Cleveland Jazz Orchestra History
The Cleveland Jazz Orchestra was formed at a time when jazz was making a resurgence in Cleveland, but there was very little big band jazz being played in the city which had a rich tradition of big band music.
Several professional musicians who had been playing with the North Coast Jazz Orchestra decided in the spring of 1984 to form a new big band to play concerts. Included were Gary Scott, who became the managing director, Rick Endress, Len Orcino, George Shernit, Buddy Sullivan, John Klayman, John Sayre, Bob Wolf and Paul Hungerford. The CJO played its first concert May 20, 1984 at the old Peabody’s DownUnder, in the Flats. There were a few other concerts at various locations, but the band was struggling. In April of 1986, it was selected to play with Billy Taylor at the Tri-C JazzFest. Scott and Shernit were serving as the music directors.
Hoping to generate public interest, Scott threw a party at the Cleveland Play House in October of 1986 and announced a season of concerts. There were performances at several colleges and concerts with guest artists Paquito D’Rivera and Ken Peplowski.
In the spring of 1987, Roland Paolucci, the director of jazz at the University of Akron, was named music director of the CJO. Under Paolucci’s direction, the band featured guest soloists Lew Soloff and Howie Smith and saluted Duke Ellington and Count Basie.
The CJO’s first subscription series, four concerts, was launched in 1988. Among the guests was Jiggs Whigham. At the 1989 Tri-C JazzFest, the CJO performed with Clark Terry, Milt Hinton, Louis Bellson and Sarah Vaughan. Bellson called the CJO "a superb vital force in jazz." Vaughan said, "I’d like to take them on the road with me."
New members of the band in 1988 were trumpeter Jack Schantz and trombonist Paul Ferguson, both of whom had been touring with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra led by Buddy Morrow.
The first subscription series proved so popular that it was extended to six concerts in the 1989-90 season. Peplowski returned to play the music of Benny Goodman. At JazzFest, the CJO backed singer Tony Bennett who called the CJO "a terrific band." In the summer of 1990, the band was featured on a TV program on Channels 45 and 49.
The concert series was further expanded for the 1990-91 season, to two performances of each concert. Guest artists included Terry Gibbs and Joe Lovano.
Guest during the 1991-92 season included Bellson, Peplowski and arranger Bill Finegan, who directed the CJO playing the arrangements of the 1950s Sauter-Finegan Orchestra. It was the first time any other band had played the complex arrangements.
Joining the CJO in 1991 were Kent Engelhardt and Lou Pisani, who like Schantz, Ferguson, Klayman and drummer Mark Gonder, had toured with the Dorsey Orchestra.
Guest artists in 1992-93 included Tommy Flanagan, Tom Harrell, Hinton, Terry and Whigham. At the end of the season, Paolucci retired and was succeeded by Schantz. During the summer, the CJO played its first ever dance, a fund-raiser, and traveled to the University of Michigan.
The 1993-94 season saw the CJO’s largest crowds, more than 2,000 people for performances with the new Four Freshmen. There was also a Latin concert with Alex Acuna.
There were other big crowds at the beginning of the 1994-95 season for three performances by Tex Beneke. Saturday night concerts were moved to the Fairmount Temple Auditorium in Beachwood. Other guest artists included Jon Faddis, Dolores Parker Morgan and again the Four Freshmen. Schantz was asked to play on the Christmas album of jazz piano legend Oscar Peterson.
Guest artists during the 1995-96 season included Rob McConnell and arranger Bill Holman. At the end of the series, Scott stepped down as managing director, a job he had held for 12 years, and was replaced by Larry Patch.
The 1996-97 season began with guest conductor Joze Privsek, the director of the Radio-Television Orchestra of Slovenia. There was also a tribute to Gerry Mulligan. During the summer, the Four Freshmen asked the CJO to perform with them at the Four Freshmen Society convention.
The Freshmen returned to Cleveland during the 1997-98 season for a CJO recreation of the Stan Kenton Road Show. A videotape of that concert was distributed by the Four Freshmen Society. The season also included a showcase of the compositions and arrangements Ferguson had written for a recording by Claudio Roditti and Whigham.
The 1998-99 season was a banner year with guest artists Arturo Sandoval, and arrangers Bob Florence and Sammy Nestico. The former Count Basie arranger said of the CJO, "This is the best band I have ever worked with." Paolucci recorded that concert and produced the CJO’s first compact disc, Swingin’ Together. Later in the year, the CJO made its first studio recording, Traditions, a salute to Cleveland’s big band tradition. Critic Jack Bowers wrote, "The Cleveland Jazz Orchestra is one of the country’s most accomplished community-based ensembles." During the summer of 1999, the CJO played a joint concert with the Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom Music Center marking the 100th anniversary of the birth of Duke Ellington.
Schantz continued to invite many of the best arrangers during the 1999-2000 season. They included Clare Fischer, Gerald Wilson and Frank Foster. There was also a concert of the arrangements of CJO trombonist Vaughn Wiester and another appearance by Peplowski who said, "There’re a lot of cities that have bands like this now, but the Cleveland Jazz Orchestra is one of the best bands in the country."
Bob Brookmeyer and the Pied Pipers were among the guest artists in 2000-2001. There was also another recording, backing singer Barbara Knight on her CD, Night and Day, featuring arrangements by CJO members.
Friday night concerts were moved to Cuyahoga Community College’s Western Campus Theatre in 2001. Guest artists included Buddy Greco, Cleveland Grammy Award winning arranger Willie Smith, Arranger of the Year Maria Schneider and Slide Hampton. A highlight was a recreation of Ellington’s 1956 concert at the Newport Jazz Festival.
Count Basie Orchestra singer Jamie Davis performed with the CJO during the 2002-2003 season and Nestico returned for another concert of his arrangements. Joining the band this year was Al Couch who had played trumpet for 30 years with the Cleveland Orchestra.
As the 2003-2004 season began, Bob Keesecker became the new executive director of the CJO. The band began its 20th anniversary season with a reunion concert featuring such former members as Scott, Sullivan and Paolucci. After a concert by guest conductor Howie Smith, the CJO played a concert of Ellington’s arrangement of The Nutcracker Suite and Kenton’s Christmas music. Scott Garlock returned from Illinois to re-join the band full-time.
2005 saw a change in direction for the organization. The CJO was able to develop foundation funding which allowed us to increase our budget and allow us to seek out more contemporary music to perform. John Hollenbeck and John Fedchock were featured performers.
The year 2006 was a watershed year for the CJO. Our Bop Stop Series got off to a tremendous start with sold-out performances with Joe Lovano. Lovano performed "The Surprise of Being" composition written and arranged for Joe by CJO bassist David Morgan. In July, the band made its first appearance at the famed jazz club Birdland in New York City performing the same pieces to sold-out audiences and tremendous critical acclaim. Late in 2006 the concert was released as the CJO’s third CD. 2006 also saw Jiggs Whigham perform compositions of Paul Ferguson and our holiday concert of Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker.
Transition is the word to describe the happenings in 2007. Our Executive Director Bob Keesecker left the organization after five years of tremendous service. The Board of Director’s decided to promote then Assistant Executive Director Erika Federmann to the position of Co-Executive Director and added board member Marcus Bales to the same post. Our Bop Stop series continued with wonderful sold-out events, and our Education Program took shape. The CJO Clinic & Concert Series began in earnest with programs at Hudson High School and Westlake High School. With help from the Cleveland Foundation, we were able to provide students with side-by-side instruction on the art of a big band. The students and their teachers loved it. 2006 also saw the CJO’s first-ever benefit concert at Playhouse Square. With the help of SRO Entertainment, we were able to host this benefit concert with Telarc recording artist Ann Hampton Callaway.
This year has already seen tremendous happenings with the CJO. Famed composer/arranger Wade Marcus led the band with his numerous compositions, both old and new and a tribute to Frank Zappa brought back memories for a lot of Zappaologists. Our Clinic and Concert Program was very well received in the Akron Public School System with performances at Firestone, North and Garfield High Schools with support from the GAR and Margaret Clark Morgan Foundations. The CJO returned to the Tri-C JazzFest in 2008 backing Telarc recording artist John Pizzarelli and his tribute to Frank Sinatra. Bill Dobbins will lead the CJO for two concerts in July. The CJO released its fourth recording, "Jazz Vespers," sacred compositions from Paul Ferguson on the Azica Records label. Our marketing efforts also hit stride with weekly email newsletters, a MySpace site, blog and a redesigned website. All CJO recordings are now available for sale on the Internet at CDBaby.com.
"The Art Form Moving Forward" is more than just a slogan. It’s our mandate to bring big band jazz to all music lovers both young and old alike. Our desire is to take this great American art form to new heights and new sounds for the 21st century. We hope you’ll come along for the ride.
