When Adam Meckler Orchestra finished playing their first song--the emotional, 12-minute epic "Fall Leaves and Apple Trees," which incorporate elements of New Orleans brass, hip-hop, free jazz, and chamber music--I literally threw my notes on the floor. What good were my pre-written questions in the face of this kind of complexity and beauty?

I'd never heard anything quite like this before, and after that first song I had become Adam Meckler's #1 fan. Somehow, in between teaching trumpet and jazz at McNally Smith and MacPhail and performing in bands like Nooky Jones and the Jack Brass Band, Meckler finds the time to compose intricate, genre-bending, dizzying, and dare I say mind-blowing songs for his 18-piece orchestra.

These songs are inspired by real-life experiences and events; "Fall Leaves" is a tribute to an influential teacher, the late Fred Sturm, while "Open Your Eyes" was written in response to Trayvon Martin's death and the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech. As you'll hear in these recordings, they manage to capture all the chaos, resolution, despair, and hope that real-world moments can show us.

Performers

Adam Meckler (composer and conductor)
Sten Johnson (trumpet)
Tom Krochock (trumpet)
Cameron Kinghorn (trumpet)
Noah Ophoven-Baldwin (trumpet)
Keith Hilson (trombone)
Nick Syman (trombone)
Mason Hemmer (trombone)
Jenn Werner (trombone)
Nelson Devereaux (saxophone)
David Hirsch (saxophone)
Ben Doherty (saxophone)
Gus Sandberg (saxophone)
Angie Hirsch (saxophone)
Joe Strachan (piano)
Trent Baarspul (guitar)
Graydon Peterson (bass)
Adrian Suarez (drums)

Songs

"Fall Leaves and Apple Trees"
"Open Your Eyes"

Credits

Hosted by Andrea Swensson
Produced by Evan Clark and Andrea Swensson
Engineered by Evan Clark
After Hours Theme by Andrea Swensson, performed by Adam Meckler Orchestra

Gallery

Fullscreen SlidePrevious Slide

1 of 2

2 of 2

Next Slide