Jordan Mclean: Bio
Jordan McLean
Composer Jordan McLean has been active as a band leader and trumpeter for over 15 years, and has collaborated with a diverse multitude of musicians, ensembles and performance organizations at home and abroad. Jordan is an active member of the composers consortium Vox Novus, to whom he has contributed multiple instrumental works. He works as associate musical director for TONY winning choreographer Bill T. Jones on the production of FELA!, and has served as associate conductor for the Grammy winning Orchestra of Our Time.
Jordan has released two albums as a leader with his group Fire Of Space and his first with the Piano Music & Song Trio; he is co- founder of the electro-acoustic group DROID; his up-coming lp and cd, "World Gone Mad" is for trumpet and electronics, a sound developed and performed in venues throughout NYC.
As lead trumpeter and charter member of Antibalas he has collaborated with Angelique Kidjo (on her Grammy winning Djin Djin) Medeski Martin and Wood, and TV on the Radio.
He has performed in dozens of major music festivals in 20 countries and 40 States, and has appeared numerous times on National Public Radio across the U.S.
Jordan graduated suma cum laude in composition at SUNY Purchase where he is currently adjunct professor of musicology. This is his eleventh year as a visiting artist in NYC public schools.
Piano Music and Song Trio (PMT)
The music of Federico Mompou sets the artistic direction of this trumpet (Jordan McLean), cello (Patrick Petty) and piano (Derin Oge) based group. Music of the 12th century Troubadours, Siberian folk songs, Charles Ives, Samuel Barber and Mr. McLean's original work round out the groups' repertoire.
Performances include concerts at John Zorn's Stone, The Anthroposophical Society of New York and Renaissant Arts' SoHo Salon.
Derin Oge was born in Turkey and began her piano studies at age nine, winning her first competition when she was 11. In 2004, she recorded Mozart’s Sonata in B flat major for the European Broadcast Union. She has studied in Salzburg, Austria and Groningen, Holland. She is a graduate of the MSGSU State Conservatory and received her master of music degree from State University of New York, Purchase in May. She also received her Artist Diploma degree and is a piano teacher at the same university.
Fire Of Space
Fire of Space features the artistry of Jordan Mclean on trumpets and flugel horns, Stuart Bogie
and Colin Stetson on clarinets, bass clarinet, flute, tenor, alto and C melody saxophones, Aaron Johnson on trombone, the keyboard and percussion adventures of Shoko Nagai, and the drums, cymbals and percussion of Geoff Mann.
Our newest recording, Handbasket ( on 482music, to be released this summer) also features the single and double reed explorations of Michael Herbst, the powerful baritone saxophone of Antibalas founder Martin Perna, and the incredible double bass sound of Thomas Abbs.
There has been a very positive response from audiences through the years to both the recorded efforts and live concerts of this strange and beautiful ensemble, who interpret Mclean's original compositions and orchestrations of the music of Sun Ra, Hovhannes, and Bogie, as well as traditional Turkish and Indian folk music.
A colorful and joyful sound.
Stay tuned as the quiet Fire grows!
DROID
Long time Beat the Donkey metalophone (drum set) player, and New School faculty member Amir Ziv and Jordan have been at work on this electro-acoustic sound for over six years now.
Following the release of their acclaimed NYC DNB (Shadow/Instinct records) the band has taken time to reset the personel and the artistic direction of the group.
Our most recent concerts and recordings have featured Adam Holzman (Miles Davis' former musical director) on keyboards.
Come experience the group in a live concert, check out the recordings, and be prepared to hear brand new sounds as we toil in the studio and on stage looking to turn raw imagination and new compositional and improvisational ideas into music.