Originally starting in the rehearsal space that would later become the Jazz Gallery in New York City, the Roy Hargrove Big Band had its inaugural performance at the Greenwich Village Jazz Festival in 1995. Since then, the band has toured domestically and internationally and has played everywhere from the Blue Note Tokyo to the Hollywood Bowl.
Following Roy Hargrove’s death in 2018, his wife Aida and daughter Kamala re-launched The Roy Hargrove Big Band to continue Roy’s musical spirit and the big band sound that he loved. Hargrove was a celebrated trumpet and flugelhorn player, as well as a vocalist for his big band, most famously, on the fan favorite “September in the Rain.”
Consisting mainly of alumni of the original Roy Hargrove Big Band with the addition of a few bright young talents, the band’s second iteration presents arrangements of Roy’s original compositions, Jazz standards, and new music by other band members.