JazzMN Orchestra Debuts A New Artistic Director, JC Sanford, And Announces New Season

JazzMN Orchestra returns to Chanhassen Dinner Theatres (CDT) with a new Artistic Director, JC Sanford for their 2019-2020 season. As Minnesota's premier big band, JazzMN has performed to sold-out audiences across the Twin Cities. JazzMN Orchestra is happy to welcome Jazz lovers and novices alike to their new season. The new season begins October 7 on CDT's Main Stage. For $99, a season subscription (for all three events) is available.

Sanford is a Minnesota native with an impressive background in Jazz and Classical music. He earned a Doctorate of Music Arts (D.M.A.) in Jazz Studies from New England Conservatory (NEC). On top of conducting NEC's Little Big Band, Sanford is an accomplished composer. He is a founding member of the composers' federation "Pulse" and a founder of the Twin Cities Jazz Composers Workshop alongside his wife Asuka Kakitani, trumpeter Adam Meckler and saxophonist Aaron Hedenstrom. Sanford conducts the Grammy-nominated John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble as well as many other ensembles and orchestras. In 2016, Sanford, formerly of New York City, returned to his Minnesota roots with his family. "I'm so excited to take the reins of this great band and carry on the legacy that Doug Snapp established 20 years ago."

UPCOMING CONCERTS

Monday, October 7, JazzMN Orchestra begins their 2019-2020 season with "GERSHWIN, BASIE & MORE." George Gershwin was one of the most prolific composers of American popular music, with an immense catalog still performed to this day. Big band legend, Count Basie, paved the way for composers and arrangers like Benny Carter, Frank Foster, and Quincy Jones, to name a few. The soulful songstress Debbie Duncan returns as the featured vocalist.

Monday, December 16, JazzMN Orchestra brings the heat this holiday season with "LET IT SWING." An evening dedicated to jazzy renditions of holiday hits including, "Winter

-more-

Wonderland," "Little Drummer Boy," "Adeste Fideles" and "Jingle Bells." Along with guest vocalist, Yolande Bruce, of Moore by Four, JazzMN Orchestra will have audiences shaking and snapping the holiday blues away.

Monday, April 20, 2019, JazzMN Orchestra is ecstatic to perform with the Grammy Award-winning vocalist, LUCIANA SOUZA. As one of Jazz's leading singers and interpreters, Ms. Souza is hailed for her transcendental and unparalleled sound. She performed with Herbie Hancock on the Grammy Award-winning record, "River - The Joni Letters". Other notable musicians she has collaborated with include Paul Simon, James Taylor, Danilo Perez, Bobby McFerrin and Maria Schneider. Ms. Souza's orchestral credits include the New York Philharmonic, the Atlanta Symphony, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic among others. Recently, Ms. Souza was a prominent soloist in "La Pasión según San Marcos" with the Minnesota Orchestra. In 2005 and 2013 Luciana was awarded Best Female Jazz Singer by the Jazz Journalists Association. Together, JazzMN Orchestra and Luciana Souza will provide a captivating and magical evening for the audience.

MinnPost entertainment columnist, Pamela Espeland, describes a JazzMN performance as: "...exciting. All those musicians, swinging hard. Horns blaring. Hot solos... And the sound. It's big in a concert hall, tremendous in a room...you feel it on your skin and in your bones."

JazzMN concerts are for audiences of all ages. Reservations are highly recommended. Show-Only tickets are available for $38; Dinner & Show tickets are $53. Guests may purchase a Season Subscription (Dinner & Show) for $99. Dinner seating begins at 5:30pm; concert time is 7:30pm. Groups of 12 or more person may call Group Sales at 952-934-1547. For tickets, call the Box Office at 952-934-1525 or visit ChanhassenDT.com

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