5 Minutes That Will Make You Love Big Band Jazz

New York Times, 2024

“Hello and Goodbye” by Bob Brookmeyer with Mel Lewis and the Jazz Orchestra

I was bitten by the big band bug early on. Standing in front of a big band, feeling the music surge toward you with the force of a sonic freight train, sends a charge of electricity through your body like a lightning strike.

I felt it when I first discovered the valve trombonist Bob Brookmeyer’s composing and arranging from his notable tenures with the bands of Gerry Mulligan and Thad Jones/Mel Lewis, but it was upon hearing “Hello and Goodbye” for the first time that my world shifted. The piece embodies every aspect of big band that we love — energy, excitement, surprise, swing (thank you, Mel Lewis!) — but through Bob’s pencil, these elements are synthesized with innovation, artistry and sophistication. “Hello and Goodbye” (and the album as a whole) revolutionized contemporary big band composition, liberating form and harmony from prior constraints and influencing nearly every modern big band composer since 1980. Bob made writing for big band “serious business” while still approachable and enjoyable for all, by way of his fluidity of phrase, tongue-in-cheek humor, and natural gift for creating a melody that will leave you humming for days.

Creative growth through self-imposed challenges

ISJAC Artist Blog, 2024

When considering a topic for this blog, I came across a Facebook post from Jim McNeely – a compositional North Star for so many of us, and my preeminent DownBeat Magazine Double Blindfold Test sparring partner – reflecting on his experience as Chief Conductor and Composer-In-Residence with the HR Big Band in Frankfurt (congratulations on this monumental chapter of your illustrious career, Jim!). When referencing the sheer mass of music he had written for the band during his tenure, and how the band had evolved under his tutelage, Jim commented, “the way to grow is to meet challenges.” This statement stood out to me because I have recently been thinking about the ways in which we, as composers/arrangers, can challenge ourselves to grow artistically, evolve creatively, and keep striving for the development of our own individual voices.

Double Blindfold Test: Jim McNeely & Ryan Truesdell

DownBeat, 2022

During this year’s International Society of Jazz Arrangers and Composers symposium in Austin, Texas, celebrated jazz orchestrators Jim McNeely and Ryan Truesdell administered the DownBeat Blindfold Test to each other, onstage in front of a live audience. In advance of the event, each artist chose four tracks for his counterpart to identify over the course of the test, for a total of eight musical selections. The spirited exchange, effectively DownBeat’s first Double Blindfold Test, kicked off with a McNeely pick, followed by a Truesdell pick, alternating back-and-forth for the duration. Everyone at ISJAC — a friendly, hard-working and diverse community that is seeking to expand its membership — knows each other on a first-name basis.

GIL EVANS: ISJAC HALL OF FAME INDUCTION

ISJAC , 2021

 Bob Brookmeyer once shared with me the admiration and envy he felt for the G minor triad that begins Gil Evans’ arrangement of “Blues for Pablo” on Miles Ahead. Bob marveled over Gil’s ability to make a simple triad sound mysterious and airy, while somehow infinitely more complex than just three pitches. Bob was determined to recreate this sound in one of his own charts and even tried to copy this triad exactly, but every experiment failed at reproducing the sound Gil had achieved. In the end, Bob said, “I realized that was Gil’s G minor triad. It belongs to him and him alone.” 

Birth of the Cool: Back Where It All Begins

JazzTimes, 2020

Composer and arranger Ryan Truesdell re-examines the heady scene that gave birth to this undeniable classic from Miles Davis:

When an artist embarks on the creation of a new work, few have the ability to predict the impact the final product will have on the public or its effect on the culture at large. My teacher, Bob Brookmeyer, would often say that if you sit down with the intention to write the next masterpiece, you will inevitably encounter failure. Does every artist hope for their work to be considered a “masterpiece”? Of course. But in order for the work to evolve truthfully and organically, one must approach it with humility and trust, allowing it to develop as an expression of emotion or an exploration of a hypothesis. The work’s societal impact and significance is out of the artist’s hands—and will only be determined over time.

The Signature Sound of Gil Evans

DownBeat, 2016

Since the first time I listed to Porgy & Bess, Gil Evans’ celebrated collaboration with Miles Davis, Gil’s music has instilled in me a sense of awe, inspiration and, at time, utter confusion. For years I collected every album I could, trying to fill my ears with every note, sound and color Gil crated.

Artist’s Choice: Ryan Truesdell on the Hidden Gems of Gil Evans

JazzTimes, 2015

Many listeners’ knowledge of Gil Evans begins and ends with his collaborations with Miles Davis. With 25 years of music on either side of those historic albums, there is a wealth of Evans’ genius that is often overlooked. By delving into his music from before and after those seminal collaborations, including material for other artists, we can more fully appreciate the scope of his composing and arranging style. I hope these “hidden gems” inspire you to explore more of Gil Evans’ remarkable discography.