The Two O'Clock Lab Band is the second highest level of nine

big bands A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

(see

One O'Clock Lab Band One O'Clock Lab Band is an ensemble of the Jazz Studies division at the University of North Texas College of Music in Denton, Texas. Since the 1970s, the band's albums have received seven Grammy Award nominations, including two for ''Lab 2009''. ...

) of the Jazz Studies Division at the

University of North Texas The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public research university in Denton, Texas. It was founded as a nonsectarian, coeducational, private teachers college in 1890 and was formally adopted by the state 11 years later."Denton Normal Schoo ...

College of Music, a comprehensive music school with the largest enrollment of any music institution accredited by the

National Association of Schools of Music The National Association of Schools of Music (NASM) is an association of post-secondary music schools in the United States and the principal U.S. accreditor for higher education in music. It was founded on October 20, 1924, and is based in Reston, ...

, and oldest (and first) in the world offering a degree in jazz studies.

History

While the One O'Clock is the highest level of the nine Lab Bands; the Two O'Clock has, for several decades, held acclaim as a "destination band" at the University. The Two O'Clock produces professionally engineered albums and, on concert tours, is well received. The Band has a long list of successful alumni musicians who never played with the One O'Clock, some of whom are listed below. "Making" the One O'Clock often is a matter of timing. If, for example, several talented musicians are vying for a certain chair in the One O'Clock, and that chair is held by someone for two years, then a qualified student might likely complete his or her studies playing in another Lab Band.

Awards and honors

* 1992, 1993, 1994, 2005, 2006 — Down Beat Magazine poll selected the UNT Two O'Clock Lab Band as "Winner" of the Annual Student Music Awards (James Riggs, director). The band has toured and performed at

Walt Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort, also called Walt Disney World or Disney World, is an entertainment resort complex in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida, United States, near the cities of Orlando and Kissimmee. Opened on October 1, 1971, ...

. National jazz radio programs, including

Pandora In Greek mythology, Pandora (Greek: , derived from , ''pān'', i.e. "all" and , ''dōron'', i.e. "gift", thus "the all-endowed", "all-gifted" or "all-giving") was the first human woman created by Hephaestus on the instructions of Zeus. As Hes ...

, includes recordings from the Two O'Clock Lab Band as well as the One O'Clock. * 2005 — The Two O'Clock Lab Band was named Down Beat Magazine's best college band for 2005 * 2010 — 33rd Downbeat Annual Student Music Awards: Large Jazz Ensemble, Graduate College Winner (Jay Saunders, Director)

Discography

Directed by Jim Riggs

* ''The Transparent Two'' (Oct 4, 1994
Seafair Bolo
* ''Two O'Clock Jazz Band I'' (1997
Klavier KD 77019
* ''A Salute to Benny Carter'' (1999) C
Klavier (K 77028)
* ''Two O'Clock Jazz Band II'' (recorded May 1997, released March 1999) C
Klavier (K 77023)
* ''The Translucent Two'' (2001) C
Klavier
* ''The Manne We Love: Gershwin Revisited'', with the Steve Houghton Quintet (2002) C
TNC Jazz
* ''The Two O'Clock Jazz Band "Live"'' * ''Avenue "C" Jazz,'' North Texas Jazz, 06032 JR (released 2009; but recorded by the 2005-06 band) * ''The Best of the Big O'' (2005) CD * ''Bruce Hall Jazz Music'' (2009) * ''Denton Texas Jazz Giant,'' North Texas Jazz, 07052 JR

Directed Jay Saunders

* ''Too Two'' (2009) CD * ''Under The Radar'' (2010) CD * ''Two Twos'' (2011-2012) 2 CDS * ''Kind of Two'' (2013) CD

Directors

Jim Riggs James Garland Riggs (born July 28, 1941) is an American saxophonist in classical and jazz idioms, big band director, collegiate music educator, and international music clinician. He is also a University of North Texas Regents Professor Emeritus . ...

(retired 2008) *

Jay Saunders Jay Saunders ''(né'' John Henry Saunders III; born 29 June 1944 Sacramento, California) is an American trumpeter and music educator at the collegiate level. In the 1970s, Saunders was a lead trumpeter with big bands — notably the Stan Kenton Or ...

(fall 2008 to spring 2014. Also fall semester of 2005, when Jim Riggs was on sabbatical) * Rodney Booth (fall 2014 to spring 2019) * Rob Parton (fall 2019 to present)

Notable Two O'Clock Alumni (who never played in the One O'Clock)

Kirk Covington Kirk Covington is a drummer best known for his work with the jazz fusion group Tribal Tech. Covington was born in Midland, Texas, where he attended the University of North Texas College of Music, where he met bassist Gary Willis, with whom he l ...

Michael Daugherty Michael Kevin Daugherty (born April 28, 1954) is an American composer, pianist, and teacher. He is influenced by popular culture, Romanticism, and Postmodernism. Daugherty's notable works include his Superman comic book-inspired '' Metropolis S ...

Dennis Irwin __NOTOC__ Dennis Irwin (November 28, 1951 in Birmingham, Alabama - March 10, 2008) was an American jazz double bassist. He toured and recorded with John Scofield and the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra among others, and played on over 500 albums. Bi ...

(1951–2008)

References

External links

''Best of the Big O'' review by Jack Bowers, allaboutjazz.com''Bruce Hall Jazz Music'' review by Jack Bowers, allaboutjazz.com
{{Authority control American jazz ensembles from Texas Big bands Swing music University of North Texas Musical groups from Denton, Texas

Music Music is generally defined as the The arts, art of arranging sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Exact definition of music, definitions of mu ...

Jazz musicians from Texas