Darcy James Argue
@darcyjamesargue
Composer-Ringleader • darcyjamesargue.com • With Every Breath I Take out now on Nonesuch Records
Of course, BB&B is a famous piece. The outline of the story is well-known: Duke premiered the 50-minute, three-movement work, which he called a “tone parallel to the history of the American Negro,” at his Carnegie Hall debut in January 1943, and again a few days later at Boston’s Symphony Hall.
Deeply honored to be awarded Arranger of the Year for the third consecutive year in the DownBeat Critics Poll! Thanks to all the scribes working in the trenches who continue to write passionately about the jazz world.
It’s release day for With Every Breath I Take, my much-anticipated orchestral album featuring Cecile McLorin Salvant and the Metropole Orkest, conducted by Jules Buckley.
Ahhh, nothing like the quiet contemplation of a masterpiece…
I love that these monuments are still regularly adorned with flowers — a reminder of the ongoing importance this historic act of resistance to fascism still holds for the people here in Czechia.
Today I got to visit two deeply moving memorials to the ANTHROPOID paratroopers: a tall monument at the fateful bend in the road where it happened, and the crypt where Kubiś and Gabčik hid, and eventually met their end.
“You might wonder if we really need another version of ‘Send In The Clowns’ until you hear this one.” list.co.uk/news/cecile-...
Weirdly, this photo of Vox Luminis seems to have not posted, but here it is again.
Of course, one of the quirks of “the way it was originally performed” is that the musicians — for this performance, the amazing Belgian early music vocal ensemble Vox Luminis — are located on the back balcony of the church, up by the main organ, the Sauer-organ.
Oh hi there… just casually announcing the culmination of my second season as Composer-in-Residence of the hr-Bigband - Frankfurt Radio Big Band, with our special guest Walter Smith III. Walter is the consummate musician’s musician, admired by just about everyone on the scene.
Very excited to welcome @wsmiththree to Frankfurt as our guest artist this week! It’s been a blast arranging this music and working on it with the great players in the Frankfurt Radio Big Band. Can’t wait to put the finishing touches on it with Walter over the next couple of days!
I’m also thrilled to announce the guests for my third season: Bill Frisell and Cecile McLorin Salvant.
Greetings from Frankfurt, where next week I will be closing out my second season as Composer-in-Residence with the Frankfurt Radio Big Band with a concert featuring Walter Smith III.
This syllabus reads like the instructor read the liner notes to Dynamic Maximum Tension and decided to build their course around the specific technologies I was complaining about.
When I was in Basel, I bought a watch from the last independent watchmaker in town. Partly it was because they have a cool name (Zeno) and cool designs, but mostly it’s because the ability to make watches is one of the greatest human achievements, and I don’t want us to forget how to do this.
I guess we are now in our ouroboros phase, where AI firms are marketing themselves based on what a horrorshow GenAI is
I have spent the last 10 days in Basel working with this quintet of fantastic young musicians who make up the Jazzcampus Focusyear group, a one-year ensemble intensive modeled after the Herbie Hancock Institute.
Just happened to be walking by the Stadtcasino Basel after dinner and couldn’t resist a selfie with Molly’s book. (If you know, you know.) @mollycrabapple.bsky.social