15th December 2014: January’s Down Beat Magazine-JC Sanford speaks about creative arranging and arranging for the Modern Large Jazz Ensemble.

Although he originally built a reputation through big band writing, JC Sanford has forayed into many other areas – composing for solo piano, wind and brass formations and various mixed chamber ensembles. A founding member of the composers’ federation Pulse (with Darcy James Argue & Joseph C. Phillips, Jr.), JC was a member of the BMI Jazz Composers’ Workshop led by Jim McNeely and Mike Abene for 5 years. His works have been performed by John Abercrombie, Lew Soloff, Dave Liebman, Danilo Perez, and a number of universities and high schools across the United States.
Founder and co-conductor of the Schumacher/Sanford Sound Assembly, whose CD “Edge of the Mind” was released in 2009 to high reviews, JC is in increasing demand as a conductor. He regularly conducts the Grammy-nominated John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble, the Joel Harrison 19, the Alan Ferber Nonet with Strings, and the Alice Coltrane Orchestra featuring Ravi Coltrane, Jack DeJohnette, and Charlie Haden. He now leads the JC Sanford Orchestra and is also curating the “Size Matters” large ensemble series at the Tea Lounge in Park Slope, Brooklyn.
JC currently is on the faculty at Long Island University and the New York Jazz Academy, and is the recipient of a D.M.A. in Jazz Studies from New England Conservatory of Music. At NEC, he studied with Bob Brookmeyer and conducted the NEC Little Big Band.

In January’s edition of Downbeat Magazine, JC shares some thoughts and suggestions on creating a personal style of writing effective and engaging music for large ensembles.