University of Miami School of Music

Contact: Annette Herrera

305.284.1607

February 9, 2005

FROST MUSIC SCHOOL COMMISSIONED COMPOSITION

NOMINATED FOR GRAMMY

CORAL GABLES, FL – “Three Romances”, a composition commissioned for and performed by the University of Miami Concert Jazz Band, has been nominated for a Grammy in the category of Best Instrumental Composition.

Maria Schneider, a former UM student, composed the work with a grant from the Abraham Frost Endowment, named for School of Music namesake Phillip Frost’s father.

The piece for which Schneider is nominated runs over 25 minutes and features three different musical styles. The first movement, “Choro Dancado,” is punctuated by a distinct Brazilian sound. “Pas de Deux,” the second movement, slows down the tempo to a wistful French danseuse, while “Danca Ilusoria,” the final movement, is a smooth, romantic foxtrot.

The composition was written in 2001 and recorded and produced in 2002 in Maurice Gusman Concert Hall, located within the Frost School of Music complex at the university’s Coral Gables campus. Studio Music and Jazz Department Chair Whit Sidener co-produced and directed the band.

Schneider is the recipient of two Jazz Journalist Awards for ‘Best Composer’ and two for ‘Best Arranger’. She established the Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra in 1993, which has performed at Jazz festivals and concert halls across the country as well as in Europe and South America, and has received a Jazz Journalist Award for ‘Best Big Band’. The orchestra is up for three Grammys this year for its latest album, ‘Concert in the Garden’, including Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album, Best Jazz Instrumental Solo, and Best Instrumental Composition, the second nomination in the final category for Schneider.

The 47^th Annual Grammy Awards are scheduled for Sunday, February 13, at 8 pm on CBS. For more information about the School of Music, visit their Web site at www.music.miami.edu .

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