Orchestra History

We are looking back at over 25 years of national and international live performances and album releases. For the orchestra’s more detailed recent concert history, please see our past tour calendars.

1995-1997

The Scottish National Jazz Orchestra is established in 1995

Concerts

miscellaneous programmes

In An Ellington Mood

1995-1997

1998

Concerts

The Solar Suite

Planet Wave
with legendary poet Edwin Morgan

The Wheeler Suite
featuring virtuoso trumpeter Kenny Wheeler 

Sketches Of Spain & Porgy & Bess
featuring Gerard Presencer

1998

1999

Concerts

Planet Wave
with legendary poet Edwin Morgan

Famous Scots Present and Past

In An Ellington Mood featuring Carol Kidd, Joe Temperley and Bobby Watson

Ellington’s Nutcracker and Toot’s Suite

1999

2000

Concerts

Celebrating Sinatra and Torah
with Joe Lovano

In An Ellington Mood

Benny Goodman
with Ken Peplowski

Miles Ahead and Birth of the Cool
with Ingrid Jensen

2000

2001

Concerts

The Music of Maria Schneider

The Edinburgh Suite

Count Basie Tribute

Beauty & the Beast
with David Liebman

The Music of Charles Mingus

2001

2002

Concerts

Count Basie Tribute

Lilacs & Laughter – A Day in the Life of… by Florian Ross

Classic Jazz – with Rebecca Kilgore,
Scott Hamilton, Harry Allen and Dan Barrett

Release

SNJO album - Miles Ahead

2002

2003

Concerts

Count Basie

The Music of Billy Strayhorn

The Music of Charles Mingus

Ellington’s Nutcracker Suite

The Orcadian Suite

The Music of Goran Strandberg

The Music of Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays

2003

2004

Concerts

The Music of Oliver Nelson

The Music of Charles Mingus

The Music of Thelonious Monk

Stan Kenton Tribute

Ellington’s Nutcracker

2004

2005

Concerts

The Music of Keith Tippett
and Geoffrey Keezer

The Music of Thelonious Monk

Stan Kenton Tribute

The Music of Chick Corea
featuring Gary Novak

2005

2006

Concerts

Benny Carter/Count Basie Tribute feat. Brian Kellock and the Kansas City Suite

The Music of Stan Kenton

George Gershwin’s Rhapsody In Blue featuring Brian Kellock

Tribute to Dizzy Gillespie

Release

SNJO album - Rhapsody In Blue

2006

2007

Concerts

The Music of Ray Charles, Joe Williams, Thad Jones & Mel Lewis w/Tam White

Celebration of the 40th of John Coltrane

Rhapsody In Blue featuring Brian Kellock

The Music of Woody Herman

2007

2008

Concerts

Rhapsody In Blue
featuring Brian Kellock

Jazz Toons featuring the voice of Maureen McMullan

Three Decades of Steely Dan
The Music of Ray Charles, Joe Williams, Thad Jones & Mel Lewis w/Tam White

New Tango: A Hommage to Piazzolla & Brazilian Scenes featuring Mario Caribe

2008

2009

Concerts

Traps the Drum Wonder – A Tribute to Buddy Rich featuring Alyn Cosker

Rhapsody In Blue
featuring Brian Kellock

The Music of Woody Herman

Music of Steely Dan
featuring Graeme Scott

The Music of Wayne Shorter
featuring Gary Burton

2009

2010

Concerts

Electric Miles & Loud Jazz featuring John Scofield

World of the Gods featuring Mugenkyo Taiko Drummers

Torah featuring Tommy Smith
Porgy & Bess with Gunther Schuller and Joe Lovano

Celebrating ECM with Arild Andersen

Rhapsody in Blue featuring Brian Kellock

The Music of Ray Charles, Joe Williams, Thad Jones & Mel Lewis w/Tam White

Release

2010

2011

Concerts

Beauty and the Beast & Torah
featuring Bill Evans

World of the Gods
featuring Mugenkyo Taiko Drummers

Rhapsody in Blue
featuring Makoto Ozone

An Evening with Jacqui Dankworth

Celebrating ECM with Arild Andersen

The Culloden Moor and Caledonian Suites with Bobby Wellins

2011

2012

Concerts

In The Spirit of Duke

An Evening with Kurt Elling

Torah – featuring Tommy Smith

A Concert with Julian Arquelles, Ru Pattison & Sylvain Rifflet

Celebrating Michael Brecker – featuring Randy Brecker

The Music of Weather Report with Peter Erskine

Release

SNJO album - Celebration

2012

2013

Concerts

Jazz Toons
featuring Jacqui Dankworth

The Music of Wayne Shorter
featuring Branford Marsalis

In The Spirit of Duke & Rhapsody in Blue

Day & Nite
featuring David Liebman

The Incredible Sound of Kenton

Miles Ahead & Birth of the Cool
featuring Paolo Fresu

Release

SNJO album - In The Spirit Of Duke

2013

2014

Concerts

Jazz Toons
featuring Jacqui Dankworth

The Music of Wayne Shorter
featuring Branford Marsalis

In The Spirit of Duke & Rhapsody in Blue

Day & Nite
featuring David Liebman

The Incredible Sound of Kenton

Miles Ahead & Birth of the Cool
featuring Paolo Fresu

Releases

American Adventure

2014

2015

Concerts

Mozart’s 9th Piano concerto
featuring Makoto Ozone

Courtney Pine: Revisiting Coltrane

An Evening with Kurt Elling: Syntopicon

Jazz Toons
featuring Jacqui Dankworth

In The Spirit of Duke

The Music of the Yellowjackets
featuring Bob Mintzer

JACO! The Music of Jaco Pastorius feat Laurence Cottle, Gareth Lockrane & Marcio Doctor

Release

Makoto Ozone with the SNJO - Jeunnehomme

2015

2016

Concerts

Mike Stern Meets the SNJO

The Music of Brubeck
with John Nugent and Bill Dobbins

The Music of Steps Ahead
featuring Mike Mainieri

The Jazz Legacy of Charles Mingus
featuring Arild Andersen

The Legend of Charlie Parker

A Christmas Festival of Jazz with the SNJO and TSYJO

Release

SNJO Beauty And The Beast with Bill Evans

2016

2017

Concerts

The Songs of Mancini & Mandel featuring Joe Locke and Kenny Washington

Porgy & Bess / Sketches of Spain with Tom Macniven and Laura Jurd

Electric Contact: A Jazz Tribute to Tom McGrath with Tam Dean Burn

In the Spirit of Django with Martin Taylor

Spirit of Light with Kurt Elling and Cappella Nova

2017

2018

Concerts

The SNJO at Ronnie Scott’s, London: The Music of Mancini & Mandel with Joe Locke + Jazz Legacy of Charles Mingus with Arild Andersen

Peter and the Wolf / Carnival of Animals with Tam Dean Burn and Makoto Ozone

Kenny Wheeler’s Sweet Sister Suite / Music of Mary Lou Williams with Laura Jurd & Irini Arabatzi

Jazz Re-Imagined – Jazz Masters arranged and conducted by Florian Ross

The Count & The Duke

Release

2018

2019

Concerts

The SNJO at Ronnie Scott’s, London: Peter and the Wolf with Tam Dean Burn + Alba: Songs of Scotland with Eddi Reader

Norse Myths with Arild Andersen, Patrice Héral, Tommy Smith

New Waves: Antonio Carlos Jobim / Fats Waller

Peter and the Wolf – USA and Japan Tour

Sketches of Spain at the Edinburgh Film Festival

An American Journey with Bill Evans
The Artistry of Jazzmeia Horn

Release

Peter And The Wolf

2019

2020

Concerts

The SNJO at Ronnie Scott’s, London: Alba: Songs of Scotland – feat. Eddi Reader + Torah + Atomic Mr Basie

Planet Wave feat. actor Niall Greig Fulton

SNJO 25 – Jazz: Past, Present, Future

2020

2021

Concerts

Where Rivers Meet
featuring Maria Rudd

2021
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