Maria Schneider - Coming About (Enja, 1995)

Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra

Recorded November 9 & 10, 1995

Clinton Recording Studios, NYC

Engineer: Jim Anderson

The Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra has been recording for more than 20 years, during which it released 8 studio albums and one live performance. Some jazz artists are able to record several albums in one year, but bandleader Maria Schneider does things differently. Each release is treated as a "project," which fans can monitor and contribute to. I get regular emails from her announcing new projects and explaining their purpose and production details.

That's not all. After her first two albums, Evanescence (Enja, 1994) and Coming About, Schneider formed Artistshare, a cooperative in which artists retain control of their productions, finances, and copyrights. Fed up with record labels and the opaque process of being paid by YouTube and other streaming services, she now focuses on physical media (CDs) and downloads that are sold through her Artistshare website. She has also released a 3-LP set, Decades (2024) that compiles material released earlier in digital formats. 

Schneider's primary influence as a big band composer and arranger is Gil Evans, whom she assisted after graduating from the Eastman School of Music in 1985. Moving to New York, she studied and worked with Evans and Bob Brookmeyer. The Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra was founded in 2003. 

Coming About was the orchestra's second release. Personnel are too numerous to mention, but it's a prestigious assemblage of jazz contemporaries. All the players have other gigs, of course, but the band are very loyal to their leader and share her advocacy for artists' rights. As good as the band members are, the band's ethos is less about individual soloists and more about Schneider's compositions and arrangements.

Coming About begins with "El Viento," a Schneider original, followed by an arrangement of the "Love Theme from Spartacus," composed by Alex North and covered by Ramsey Lewis, Yusef Lateef and Carlos Santana, among others. Rich Perry's tenor solo graces the performance.

Next, Schneider's 3-part "Scenes from Childhood" suite runs about 30 minutes. The wild first movement, "Bombshelter Beast," features guitar by Ben Monder and a spot for Scott Robinson's theremin. Part 2, "Night Watchmen," restores order but remains unsettling. Perry portrays the edgy calm in a solo that builds in strength and confidence as it progresses. The second half of "Night Watchmen" features Tim Hagans, who resolves the disturbance as the orchestra buoys his trumpet through a climax and peaceful end. Part 3, "Coming About," features Fank Kimbrough's piano in a beautifully orchestrated section that suggests a more peaceful resolution of childhood fears. 

An interesting arrangement of "Giant Steps" comes next. I have not heard any other attempts to orchestrate this Coltrane classic, which is typically a speed test for soloists. Schneider's version is not simply a launching pad for solos. Rather, Perry's tenor and Tim Reis's alto solos add colors and textures within the arrangement. I think composer Coltrane would have enjoyed this version of "Giant Steps."

The closing "Waxwing" best typifies Scheider's enduring interests in birds and nature. It's a pastoral piece that foreshadows her epic works Concert in the Garden (2004), Sky Blue (2007), The Thompson Fields (2015), and Data Lords - Our Natural World (2020).

Schneider's latest project is American Crow, released earlier in 2026 as a 3-track extended play record that continues the themes of Data Lords.