The Mingus Big Band is a 14-piece ensemble, based in New York City, that specializes in the compositions of Charles Mingus. It was managed by his widow, Sue Mingus, [1] along with the Mingus Orchestra and Mingus Dynasty. In addition to its weekly Monday night appearance at DROM NYC in New York City, the Mingus Big Band tours frequently, giving performances and clinics in America, Europe, and other parts of the world.
The band has received seven Grammy Award nominations and won a Grammy in 2011 for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album for Mingus Big Band Live at Jazz Standard .
Charles Mingus Jr. was an American jazz upright bassist, composer, bandleader, pianist, and author. A major proponent of collective improvisation, he is considered to be one of the greatest jazz musicians and composers in history, with a career spanning three decades and collaborations with other jazz greats such as Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Max Roach, and Eric Dolphy. Mingus' work ranged from advanced bebop and avant-garde jazz with small and midsize ensembles, to pioneering the post-bop style on seminal recordings like Pithecanthropus Erectus (1956) and Mingus Ah Um (1959), and progressive big band experiments such as The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady (1963).
Jazz Standard was a jazz club located at 116 East 27th Street in the Rose Hill neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It frequently hosted well-known bands and musicians. The club was owned by restaurateur Danny Meyer and was located in the basement of one of his Blue Smoke restaurants.
Kenny Garrett is an American post-bop jazz musician and composer who gained recognition in his youth as a member of the Duke Ellington Orchestra and for his time with Miles Davis's band. His primary instruments are alto and soprano saxophone and flute. Since 1985, he has pursued a solo career.
Jim McNeely is a jazz pianist, composer, arranger and faculty.
Chris Potter is an American jazz saxophonist, composer, and multi-instrumentalist.
Lee Conrad Herwig III is an American jazz trombonist from New York City.
Steve Slagle is an American jazz saxophonist.
Wayne Escoffery is an American jazz saxophonist.
Dave Kikoski is an American jazz pianist and keyboardist.
Charles McPherson is an American jazz alto saxophonist born in Joplin, Missouri, United States, and raised in Detroit, Michigan, who worked intermittently with Charles Mingus from 1960 to 1974, and as a performer leading his own groups.
Mingus Dynasty was an American jazz ensemble formed in 1979, just after the death of Charles Mingus, which featured many musicians Mingus recorded or played with. The group was named after the 1959 album Mingus Dynasty.
Donald Paul McCaslin is an American jazz saxophonist. He has recorded over a dozen albums as a bandleader in addition to many sideman appearances, including on David Bowie's final studio album, Blackstar (2016).
Steve Wilson is an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, who is best known in the musical community as a flutist and an alto and soprano saxophonist. He also plays the clarinet and the piccolo. Wilson performs on many different instruments and has performed and recorded on over twenty-five albums. His interests include folk, jazz, classical, world music, and experimental music. Wilson is currently on the faculty of New England Conservatory in Boston, Massachusetts. He was elected as an American Champion by the National Flute Association. Wilson has maintained a busy career working as a session musician, and has contributed to many musicians of note both in the recording studios, but as a sideman on tours. Over the years he has participated in engagements with several musical ensembles, as well as his own solo efforts.
Frank Lacy is an American jazz trombonist who has spent many years as a member of the Mingus Big Band.
Adam Cruz is an American jazz drummer from New York City.
Susan Mingus was an American record producer and band manager. She was married to jazz composer and bassist Charles Mingus, and formed tribute groups to perform his music after his death. She won a Grammy Award in 2011, having earlier received four nominations.
Seamus Blake is a British-born Canadian tenor saxophonist.
Alex Sipiagin is a Russian jazz trumpeter and flugelhorn player.
Live at Jazz Standard is an album by the Mingus Big Band that won the Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album in 2011. The album documents a concert at the Jazz Standard club in New York City on New Year's Eve, 2009. The concert and the album commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of songs recorded by Charles Mingus. The band was conducted by Gunther Schuller and included trumpeter Randy Brecker, who played with Mingus during the 1970s.
Johnathan Blake is an American jazz drummer.