Cecil Bridgewater, trumpeter, arranger, composer, educator

Jazz Threads performance date: September 27, December 6, 2003; March 7, 2004

Born 1942 in Urbana, Illinois

Nicknames: "Sleepy," morphed into "Sleepy Sam," morphed into "Slam"

Getting started: His grandfather played cornet, his Dad played trumpet, his Mom played piano and sang, and his uncle played the bass and was a bandleader. Cecil also lived across the street from the American Veterans Association which hosted nights of jazz; during the years he wasn't old enough to get inside, he'd either listen from his bedroom window or join other young people sitting out on the curb to catch the music. When he was a teenager, Cecil used to sneak out of the house at night to sit in with Uncle Pete's band at places he probably shouldn't have been.

Education: University of Illinois (1960-64 and 1968-69) "The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Band was the biggest influence on my writing and playing." (Cecil Bridgewater)

Career highlights: Trumpeter, composer, and educator Cecil Bridgewater is one of the hardest-working jazz musicians on the scene. His sensitive trumpet and flugelhorn playing and magnificent compositions have graced the performances and recordings of jazz giants like drummer Max Roach, pianist Horace Silver, the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Big Band, and many others. A family man, Cecil Bridgewater formed the Bridgewater Brothers Band with his saxophone-playing brother Ron in 1969; and while that band no longer exists, he and Ron continue to collaborate whenever possible. "My brother Ron always gives me the right balance musically and personally whenever we perform or record together," wrote Cecil in the notes to his last album. "He has the ability to make his sound and approach blend with mine so that we seem to speak one voice." And look on almost any Dee Dee Bridgewater recording and you're sure to see a credit to Cecil for many of the arrangements that support her great vocals.

Most recent recording: Mean What You Say (1998, Brownstone) "Titled after a Thad Jones tune heard on the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra's debut album more than 30 years ago, this album is a reminder of Bridgewater's twisting, melodic, hard bop trumpet work. (JazzTimes) "Cecil Bridgewater is such an old pro, it's a pleasure to hear him play anything that captures his fancy…A future hall-of-famer at the top of his game." (Victory Music Review)

Dedicated to education: ArtReach programs led by Cecil Bridgewater: "United We Sing…Songs of Blues and Jazz" for grades K-6; "A Day of Jazz" (clinics and rehearsals during the day, and an evening student performance with Cecil Bridgewater as a guest artist); Instrumental and Vocal Jazz Workshops New School for Social Research: faculty member

Local connection: Champaign-Urbana born and raised

Previous Krannert Center performances: September 1991 playing his New Dawn with the Champaign-Urbana Symphony