito D'Rivera Francisco de Jesús Rivera Figueras (born 4 June 1948), known as Paquito D'Rivera, is a Cuban-American alto saxophonist, clarinetist and composer. He was a member of the Cuban songo band Irakere and, since the 1980s, he has established him ...

Nicholas Payton Nicholas Payton (born September 26, 1973) is an American trumpet player and multi-instrumentalist. A Grammy Award winner, he is from New Orleans, Louisiana. He is also a writer who comments on subjects including music, race, politics, and life i ...

Gordon Goodwin Gordon L. Goodwin (born December 30, 1954) is an American pianist, saxophonist, composer, arranger, and conductor. He is the leader of Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band. He has won three Daytime Emmy Awards, four Grammy Awards, and 25 Grammy nomina ...

, and

Karrin Allyson Karrin Allyson (pronounced ''KAR-in''; born Karrin Allyson Schoonover on July 27, 1963) is an American jazz vocalist. She has been nominated for five Grammy Awards and has received positive reviews from several prominent sources, including the ' ...

. Every year, the Jazz Heritage Series is broadcast over National Public Radio, independent jazz radio stations, satellite radio, and the internet.

Discography

* ''Surprising Sounds of the Airmen of Note'' (1966) * ''Big Band Sound '67'' (1967) * ''In Concert Sound'' (1967) * ''Airmen of Note & Friends'' (1968) * ''Here Come the Airmen of Note'' (1968) * ''Rock Jazz'' (1970) * ''With a Little Help From Our Friends'' (1972) * ''Two Sides of the Airmen of Note'' (1973) * ''Come Out Swingin'' (1973) * ''Airmen of Note and Sarah Vaughan'' (1974) * ''Brothers in Blue'' (1974) * ''New Spirit'' (1977) * ''Today!'' (1978) * ''Just in Time'' (1978) * ''Live from Mobile'' (1979) * ''Just the Way We Are'' (1980) * ''Noel'' (1981) * ''Better Than Ever'' (1983) * ''Bone Voyage'' (1984) * ''Crystal Gardens'' (1985) * ''Somewhere Out There'' (1986) * ''Jazz Heritage: Old, New, Borrowed & Blue'' (1989) * ''Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town'' (1991) * ''Children of the Night'' (1993) * ''The Glenn Miller Tradition'' (1994/1982) * ''Blues & Beyond'' (1996) * ''Legacy'' (1997) * ''Christmas Time Is Here'' (1998) * ''Invitation'' (1999) * ''Let's Dance'' (2000) * ''Fifty Years of the Airmen of Note'' (2000) * ''¡Tiempo Latino!'' ''(A Celebration of Latin Jazz)'' (2004) * ''A Holiday Note from Home'' (2006) * ''Keep 'em Flying'' (2006) * ''Out in Front'' (2006) * ''Airmen of Note Live!'' (2007) * ''Cool Yule'' (2009) * ''Airmen of Note "60"'' (2010) * ''Compositions'' (2012) * ''Airmen of Note'' (2016) * ''Veterans of Jazz'' (2017) * Best of the Jazz Heritage Series, Vol. 1 (2018) * ''Global Reach'' (2019) * ''AIR Power!'' (2019) * ''Out Of The Clouds'' (2023)

References

External links