Jeff Tyzik
is an American conductor, arranger, and trumpeter from Rochester, New York, working primarily with orchestral and jazz styles.
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Education
Tyzik, born in
Hyde Park, New York, started playing
cornet at age 9
[1]. He attended college at the
Eastman School of Music in Rochester, earning
Bachelor of Music (1973) and
Master of Music (1977) degrees
[2].
Early career
While at Eastman, Tyzik met Rochesterian
Chuck Mangione, who was teaching at the school at the time. Tyzik worked with Mangione between 1973 and 1980. During this time, Tyzik also began a long collaboration with
Doc Severinsen, when Severinsen brought Tyzik to
London to work on two albums with the
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Tyzik recorded six albums as a solo trumpeter between 1981 and 1990, appearing on
Capitol Records,
Polydor Records (
PolyGram), and
Amherst Records. He performed in the Rochester area with his own
big band in the late 1980s and early 1990s. During this time, Tyzik was also busy with Severinsen, serving as arranger and record producer for Severinsen and the
Tonight Show Band. Tyzik won a
Grammy Award in 1987 for producing the 1986 album
The Tonight Show Band with Doc Severinsen
.
In addition to Severinsen, Tyzik has arranged music and produced records for
Maynard Ferguson, the
Woody Herman Orchestra, and Chuck Mangione.
With the Rochester Philharmonic
In 1994, Tyzik was named Principal Pops Conductor of the
Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, a position he still holds. Since then, he has established himself as one of the country's preeminent
Pops conductors and arrangers, acting as Principal Pops Conductor for the RPO, the
Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and the
Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, and as guest conductor for numerous other orchestras in the U.S.,
Canada, and even
Monte Carlo. He also conducted the
Brass Band of Battle Creek for a 1996 independent album.
His arrangements of popular and jazz tunes for full orchestra have been widely performed. Publisher
G. Schirmer commissioned Tyzik to arrange some of
Duke Ellington's jazz suites for orchestra, including
Black, Brown and Beige
and
The Nutcracker Suite
. The Royal Philharmonic, the
Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, and the
Summit Brass have all recorded music arranged or composed by Tyzik.
Tyzik has recently begun branching out into more traditional orchestral styles, conducting a few RPO concerts outside of the Pops series. At one such concert, he premiered his own
Concerto for Trombone and Orchestra
, and later premiered his
wind ensemble orchestration of the same piece with the
Eastman Wind Ensemble at
Carnegie Hall.
Most recently, a recording by the RPO, with Tyzik conducting and
Jon Nakamatsu on piano, of
George Gershwin's
Piano Concerto in F
,
Rhapsody in Blue
, and
Cuban Overture
peaked at #3 on the
Billboard classical charts. The album, released
8 May 2007 on the
Harmonia Mundi label, received very positive reviews, with
David Hurwitz calling it "unquestionably the best Gershwin disc to come along in years
[3]."
As a conductor, Tyzik is well regarded for his innovative yet accessible programming. He's noted for teaching the RPO how to swing, and for his easy rapport with audiences.
Currently, Tyzik lives in Rochester with his wife, Jill. Their daughter is
mezzo-soprano Jami Tyzik.
Discography
Solo
- Farthest Corner of My Mind
(1979, independent; 1981, Capitol; 1986, Amherst)
- Prophecy
(1980, independent)
- Radiance
(1982, Capitol)
- Jammin' in Manhattan
(1984, Polydor)
- Smile
(1985, Polydor)
- Distant Dreams
(1990, Amherst)
Conductor
- George Gershwin: Piano Concerto in F
, Rhapsody in Blue
, Cuban Overture
(2007, Harmonia Mundi) (Jon Nakamatsu, piano; Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra)
Notes
References
- Jeff Tyzik performs with the Oregon Symphony
- Eastman School of Music Class Notes
- RPO's Gershwin CD gets rave reviews