Jorgenson to play with orchestra at WCHS
Jorgenson, a three-time winner of the Academy of Country Music’s Guitarist of the Year award, was born into the music business.
Jorgenson worked for eight years with Disneyland’s jazz and bluegrass group. He earned respect as a guitarist for his work with the Byrds, Rose Maddox, Roy Orbison, Bob Dylan, John Prine, Bonnie Raitt and Dan Fogelberg. He has also recorded and toured with Elton John.
In 1986, he became a founding member of the Desert Rose Band. In spite of No. 1 hits and numerous awards, Jorgenson left Desert Rose in 1992 and formed the Hellecasters with Will Ray and Jerry Donahue. The readers of Guitar Player magazine voted “The Return of the Hellecasters,” their debut album, Album of the Year and Country Album of the Year in 1993.
Although perhaps better known in the pop, country and rock world, gypsy jazz is the style of music closest to Jorgenson’s heart. His articles and lessons on gypsy jazz have appeared in many prominent guitar magazines and he has given master classes around the country.
Jorgenson will be playing with the Nashville Chamber Orchestra, which has come to be recognized as one of America’s most creative and innovative orchestras. Under the leadership of founder and music director Paul Gambill, the extraordinary music making of this ensemble has garnered a steady stream of national media attention plus recordings for Warner Bros, Angel, Almanac and Alabaster Records.
The Nashville Chamber Orchestra has commissioned and premiered an impressive 35 works by American composers in the past seven years, more than any other orchestra in the country. NCO presents masterpieces from the traditional repertory alongside new works commissioned by the NCO that fuse the chamber orchestra tradition with the musical genres of folk, jazz, Celtic, bluegrass, country, and Latin, American song.
In June 2004, NCO made its Bonnaroo debut, performing with Phish’s Trey Anastasio for over 90,000 fans. In 2003 and 2004 the orchestra performed as part of the Vince Gill and Amy Grant “Simply Christma” tour, taking the orchestra to over 200,000 people across the country.
In October, the orchestra released its first kids’ album, an eclectic collection of songs resulting from a remarkable partnership between Kid Pan Alley, Nashville/Davidson Metro Schools, and the NCO entitled “Kid Pan Alley – Nashville” and featured such celebrity artists as Amy Grant, Kix Brooks, Suzy Bogguss, Raul Malo, Beth Nielson Chapman and a host of others.
In concert
Who: John Jorgenson and the Nashville Chamber Orchestra string quintet and rhythm section
When: Sunday, April 17
Where: Warren County High School
Time: 2 p.m.
Tickets: $10 and are available at the door or through McMinnville-Warren County Chamber of Commerce 473-6611.