Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Mitch Glickman. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Mitch thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?
Becoming a professional musician is a major risk. Becoming a professional artist of any kind (film maker, dancer, visual artist, actor, chef) is a major risk. It takes 49% talent, 50% uncompromising work ethic, 62% belief in yourself, and 71% blind faith that even when things are looking grim, it will get better. (Alright, so math was never my strong suit.)
I think most creatives will tell you a life in the arts was not really so much of a decision, but something they just had to do. For me, music completed my DNA.
What is taking a risk is having two young daughters, no health insurance or steady employment, and using the little bit of savings you have to start an orchestra. For 15 years I had the incredible experience of working with a musician who founded an ensemble I had always dreamed about – a group that combined jazz and classical elements. His name was Jack Elliott, and he was music director of the American Jazz Philharmonic. Following his death, I took the leap of faith and started my own orchestra from the bottom-up. That entails creating a non-profit organization (Symphonic Jazz Orchestra), building a Board of Directors – and lots of fundraising and grant writing!
This was clearly never a financial decision, but artistically gave me the voice I was seeking to perpetuate this unique genre of symphonic jazz. The orchestra commissions, performs and records music that blends the worlds of jazz and classical music. 21 years later, we are still kicking. So yes, following your dream can work out. The unflappable support of my wife, daughters, friends and family are certainly a vital ingredient to the journey. Now the SJO has its sights set on the next 21 years!
Mitch, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I am a composer, conductor and producer. In 2001, I founded the 68-member Symphonic Jazz Orchestra – the world’s largest jazz band. Think of a symphony orchestra and a big band fused together. The ensemble is comprised of Hollywood’s finest studio musicians and jazz soloists. The group is dedicated to commissioning, performing and recording this special blend of jazz and classical music, and has featured such soloists as Christian McBride, Dave Grusin, Keyon Harrold, Lee Ritenour, Miguel Zénon, Jane Monheit, Chris Brubeck, The Yellowjackets, and George Duke, who served as Co-Music Director until his passing in 2013.
Since I was a teenager, I’ve been fascinated by the interplay between this centuries old tradition of classical, orchestral music and the (relatively) new sound and rhythms of jazz and its many musical offspring. Over the years, the Symphonic Jazz Orchestra has commissioned dozens of new works that have been premiered in leading concert halls across Southern California. In 2015 we released a recording on Mack Avenue Records that featured commissioned works by George Duke, “Dark Wood” Bass Concerto for McBride” featuring soloist Christian McBride, and “Symphonic Captain’s Journey” from guitarist/composer Lee Ritenour. The final work on the album was the piece that kickstarted the symphonic jazz movement 100 years ago – George Gershwin’s “A Rhapsody in Blue” that featured piano soloist Bill Cunliffe.
In 2006, the Symphonic Jazz Orchestra launched its “Music in the Schools” program, which started in 4 classrooms and is now in 175 classrooms in Watts, Compton, Lennox, Long Beach, Culver City and South L.A. The program provides yearlong music residencies for students from Kindergarten through 5th grade.
Other projects include film and television scores for the independent film “Street of Pain” starring Steve Carell and “Proudheart” starring Lorrie Morgan, and the series Night Court, Cheers, Wildside and the annual Grammy Awards Telecast. I host the weekly radio series “Beyond Symphonic Jazz” on KJazz 88.1 FM where I’ve interviewed such musical greats as Wayne Shorter, Pat Metheny, Ian Anderson, George Benson, Chick Corea, Terri Lyne Carrington and Lalo Schifrin. I also serve as Director of Music Programs for LACMA, producing the Jazz at LACMA, Latin Sounds, and Art & Music concert series.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
The Symphonic Jazz Orchestra was set to make its concert debut on Sept. 23, 2001. Unfortunately, the 9/11 attacks weeks earlier forced the postponement of that concert. We rescheduled for November, but audiences were not ready to come back to the concert hall then. We finally debuted in March 2002 with an amazing concert featuring a pair of newly commissioned works along with some classic pieces from the symphonic jazz repertoire.
While the concert was a tremendous success, the previous two cancelled concerts left us starting the organization with a $50,000 deficit. Any sane individual would have packed it in and cut their losses right then and there. But whether you call it resilience, stubbornness or stupidity, we kept on going. It took 10 years for the organization to get out of debt.
That’s also how long it took for me to draw a salary and hire our first staff person. Now we have an incredible and dedicated staff of four with a budget over $600,000. We weathered a major economic downturn, subsequent cuts to arts funding, and a pandemic, but continue to grow and expand our work.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.SJOmusic.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sjomusic/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/symphonicjazzorchestra
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sjomusic
Image Credits
Julie Sterling Photography