XYZ

“XYZ” was Bob's response to his landmark composition “ABC Blues,” written for the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra in the late 1960s. “XYZ” was written during a pivotal period in Bob's writing when he was the musical director for the Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra in the early 1980s. This piece went un-recorded (and un-played) for many years until the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra recorded it on their new album, Over Time: The Music of Bob Brookmeyer. This is a fantastic piece of modern music that has moments of twentieth-century classical music right alongside some of the most swinging music you can imagine. There are solos for Soprano, Tenor, Trumpet, Trombone, and Drums.

It should be noted that there is a French horn part and Percussion part in addition to the “regular” big band instrumentation. These could be omitted, but it is strongly suggested that they are included as they are part of Bob's originals score and add a lot of depth to the chart.