Don Sickler

Trumpeter and arranger Don Sickler made his initial splash in 1983, debuting with the LP The Music of Kenny Dorham. However, he then spent the next dozen years out of the spotlight, focusing instead on backing and producing artists including Freddie Redd, Larry Coryell, and Cindy Blackman. He also enjoyed a brief stint with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. Perhaps Sickler's most productive extended collaboration was with drummer T.S. Monk, whom he met at the Thelonious Monk Institute; a founding member of the T.S. Monk Sextet, Sickler played on albums including 1991's Take One and 1993's Changing of the Guard, before finally taking the reins and leading his own date, 1995's Nightwatch. He also served as an associate music professor and director of the University Jazz Orchestra at New York's Columbia University. ~ Jason Ankeny