Bring in the Strings

Many jazz artists have written music for large ensembles, from nonets all the way up to big bands of 16 pieces or more. But precious few have written for classical orchestras, either chamber or full-scale. We spoke with three noted jazz players who’ve taken that leap to learn a few of their tricks of the trade.

John Clayton was trained as a classical bassist and has written numerous works for orchestras, including most recently Home, a piece inspired by Dvorák’s New World Symphony and composed for the Cleveland Orchestra. He