The Toronto Jazz Orchestra

Read on for a general bio for the band or meet the musicians.

Formed in 1998, the Toronto Jazz Orchestra is an 18-piece big band made up of graduates from Toronto’s top university and college jazz programs – some of Toronto’s best young jazz musicians. Performing exciting and interesting big band music – from the leading edge of contemporary composition to the classic tunes of the past – the Toronto Jazz Orchestra seeks to educate, entertain, and increase the public’s understanding and appreciation of jazz.

Over the past thirteen years the Toronto Jazz Orchestra has performed regularly at Toronto’s Rex Hotel. The ensemble won top prize at the Markham Jazz Festival’s Jazz Stars of the Future competition in 2000, and has appeared in the JVC, Beaches, Lakefield, Markham and Toronto Jazz Festivals.

As part of their regular performance schedule, the Toronto Jazz Orchestra has undertaken several special projects: in 2001 they released their self-titled inaugural compact disc to strong reviews and presented the Cuban Fire Suite as recorded by the Stan Kenton Orchestra; in 2002 they presented an evening with Phil Nimmons, featuring a performance of The Atlantic Suite. In 2003 they released their second compact disc, Under A Tree, which exclusively features original Canadian compositions. In 2004 they created the Young Composers Competition, designed to encourage the creation of new works for big band by young Canadian composers, and presented a tribute to the the music of Stan Kenton.

In 2005 the ensemble performed in Collingwood and Sarnia and presented a sold-out performance with Grammy-winning vocalist Kurt Elling; the fall of 2005 featured a visit from Jim McNeely and a tribute to the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra. In 2006 the Toronto Jazz Orchestra performed with New York saxophonist Seamus Blake and was nominated for a 2006 National Jazz Award in the Best Big Band category; the following year they presented the Music of Duke Ellington, including a full performance of the Such Sweet Thunder suite, and a special performance of music from West Side Story, featuring 12 new arrangements by 5 local composers. The 2008-2009 season, the ensemble’s 10th anniversary, featured the release of The Path, their third full-length CD, and a performance with acclaimed Canadian trumpeter Ingrid Jensen as part of the Toronto Jazz Festival. During the 2009-2010 season the TJO presented a tribute to Buddy Rich, their first ever Call for Scores, and a performance with internationally acclaimed pianist Geoffrey Keezer during the TD Toronto Jazz Festival. The 2010-2011 season featured an evening of funk at The Rex Hotel, the second annual Call for Scores, and, with guest trumpeter Kevin Turcotte, a performance of the original Gil Evans arrangements from the Evans/Miles Davis collaboration Miles Ahead.

Toronto Jazz Orchestra founder, Artistic Director and Conductor Josh Grossman is a graduate of the University of Toronto’s Jazz Performance Program where he studied trumpet with Chase Sanborn and Kevin Turcotte. He has performed in big bands under the direction of Phil Nimmons, Paul Read, Ron Collier and Paul Ashwell, and has played with The Whitney Smith Big Steam Band, Freeflight, the Array Jazz Orchestra, the Hamilton All-Star Jazz Band and the Chris Hunt Tentet. From 2006 to 2009 Josh was Artistic Director of the Markham Jazz Festival; Josh has been Artistic Director for Toronto Downtown Jazz, which produces the annual TD Toronto Jazz Festival, since January, 2010. In addition to his work in the jazz world, Josh has been Administrator for Continuum Contemporary Music since 2007.