Jazz Ensemble Original Arrangements

Anyone familiar with Benny Carter's music knows what to expect ....... the highest quality, lovely melodies or swinging tunes that lift you out of your seat. This piece is a part of the CD The Legend,...

This is a fast, swing chart that is a feature for tenor saxophone. The soloist gets to blow in a free-form setting, or the soloing can be done in time with the rhythm section. The rest of the band pla...

This great chart is recorded (1999) on the Azica CD Swingin' the Blues. Holman grabs this simple Ellington tune and runs with it. The arrangement is yet another amazing example of Bill Holman's extrao...

Tommy takes this old tune and turns it on its head. He has created an outstanding and original version of this extremely popular melody. This chart was arranged for Doc Severinsen and The Tonight Show...

Finally, Slide Hampton's incredible music is in print. This wonderful chart was written for the Maynard Ferguson Dream Band. The chart begins with the full band playing a quasi-Asian motif before char...

The Daily Dance was recorded by the Stan Kenton Orchestra on the CD 'Birthday in Britain.' The piece is a very fast-swing that features solos for alto saxophone, trumpet, piano (written) and drums. Th...

Here is a slow, gutty, down-home type of blues written for and recorded by the Stan Kenton Orchestra on the Adventures In Blues album. There is open solo space for tenor, trumpet and piano. Once the s...

As recorded by the Count Basie Orchestra on their album Count Basie's Finest Hour, 'Doodle Oodle' is a barn-burning Billy Byers original. In usual Basie fashion, this chart swings its tail off with in...

As recorded by the Oliver Nelson Orchestra on their album Berlin Dialogue for Orchestra, 'Checkpoint Charlie' is some of Nelson's most creative writing. Full of uptempo energy, Nelson masterfully inte...

Written for the 50th Anniversary of the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival (2017), this chart will get your band and your audience up and swingin'!  There is plenty of solo space for Tenor Saxophone, Piano...

Bill Holman has given us a superb gift on his 90th birthday - his gift of swing, humor, great melody, and his always exciting ensemble passages. Here is his newest original - a buoyant, optimistic, ha...

Can you say 'trip-uh-let'? This fun, down home swingin' chart was recorded by the Les Hooper Big Band on 'Dorian Blue'. With reasonable brass ranges, there is plenty of solo space for baritone saxopho...

This wonderful piece, written by Rich DeRosa, was recorded on 'Lab 2017' by the UNT One O'Clock Lab Band. This 'loose' swinger features a tenor/bass duet melody, beautiful contrapuntal lines that weav...

Of all the arrangements done of this iconic Strayhorn/Ellington standard, Don Sebesky's chart, written for the Maynard Ferguson Orchestra (and recorded numerous times) ranks as one of the best, most c...

As recorded by the Count Basie Orchestra on 'This Time by Basie,' this arrangement by Billy Byers of Cole Porter's melody is pure Basie. Opening with a short Basie-ish figure, the band then swings at...

The Count Basie Orchestra did-does the 'barn burner' charts better than almost any other big band. This Billy Byers original starts out hot and never cools down. The tenor saxophone is the chosen solo...

As recorded on 'Count Basie Picks the Winners,' this wonderful Billy Byers chart takes this lovely standard into a whole new world. There is a bit of flute to be played by your 1st Tenor, there is a t...

Once again Billy Byers has created the quintessential, original chart for the Count Basie Orchestra. This one is recorded on 'Basie Land.' The easy swing feel/tempo makes this piece very accessible fo...

Gene Roland wrote for the Stan Kenton Orchestra for almost the entire history of the Kenton Band. He wrote the entire 'Adventure in Blues' album for that band, and this is just one of many highly orig...

Gene Roland wrote for the Stan Kenton Orchestra for almost the entire history of the Kenton Band. He wrote the entire 'Adventure in Blues' album for that band, and this is just one of many highly orig...

This Curnow original was inspired by the fact that there aren't a lot of bass features available for up-and-coming bassists. The tempo is set at about 100, and the chart opens up with your bass player...

Bob Curnow dedicates this to his new grandson Eli whose middle name is Wolfgang. So, he had to have his own tune, right? Based on a medium slow, swinging feel, this chart moves quickly into a Basie-is...

This is one of the most popular charts on the 'Jazz Compositions of Dee Barton' recording by the Stan Kenton Orchestra. This is the original arrangement as recorded by Kenton. There is an edited versi...

This is one of the most popular charts on the 'Jazz Compositions of Dee Barton' recording by the Stan Kenton Orchestra. This is an edited version arranged for standard big band instrumentation (works...

This fantastic chart swings like all the greatest Basie classics. As recorded by the Count Basie Orchestra on "Broadway Hollywood… Basie's Way," Chico O'Farrill's arrangement of Baubles, Bangles & Be...