Up from the Skies

THE VANGUARD JAZZ ORCHESTRA: UP FROM THE SKIES, MUSIC OF JIM MCNEELY Up From The Skies, The Music of Jim McNeely is the fifth recording by the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra (VJO) since the passing of Mel Lewis and documents a collaboration between one of the world’s most respected composers with one of the finest practitioners of jazz orchestra music. . Jim McNeely is currently composer-in-residence and pianist with the VJO. His compositions explore uncharted musical territory and his innovative style expands the vocabulary of his predecessors, Thad Jones and Bob Brookmeyer. This recording was made possible through generous grants from, The National Endowment for the Arts, The Aaron Copland Fund for Music, The Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust and The New York State Council on the Arts.