Wycliffe Gordon is a renowned trombonist, composer, conductor, arranger and educator. He was most recently named Best Trombone by the Downbeat Critics Poll 2018, Jazz Journalists Association Trombonist of the year nine times since 2000 and the ASCAP Plus award winner for 2014-17. He has performed with the Wynton Marsalis Septet, Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and with many icons of jazz— Billy Taylor, Dizzy Gillespie, Lionel Hampton, Tommy Flanagan, Shirley Horne, Joe Henderson, and Branford Marsalis, to name just a few. His commissions include I Saw the Light, a musical tribute to Muhammad Ali, Within Our Gates, a silent movie score for Jazzmobile, a 75th anniversary tribute for the Apollo Theater, and Beyond the Blackberry Patch for the city of Columbus Ohio.
An avid educator, Gordon is Professor of Studies at Manhattan School of Music and Juilliard and is a frequent Artist in Residence. He has 29 CDs and counting on the Chesky and Criss Cross labels. His TV, radio and film appearances include, the 2000 Grammy Awards, Swingin’ with the Duke, a PBS special, Uptown Blues, Ellington at 100 with the New York Philharmonic, Jazz, the Ken Burns documentary Jazz, and others. Wycliffe Gordon is the youngest member of the U.S. Statesmen of Jazz and continues to serve as a musical ambassador for the U.S. State Department. Wycliffe arranged the theme song for NPR’s “All Things Considered” heard around the world every day. Wycliffe Gordon is a Yamaha Artist. This is his third Litchfield Jazz Festival appearance.
In 2006 Wycliffe received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Scranton (PA) for “positive and productive interaction, honest communication, commonality of soul, and a music that celebrates triumph of the human spirit over adversity.” That about sums it up for Mr. Gordon. Bravo!
