Rich Shemaria is a long-time Inwood resident and currently the Jazz Composer in Residence within the NYU Steinhardt Jazz Studies Program, where he teaches composition and arranging and directs the NYU Jazz Orchestra. Along with Dave Schroeder, he formed the band Combo Nuvo; which recorded his One World Suite, a composition he wrote as a positive statement on climate change, and the band toured it internationally. He has written music for Tony Bennett, Lady Gaga, Stevie Wonder, Tom Scott, and and was director of the UMO Jazz Orchestra, the National Radio Big Band of Finland based in Helsinki. His album 3:AM (Amosaya Records), features his New York City ensemble, the Rich Shemaria Big Band; which you can see and hear performing live on YouTube.
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