Wycliffe A. Gordon (born May 29, 1967) is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

trombonist, arranger, composer, band leader, and music educator at the collegiate-conservatory level. Gordon also sings and plays

didgeridoo The didgeridoo (;()), also spelt didjeridu, among other variants, is a wind instrument, played with vibrating lips to produce a continuous Drone (music), drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing. The didgerido ...

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...

soprano trombone The soprano trombone (sometimes called a slide trumpet or slide cornet, especially in jazz) is the soprano instrument in the trombone family of brass instruments, pitched in B♭ an octave above the tenor trombone. As the bore (wind instrume ...

tuba The tuba (; ) is the largest and lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece (brass), mouthpiece. It first appeared in th ...

, and

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

.''The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, Second edition,'' Vol. 2, edited by

Barry Dean Kernfeld Barry Dean Kernfeld (born August 11, 1950) is an American musicologist and jazz saxophonist who has researched and published extensively about the history of jazz and the biographies of its musicians. Education In 1968, Kernfeld enrolled at ...

, London:

Macmillan Publishers Macmillan Publishers (occasionally known as the Macmillan Group; formally Macmillan Publishers Ltd in the United Kingdom and Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC in the United States) is a British publishing company traditionally considered to be on ...

(2002) His nickname is "Pinecone".

Early life and education

Gordon was born in Waynesboro, Georgia, into a religious and musical background that influenced the early direction of his music. His father, Lucius Gordon (1936–1997), was a church organist at several churches in

Burke County, Georgia Burke County is a county located along the eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia in the Piedmont. As of the 2020 census, the population was 24,596. The county seat is Waynesboro. Burke County is part of the Augusta-Richmond County, G ...

, and a classical pianist and teacher. Gordon took an interest in jazz in 1980 when he was thirteen, while listening to jazz records inherited from his great-aunt. The collection included a five-LP anthology produced by Sony-Columbia. In particular, he was drawn to musicians like

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

and the Hot Fives and Hot Sevens At age 13, he was attending Sego Junior High School in

Augusta, Georgia Augusta is a city on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies directly across the Savannah River from North Augusta, South Carolina at the head of its navigable portion. Augusta, the third mos ...

, where his band director was trombonist

Don Milford Don, don or DON and variants may refer to: Places *Don (river), a river in European Russia *Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name *Don, Benin, a town in Benin *Don, Dang, a village and hill station in Dang district, Guja ...

. Gordon graduated in 1984 from Butler High School in Augusta. He performed in New York City as part of the McDonald's High School All-American Band. He then studied music at

Florida A&M Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), commonly known as Florida A&M, is a Public university, public Historically black colleges and universities, historically black land-grant university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. ...

, where he played in the marching band.

Career

His early works as a professional were with

Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, and music instructor, who is currently the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has been active in promoting classical and jazz music, often to young ...

, but in 2010 he has expanded beyond swing and has experimented with new instruments. The strongest example of this might be ''The Search'' where he plays

and covers

Thelonious Monk Thelonious Sphere Monk ( October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist and composer. He had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the Jazz standard, standard jazz repertoire, includ ...

songs. He has also played Gospel music. In 1995, Gordon arranged and orchestrated the theme song for

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

's ''

All Things Considered ''All Things Considered'' (''ATC'') is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio (NPR). It was the first news program on NPR, premiering on May 3, 1971. It is broadcast live on NPR affiliated stations in the United ...

''. Gordon's arrangement and orchestration is the third version of the melody composed in 1971 by Donald Joseph Voegeli (1920–2009). On September 24, 2004, Gordon conducted the

Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra (also known as the JLCO) is an American big band and jazz orchestra led by trumpeter Wynton Marsalis. The orchestra is part of Jazz at Lincoln Center, a performing arts organization in New York City. History ...

in the premiere of his new, original score for "Body and Soul", the 1925 silent film directed by

Oscar Micheaux Oscar Devereaux Micheaux (; January 2, 1884 – March 25, 1951) was an American author, film director and independent producer of more than 44 films. Although the short-lived Lincoln Motion Picture Company was the first movie company owned and c ...

. He has recently gained more worldwide popularity, being featured in South Australia's '' Generations In Jazz'' 2016 and 2017, playing alongside artists such as James Morrison,

Jazzmeia Horn Jazzmeia Horn (born 1991) is an American jazz singer and songwriter. She won the Thelonious Monk Institute International Jazz Competition in 2015. Horn's repertoire includes jazz standards and covers of songs from other genres, including by ar ...

Gordon Goodwin Gordon L. Goodwin (born December 30, 1954) is an American pianist, saxophonist, composer, arranger, and conductor. He is the leader of Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band. He has won three Daytime Emmy Awards, four Grammy Awards, and 25 Grammy nomina ...

and Ross Irwin among others. For over a decade, he has also worked with visual artist and educator Ligel Lambert on numerous collaborative projects. Ligel Lambert with Wycliffe Gordon (2008 - Present)
Ligel & Wycliffe

Blues Back Records

Blues Back Records was an American independent jazz label founded by Gordon in 2006, coinciding with the release of his album ''Rhythm on My Mind'', a collaboration with bassist

Jay Leonhart Jay Leonhart (born December 6, 1940) is an American double bassist, singer, and songwriter who has worked in jazz and popular music. He has performed with Judy Garland, Bucky Pizzarelli, Carly Simon, Frank Sinatra, and Sting. Leonhart is noted ...

. His desire for artistic control was the impetus for creating Blues Back. During a meeting with Leonhart, with Gordon's "I Want My Blues Back" playing in the background, the two laughed and decided on the name for the company. Blues Back produced other artists who met Gordon's criteria for originality. The company became inactive in 2011.Berlanga-Ryan, Esther
Interview — "Wycliffe Gordon: What This is All About"
''

All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...

'', 1 September 2010.

Discography

As leader

* ''Bone Structure'' (

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

, 1996) * ''Slidin' Home'' ( Nagel-Heyer, 1999) * ''Blues of Summer'' (Nagel-Heyer, 2000) * ''The Search'' (Nagel-Heyer, 2000) * ''The Gospel Truth'' ( Criss Cross, 2000) * ''What You Dealin' With'' (Criss Cross, 2001) * ''We'' (Nagel-Heyerr, 2002) * ''United Soul Experience'' (Criss Cross, 2002) * ''The Joyride'' (Nagel-Heyer, 2003) * ''Dig This!!'' (Criss Cross, 2003) * ''In the Cross'' (Criss Cross, 2004) * ''Cone's Coup'' (Criss Cross, 2006) * ''Standards Only'' (Nagel-Heyer, 2006) * ''This Rhythm on My Mind'' (Blues Back, 2006) * ''A Tribute to Storyville'' (Sidney Bechet Society, 2007) * ''We, Vol. 2'' ( WJ3, 2007) * ''BloozBluzeBlues, Vol. One'' (Blues Back, 2007) * ''Boss Bones'' (Criss Cross, 2008) * ''You and I'' (Blues Back, 2008) * ''I'm Glad There is You'' (Blues Back, 2010) * ''Cone and T-Staff'' (Criss Cross, 2010) * ''Word'' (Blues Back, 2012) * ''Dreams of New Orleans'' ( Chesky, 2012) * ''The Intimate Ellington: Ballads & Blues'' (Criss Cross, 2013) * ''Signature Series'' (2014) * ''Somebody New'' (2015) * ''Within These Gates of Mine'' (2016) * ''Hello Pops!: Tribute to Louis Armstrong'' (2016) * "The Co-Op" (Brown Brothers Recordings 2017)

As sideman

With John Allred * ''John Allred & Wycliffe Gordon: Head to Head'' ( Arbors, 2002) With the B#Big Band * United In Swing - Wycliffe Gordon with the B# Big Band (2019) With

Maurice Hines Maurice Robert Hines Jr. (December 13, 1943 – December 29, 2023) was an American actor, director, singer, and choreographer. He was the older brother of dancer Gregory Hines. Life and career Maurice Robert Hines Jr. was born on December 13, 1 ...

* ''Maurice Hines: To Nat King Cole With Love'' (Arbors, 2006) With

Bob Kindred Robert Hamilton Kindred (May 11, 1940 – August 15, 2016) was an American jazz tenor saxophone player, composer and educator. Life and career Robert Hamilton Kindred was born on 11 May 1940 in Lansing, Michigan, United States. He grew up in th ...

* ''Bob Kindred Trio Live at Cafe Loup'' (Conawago, 2006) With

* ''Big Train'' (Columbia/Sony Classical, 1999) With Ted Nash *'' Sidewalk Meeting'' (Arabesque, 2001) With

The Herbie Nichols Project The Herbie Nichols Project was an American jazz ensemble dedicated to performing the music of composer and pianist Herbie Nichols. History The group was co-founded in 1992 by pianist Frank Kimbrough and double bassist Ben Allison, both members o ...

*'' Strange City'' (Palmetto, 2001) With

Marcus Roberts Marthaniel "Marcus" Roberts (born August 7, 1963) is an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, bandleader, and teacher. Early life Roberts was born in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. His mother was a gospel singer who had gone blind a ...

* ''

Deep in the Shed Deep or The Deep may refer to: Places United States * Deep Creek (Appomattox River tributary), Virginia * Deep Creek (Great Salt Lake), Idaho and Utah * Deep Creek (Mahantango Creek tributary), Pennsylvania * Deep Creek (Mojave River tributary ...

'' (

Novus Novus (Latin, 'new') may refer to: Businesses and organizations * Novus Biologicals, later Bio-Techne, an American biotech company * Novus Entertainment, a Canadian telecommunications company * Novus International, an animal health and nutrition ...

, 1989) With

Randy Sandke Jay Randall Sandke (born May 5, 1949 in Chicago, Illinois) is a jazz trumpeter and guitarist. While a student at Indiana University in 1968, he and Michael Brecker started a jazz-rock band (Mrs. Seamon's Sound Band) that performed at the Notre D ...

* ''The Music of Bob Haggart Featuring His Porgy and Bess Arrangements'' (Arbors, 2002) With

Ron Westray Ronald Kenneth Westray Jr. (born June 13, 1970, in Columbia, South Carolina) is an American jazz trombonist, composer, and educator. He holds a B.A. from South Carolina State University and a Master of Arts degree from Eastern Illinois Univers ...

* ''Wycliffe Gordon & Ron Westray: Bone Structure'' (Atlantic Jazz, 1996) With

Chip White Alan White (21 December 1946 – 5 August 2020), known as Chip White, was an American jazz drummer who has performed and/or recorded with a variety of artists, including Carmen McRae, Jaki Byard, the CETA Artists Project (NYC Cultural Council Foun ...

* ''Double Dedication'' * ''More Dedications'' * ''Personal Dedications & Percussive Tributes''

References

External links

Official site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, Wycliffe 1967 births Living people American jazz trombonists American male trombonists Chesky Records artists Criss Cross Jazz artists People from Waynesboro, Georgia Musicians from Georgia (U.S. state) Florida A&M University alumni African-American jazz musicians 21st-century American trombonists 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Statesmen of Jazz members WJ3 Records artists Nagel-Heyer Records artists 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American musicians Didgeridoo players 20th-century American trombonists 20th-century American male musicians The Herbie Nichols Project members