Fred Sturm
Encyclopedia
Frederick I. Sturm is a jazz composer, arranger
, and teacher.
Sturm studied at Lawrence University
, the University of North Texas College of Music
, and the Eastman School of Music
. He played trombone and performed with the jazz nonet Matrix
from 1974 to 1977. He served as Director of Jazz Studies at Lawrence University from 1977 to 1991, then joined the Eastman School of Music faculty as professor of jazz composition/arranging, conductor of the Eastman Jazz Ensemble and Studio Orchestra, and chair of the Eastman Jazz Studies and Contemporary Media Department. In 2002, he returned home to Wisconsin to direct the Lawrence University Jazz and Improvisational Music Department and hold the Kimberly-Clark
Endowed Professorship in Music.
Sturm resides in DePere, Wisconsin with Susan, his wife for over 30 years. His son Ike Sturm
is a New York City
bassist, composer, educator, and Assistant to the Director of Music for the Jazz Ministry at Saint Peter's Church
in Manhattan
. Daughter Madeline Sturm is a New York based artist and musician.
; the NDR (Norddeutscher Rundfunk) Big Band in Hamburg
; the Bohuslän Big Band in Gothenburg
, Sweden; the Klüvers Big Band in Aarhus
, Denmark; the Arendal Big Band in Arendal, Norway; and numerous collegiate and state honors high school jazz ensembles in the USA. He has served as a visiting professor at Det Jyske Musikkonservatorium (Royal Conservatory) in Denmark and the Associazone Italian Gordon per l'Apprendimento Musicale in Rome. Down Beat
magazine has cited his university jazz ensembles with 9 Student Music Awards. He is a co-owner of Tritone Jazz Fantasy Camps.
from 22 countries, was premiered by vocalist Bobby McFerrin
and the NDR Big Band in 2007 and toured Europe the following summer. He arranged and recorded two extensive CD projects, Libertango: Hommage an Astor Piazzolla and Do It Again: Three Decades of Steely Dan with the HR Big Band.
His original work Abstract Image won the 2003 ASCAP/IAJE Commission in Honor of Quincy Jones. He is the Artistic Director, composer, and arranger for The Baseball Music Project, a concert program collaboration with the Baseball Hall of Fame that has been performed by the Boston Pops and symphony orchestras in Chicago, Seattle, Houston, Miami, Detroit, Indianapolis, Phoenix, and San Diego.
While studying at the University of North Texas College of Music
in the 1970s, Sturm was a member of the One O'Clock Lab Band
, which has produced dozens of professionally engineered albums, of which are part of UNT Jazz Department's annual Lab Band recording project launched in 1967. On Lab 2010 (released September 2010), the One O'Clock Lab Band
recorded Sturm's recent arrangement, Pretzel Logic
, a composition by Walter Becker
and Donald Fagen
. Pretzel Logic was the title cut on a 1974 album by Steely Dan
.
), and Kenny Wheeler: Collected Works on ECM (Universal Edition). His compositions and arrangements are published by Universal Edition, Kendor Music, Sierra Music Publications, The Lorenz Corporation, Neil A. Kjos Music Company, Advance Music, and the Donald Hunsberger Wind Library (Alfred Music). He has received commission and research grants from ASCAP, International Association for Jazz Education, NARAS, NEA
, NEH, the Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Fund, and the American Composers Forum
.
Arranger
In investment banking, an arranger is a provider of funds in the syndication of a debt. They are entitled to syndicate the loan or bond issue, and may be referred to as the "lead underwriter". This is because this entity bears the risk of being able to sell the underlying securities/debt or the...
, and teacher.
Sturm studied at Lawrence University
Lawrence University
Lawrence University is a selective, private liberal arts college with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, in Appleton, Wisconsin. Lawrence University is known for its rigorous academic environment. Founded in 1847, the first classes were held on November 12, 1849...
, the University of North Texas College of Music
University of North Texas College of Music
The University of North Texas College of Music, based in Denton, is a comprehensive music school with the largest enrollment of any music institution accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music, and the oldest in the world offering a degree in jazz studies...
, and the Eastman School of Music
Eastman School of Music
The Eastman School of Music is a music conservatory located in Rochester, New York. The Eastman School is a professional school within the University of Rochester...
. He played trombone and performed with the jazz nonet Matrix
Matrix (jazz group)
Matrix is a jazz fusion group from Appleton, Wisconsin, that started in 1974, noted for tight brass ensemble lines and complex musical themes. It made its biggest impact on the music scene in the 1970s, including an appearance at the Monterey Jazz Festival in 1976. The group reformed in 1992,...
from 1974 to 1977. He served as Director of Jazz Studies at Lawrence University from 1977 to 1991, then joined the Eastman School of Music faculty as professor of jazz composition/arranging, conductor of the Eastman Jazz Ensemble and Studio Orchestra, and chair of the Eastman Jazz Studies and Contemporary Media Department. In 2002, he returned home to Wisconsin to direct the Lawrence University Jazz and Improvisational Music Department and hold the Kimberly-Clark
Kimberly-Clark
Kimberly-Clark Corporation is an American corporation that produces mostly paper-based consumer products. Kimberly-Clark brand name products include "Kleenex" facial tissue, "Kotex" feminine hygiene products, "Cottonelle", Scott and Andrex toilet paper, Wypall utility wipes, "KimWipes"...
Endowed Professorship in Music.
Sturm resides in DePere, Wisconsin with Susan, his wife for over 30 years. His son Ike Sturm
Ike Sturm
Ike Sturm is a well known bassist, composer and educator in New York City, USA. Ike Sturm is most known for his work as Assistant Director of Music for the Jazz Ministry at Saint Peter’s Church in Manhattan...
is a New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
bassist, composer, educator, and Assistant to the Director of Music for the Jazz Ministry at Saint Peter's Church
St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church, New York
St Peter's Church is the oldest Roman Catholic parish in New York City and part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York. The church was designated a landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1965. The original church's cornerstone was laid in 1785 and the first...
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
. Daughter Madeline Sturm is a New York based artist and musician.
Conductor/clinician
Sturm has conducted the HR [Hessischer Rundfunk) Big Band in FrankfurtFrankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
; the NDR (Norddeutscher Rundfunk) Big Band in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
; the Bohuslän Big Band in Gothenburg
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden; the Klüvers Big Band in Aarhus
Aarhus
Aarhus or Århus is the second-largest city in Denmark. The principal port of Denmark, Aarhus is on the east side of the peninsula of Jutland in the geographical center of Denmark...
, Denmark; the Arendal Big Band in Arendal, Norway; and numerous collegiate and state honors high school jazz ensembles in the USA. He has served as a visiting professor at Det Jyske Musikkonservatorium (Royal Conservatory) in Denmark and the Associazone Italian Gordon per l'Apprendimento Musicale in Rome. Down Beat
Down Beat
Down Beat is an American magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond" to indicate its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chicago, Illinois...
magazine has cited his university jazz ensembles with 9 Student Music Awards. He is a co-owner of Tritone Jazz Fantasy Camps.
Composer/arranger
Sturm's Migrations, a musical plea for world unity made up of indigenous musicIndigenous music
Indigenous music is a term for the traditional music of the indigenous peoples of the world, that is, the music of an "original" ethnic group that inhabits any geographic region alongside more recent immigrants who may be greater in number...
from 22 countries, was premiered by vocalist Bobby McFerrin
Bobby McFerrin
Robert "Bobby" McFerrin, Jr. is an American vocalist and conductor. He is best known for his 1988 hit song "Don't Worry, Be Happy". He is a ten-time Grammy Award winner.-Life:...
and the NDR Big Band in 2007 and toured Europe the following summer. He arranged and recorded two extensive CD projects, Libertango: Hommage an Astor Piazzolla and Do It Again: Three Decades of Steely Dan with the HR Big Band.
His original work Abstract Image won the 2003 ASCAP/IAJE Commission in Honor of Quincy Jones. He is the Artistic Director, composer, and arranger for The Baseball Music Project, a concert program collaboration with the Baseball Hall of Fame that has been performed by the Boston Pops and symphony orchestras in Chicago, Seattle, Houston, Miami, Detroit, Indianapolis, Phoenix, and San Diego.
While studying at the University of North Texas College of Music
University of North Texas College of Music
The University of North Texas College of Music, based in Denton, is a comprehensive music school with the largest enrollment of any music institution accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music, and the oldest in the world offering a degree in jazz studies...
in the 1970s, Sturm was a member of the One O'Clock Lab Band
One O'Clock Lab Band
The One O’Clock Lab Band for years has been the premier ensemble of the Jazz Studies Division at the University of North Texas College of Music in Denton. The band has performed and toured abroad in Australia, Canada, England, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Norway,...
, which has produced dozens of professionally engineered albums, of which are part of UNT Jazz Department's annual Lab Band recording project launched in 1967. On Lab 2010 (released September 2010), the One O'Clock Lab Band
One O'Clock Lab Band
The One O’Clock Lab Band for years has been the premier ensemble of the Jazz Studies Division at the University of North Texas College of Music in Denton. The band has performed and toured abroad in Australia, Canada, England, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Norway,...
recorded Sturm's recent arrangement, Pretzel Logic
Pretzel Logic
Pretzel Logic is the third studio album by the American jazz-rock band Steely Dan, originally released in 1974. The album's opening song, "Rikki Don't Lose That Number", became the band's biggest hit, reaching #4 on the charts soon after the release of the album. The album itself went gold, and...
, a composition by Walter Becker
Walter Becker
Walter Carl Becker is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the co-founder, guitarist, bassist and a co-writer of Steely Dan.-Career:...
and Donald Fagen
Donald Fagen
Donald Jay Fagen is an American musician and songwriter, best known as the co-founder, lead singer, and the principal songwriter of the rock band Steely Dan ....
. Pretzel Logic was the title cut on a 1974 album by Steely Dan
Steely Dan
Steely Dan is an American rock band; its core members are Donald Fagen and Walter Becker. The band's popularity peaked in the late 1970s, with the release of seven albums blending elements of jazz, rock, funk, R&B, and pop...
.
Publications
Sturm is the author of Changes Over Time: The Evolution of Jazz Arranging (Advance Music), Maria Schneider: Evanescence (Universal EditionUniversal Edition
Universal Edition is a classical music publishing firm. Founded in 1901 in Vienna, and originally intended to provide the core classical works and educational works to the Austrian market...
), and Kenny Wheeler: Collected Works on ECM (Universal Edition). His compositions and arrangements are published by Universal Edition, Kendor Music, Sierra Music Publications, The Lorenz Corporation, Neil A. Kjos Music Company, Advance Music, and the Donald Hunsberger Wind Library (Alfred Music). He has received commission and research grants from ASCAP, International Association for Jazz Education, NARAS, NEA
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
, NEH, the Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Fund, and the American Composers Forum
American Composers Forum
The American Composers Forum is a non-profit membership organization dedicated to the promotion and assistance of American composers and their music. It was founded in 1973 as the Minnesota Composers Forum and is based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States...
.