Maria Schneider and her 17-piece orchestra were winners of the 2005 Grammy? Award for "Best Large Jazz Ensemble" By Chris Cooke
Omaha, Nebraska – Creating Orchestral Jazz at the highest level of excellence, Composer and Bandleader Maria Schneider is bringing her Orchestra to Lincoln, Nebraska this weekend.
The Maria Schneider Orchestra performs Saturday night, February 3, at the Lied Center in Lincoln. Showtime is 7:30pm.
Tickets are available by visiting liedcenter.org.
The concert is supported by Mid-America Arts Alliance with generous underwriting by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Nebraska Arts Council, and foundations, corporations, and individuals throughout Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas.
One of the most highly acclaimed big bands in the world, Maria Schneider and her 17-piece orchestra were winners of the 2005 Grammy? Award for "Best Large Jazz Ensemble".
Maria Schneider is a native Minnesotan. Maria was studying piano and music by the age of 5. After studies at the University of Minnesota, the University of Miami and the Eastman School of Music, she relocated to New York City in 1985. She immediately sought out Bob Brookmeyer to deepen her studies of composition.
At the same time she became an assistant to the legendary Gil Evans, working on various projects with him, most notably the film The Color of Money and music for the Gil Evans/Sting tour in 1987.
The Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra came into being in 1993, appearing at Visiones in Greenwich Village every Monday night for a stretch of five years. As a result, her orchestra received invitations to perform at many jazz festivals and concert halls across Europe as well as in South America.
Maria has received numerous commissions and invites for guest conducting her music with American and European orchestras.
KIOS jazz host Chris Cooke last spoke with Maria Schneider in 2004. Schneider spoke at length about the spiritual inspiration which fuels her artistry as well as the practical aspects of sustaining her music and big band.
Her website is mariaschneider.com.
Chris Cooke is the host of Jazz in the Afternoon and Last Call on KIOS-FM.