Dave Douglas is arguably the most prolific and original trumpeter-composer of his generation.  Since 1993, he has released more than 30 recordings and created a composition catalogue that exceeds 400. His unique contributions to improvised music have garnered distinguished recognition some of which includes a Guggenheim Fellowship, Aaron Copland award, Grammy-nominations, trumpeter, composer, and jazz artist of the year by such organizations as the New York Jazz Awards, Down Beat, Jazz Times, Jazziz, and the Italian Jazz Critics’ Society and —most recently a recipient of the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation’s Jazz.NEXT grant. Douglas has developed his work for several unique ensembles with whom he’s currently active: the Dave Douglas Quintet, Keystone, Brass Ecstasy, and beginning in 2011, Tea For 3, a trio of trumpeters backed by an acoustic rhythm section.  Since 2005, Douglas has operated his own record label, Greenleaf Music, releasing his own recordings, albums by other artists in the jazz idiom, and continues to prove himself as a forward-thinking leader in the realm of digital music distribution.  He is in his 8th season serving as the artistic director of the Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music at The Banff Centre in Canada and is co-founder and director of the Festival of New Trumpet Music, which celebrates its ninth anniversary in 2011.

JazzTimes Jan-Feb 2012