About SRJO

The Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra

The Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra (SRJO) is the Northwest’s premier big band jazz ensemble. Founded in  1995, the 17-piece big band is made up of the most prominent jazz soloists and band leaders in the greater Seattle area. We are a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and enrichment of the uniquely American art form of large ensemble jazz. Members of SRJO — professional musicians, music educators and a team of supporting volunteers — are motivated by a vision and committed to a four-part mission:

Mission:

• To create and nourish a superb, professional jazz orchestra with which to perform before appreciative audiences.
• To educate and inspire the next generation to understand, perform and treasure this music.
• To add to the repertoire of large ensemble jazz by commissioning and presenting new works, and by transcribing music from rare recordings so as to publish first scores of historic arrangements and compositions.
• To promote to new audiences this classic American art form.

Vision:

• To be nationally recognized and regarded by jazz fans, music educators, arts grantors, and the general public as one of the Pacific Northwest’s cultural treasures.

The SRJO is co-directed by drummer Clarence Acox, nationally recognized director of bands at Seattle’s Garfield High School, and saxophonist/arranger Michael Brockman, long-time faculty member at the University of Washington School of Music.

Michael Brockman, NEA Jazz Master Benny Golson, and Clarence Acox

The SRJO has brought internationally known guest soloists to join in its concerts, including NEA Jazz Masters Clark Terry, Arturo Sandoval, James Moody, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Jimmy Heath, Benny Golson (shown here with Michael and Clarence), and many others.

SRJO’s repertoire grows each year as the ensemble adds previously unpublished works to its library, many of which are recovered for performance by co-director Michael Brockman, our region’s outstanding practitioner of the art of transcribing lost-to-print composition and arrangement, note for note, from vintage recordings.

This blog is an extension of srjo.org, and features news, events, promotions, and insights into SRJO, its musicians, and community. If you are already a member of SRJO’s extended family of musicians, fans, and friends, we welcome you and invite you to join in the conversation. If you have just discovered SRJO, we’re pleased you’ve found us.

Learn more about Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra at our website.