In Conversation with Jazz Legend Jim McNeely

Jim McNeely has pursued the type of career in music most can only dream of. Respected and renowned throughout the jazz community as a consummate musician and composer, McNeely spent the last five decades honing his craft, perfecting his art, and moving the genre forward. Working, early on, with luminaries like Stan Getz, Phil Woods and Mel Lewis as a pianist, McNeely immersed himself in composition. He recorded over 20 albums, received no fewer than 12 GRAMMY nominations, winning one in 2008 for the album Monday Night Live at the Village Vanguard with the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra He's worked with a host of revered ensembles such as the WDR Big Band, the Danish Radio Big Band and the Frankfurt Radio Big Band, for who he served as chief conductor for twelve years.

A highly innovative creator, McNeely has cultivated a sound and a style all his own, rich with depth, nuance and vibrance. His influence on multiple generations of jazz composers is profound, as evidenced during his storied tenure with the BMI Jazz Composers Workshop. Devoting 24 years to the program, McNeely credits his contributions to the Workshop central to his career as an educator, and his leadership attracted aspiring composers from far and wide. While the Workshop was launched in 1988, McNeely first got involved in 1991, later serving as Musical Director from 1999 to 2015. During that time, McNeely established its procedures and structure, informed by his vast wealth of experience and musical insight. He brought Mike Holober onboard as Assistant Musical Director in 2007, and together, they cultivated a reputation for excellence. Many of the Workshop's alumni have gone on to win GRAMMY Award nominations, the Guggenheim Fellowship, the MacDowell Fellowship, and the Aaron Copland House Residency Award.

As a tribute to McNeely's tremendous achievements, a concert is being planned for September 10 called Celebrating Jim McNeely at New York's DiMenna Center for Classical Music. Conceived as a retrospective of some of the most iconic compositions from across his career, the 90-minute program will feature an 18-piece jazz orchestra with key McNeely associates, including special appearances by John Scofield (guitar), Dick Oatts (alto sax), Ed Neumeister (trombone), Martin Wind (bass) Adam Nussbaum (drums), and John Riley (drums). The ensemble will be conducted by Rufus Reid, Mike Holober, Darcy James Argue, Migiwa Miyajima, and Daniel Jamieson, who are also organizing and producing the event, in collaboration with JazzComposersPresent.com.

In advance of this special evening, BMI caught up with Jim McNeely to gauge his thoughts. Here's what he had to say.

BMI: You've got a retrospective concert, coming up in September, that will feature performances ranging from all parts of your very prolific career. Given the vast body of work you've recorded, over the past five decades, how do you begin to determine the set list for this undertaking, and is that a daunting process?

McNeely: To choose the repertoire for the concert was a bit overwhelming. The final list is actually the result of the five producers (all former members of the BMI Jazz Composers' Workshop, by the way!) and I making a master list of what we'd like to present. We decided to include original compositions only. We also wanted to represent a large time period. We ended up with 25 pieces. The final decision was the result of several factors: length, variety of textures and grooves, variety of soloists, and availability of certain players. The repertoire starts in 1989 and goes all the way up to 2024.

Looking back at how much your work has influenced the jazz world, what part of your legacy are you most proud of?

Hmm, the "L" word. I guess there are three aspects. First, I believe I've played a small part in expanding the idea of form in big band writing. Second, with my writing I've gently raised the level of expectation of what's possible with every band I've worked with, from college bands to professional ensembles. "C'mon, you can do this!" is my mantra. Third, and most importantly, I am proud to have helped inspire so many younger composer/arrangers develop their abilities, whether in academia, the BMI Workshop, or simply one-on-one through lessons and conversations. I certainly didn't set out at the age of 26 to do all that. But it has happened, and I am pretty amazed when I take it all in.

Is there a specific moment or collaboration in your career that you feel fundamentally shaped who you are as an artist?

There are actually two moments, and one collaboration: One, my first piano lesson at the age of eight, where my teacher wrote out a basic starter sheet about music theory, before I even played for him. Set me on the road to explore theory for many years to come. Two, seeing the Count Basie Orchestra live, as a high school kid, in 1966. Changed my life! As to the collaboration, it occurred by simply being in the right place at the right time. I joined the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra in 1978. Thad had been my idol, and it was an incredible thrill to play with him and his arrangements, with Mel and that great band. But Thad moved to Copenhagen in 1979. Mel brought Bob Brookmeyer in as musical director. He encouraged me to start writing for Mel's band, ultimately becoming a great friend and mentor, opening the door to the European Radio Band scene, where I learned so much about big band writing, and worked for over thirty years.

You wear many hats and are the master of multiple disciplines, but which part of the creative process is your favorite - writing, arranging, recording, or performing, and why?

It sounds trite, but each of those activities is incredibly fulfilling. Each has its own challenges, and each requires different techniques to do well. But you also have to learn to not let the techniques get in the way of your creative flow. I will admit, however, to a bit of trepidation about recording. Composing, arranging-I'm usually driven by deadlines. That excites me, gets the blood flowing, but I can adjust my working schedule as I feel. Performing-well there's no future deadline, just the "now" of the moment, so if I'm really prepared it's a joy. Recording is another matter. There's usually an artificial feel, even in the best studios. Headphones, although I try to minimize their use. Isolation. The pressure that this session goes X number of hours, gotta get it done by then. And the dreaded re-takes. Forget what you just played, on to Take 2. Ugh!

Do you have any advice for aspiring jazz composers looking to emulate your success?

Here are some random thoughts.

• Write down every idea that comes to you. Don't judge it as good or bad. It simply is. Then play with it for a while. The magic is in the development. Don't worry about where it should be in a piece. Let it sit for a while. It will still be there when you come back to it.
• A composer's job is to speculate; ask "what if?" rather than "is it okay if I…?" or "Am I allowed to…?"
• No deadline? Write something just for the pleasure of doing it. It may lead to something, maybe not (see COVID-19, 2020-2022).
• Be in a place where you can hear your music played. Often. By the best players you can find. One of the most important things a young writer has to learn is the difference between the way a piece sounds on their computer and the way it sounds sight-read by real people, looking at dots on a page for the first time. You might be surprised!
• When you hear your piece read, listen with brutal honesty. Does it really sound the way you want it to sound? Yes or no. Don't let your ego get in the way.
• You can be inspired by anything: another composer; Balinese music; a painting; a person's laugh; the sound of construction; the size of the universe; the sound of leaves rustling on a tree; a three-note cell; a melodic figure that comes to you in the shower. Be open to it all. Acceptance is the key.
• With all the talk about creativity, it's also crucial to master the basic techniques of rhythm, harmony, voice-leading, and orchestration. These are the tools that enable you to express that creativity so that it is playable by good musicians.
• Make sure your notation is as legible as possible. It makes it easier to read/play and reflects your respect for your music.
• Study scores written by musicians more experienced than you. Rather than guessing what they wrote, you can actually see how they wrote it. You'll be surprised at what you find, especially how simple some of it is.
• When you hear a band live, listen with your eyes. You hear a combination you like. "How do they get that?" Well, look at the band! See who's playing! "Trumpet in Harmon, Trumpet in cup, Flute 8va, Trombone 8vb. Aha!"
• Listen to and study big band (and not so big band) writers going back to Jelly Roll Morton. Don Redman. Fletcher Henderson. Benny Carter. Ellington & Strayhorn of course. So many masters to learn from.
• Starting at point A and arriving at point B is efficient but boring. Create events along the way. You might think of musical ideas as characters in a play: how do they interact? Does a third player unexpectedly enter? We start at point A, but stuff happens to thicken the plot before we finally arrive at point B.
• As Bob Brookmeyer said, "The way to write music is to write music."

What role has BMI played in your journey, thus far?

As associate director of the BMI Jazz Composers' Workshop for 10 years, and musical director for 14 years, BMI put me in touch with hundreds of (mostly) young composers who brought their own ideas and musical experiences with them. Besides having the opportunity to give them advice and hear their music, I was also inspired by the wide range of genres and styles that inspired them. Once in a while someone would try something I didn't think would work. But my advice was always "bring it into the reading session, hear it, and see what you think." Many times, I was pleasantly surprised and would use it myself. With the workshop I saw many members go on to do their own big band gigs, make recordings, and occasionally working as guest arranger/conductor with established ensembles. A few are quite well-known in the current big band scene. I am proud to have perhaps played a small part in their development and am grateful to BMI for that.

The concert takes place at The DiMenna Center's Cary Hall on Wednesday, September 10 at 7 pm. It will also be available via livestream to a worldwide audience. Tickets and livestream passes are available now at JazzComposersPresent.com.

Photo: Ben Knabe