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Chris Botti
Background information
Born	October 12, 1962 (1962-10-12) (age 47) Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Genres	Jazz Smooth Jazz
Occupations	Trumpeter Radio presenter
Instruments	Trumpet
Website	chrisbotti.com

Christopher Stephen Botti or Chris Botti [BOH-tee] (born October 12, 1962) is an American trumpeter and composer. Botti has been nominated for two Grammy Awards ¹. Three of his albums have reached the #1 position on the Billboard jazz albums chart.

Coming to prominence in the mid-1990s, Botti established a reputation as a versatile musician, excelling in both jazz and pop music.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 2.1 Early Career 2.2 The Verve Years 2.3 The Columbia Years 2.4 In Media 3 Trumpet 4 Discography 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

Early life

Born in Portland, Oregon and raised in Corvallis, Oregon, he spent two years of his childhood growing up in Italy. His earliest musical influence was his mother, a classically trained pianist and part-time piano teacher.

He started playing the trumpet at 9-years-old and committed to the instrument at age 12, when he heard Miles Davis play "My Funny Valentine."

In 1980, he was selected as a member of McDonalds’ All American High School Jazz band which marked his first Carnegie Hall performance. ²

He ended up at Mount Hood Community College in Gresham, Oregon by convincing his high school to allow him to fulfill his remaining senior year credits there. Botti constructed the scenario so that he could also play at Portland clubs in the evening. After graduating from high school, Botti studied under jazz educator David Baker and trumpet professor Bill Adam at Indiana University. Botti was also the recipient of two grants from the National Endowment for the Arts which allowed him to study with with trumpeter Woody Shaw and saxophonist George Coleman during two consecutive summer breaks.

Career

Early Career

Botti left Indiana University during his senior year for short touring stints with Frank Sinatra and Buddy Rich. In 1985 he moved to New York City to hone his craft as a studio musician.

In 1990, he began a decade long touring and recording relationship with Paul Simon which broadened his exposure to other singers. During that period, he also performed/recorded with Aretha Franklin, Natalie Cole, Bette Midler, Joni Mitchell, Natalie Merchant, Scritti Politti, Roger Daltrey and others.

On August 15, 1991, Botti performed with Paul Simon in New York’s Central Park as part of the The Rhythm of the Saints tour. The performance was commercially released as the Concert in the Park CD and VHS³.

While on tour with Simon, he met saxophonist Michael Brecker, which led to Botti producing the Brecker Brothers’ Out of the Loop. The album won a 1995 Grammy for Best Contemporary Jazz Performance⁴.

The Verve Years

Botti's solo debut, First Wish, was released in 1995; his second effort, Midnight Without You, which included a collaboration with Blue Nile vocalist Paul Buchanan, appeared in 1997. These were followed by Slowing Down The World in 1999⁵ which included vocal contributions from Sting and Jonathan Brooke.

Botti was also a member of Bruford Levin Upper Extremities, a more experimental, jazz fusion-oriented group. He composed the score and recorded a soundtrack for the 1996 film Caught⁶.

In 1999, he was invited to tour with Sting as a featured soloist in the Brand New Day tour. The two-year run culminated in All This Time, a CD/DVD-taping and webcast performance from Sting’s estate in Tuscany on September 11, 2001. Botti attributes his relationship with Sting as having changed the course of his career⁷.

The Columbia Years

Botti was introduced to Columbia by Bobby Colomby, drummer and founding member of Blood, Sweat & Tears, who went on to become his producer and manager. Botti’s first Columbia release was Night Sessions in 2001. This was followed in 2002 by December, a holiday album, which included an original composition by Richard Marx. The project represents the only time Botti has performed vocals on two tracks.⁸

A Thousand Kisses Deep, was released in 2003 and was deemed to contain a wonderfully, even perfectly crafted group of originals and covers that accent Botti’s deep crossover appeal as both a jazz and pop musician.⁹

When I Fall In Love followed in 2004, which featured a more elegant and traditional sound¹⁰ than its predecessor.

To Love Again: The Duets, released in 2005, continued where the previous album left off with more gorgeously lush and heartfelt orchestral jazz via the London Session Orchestra. This time showcasing guest vocalists -- as well as a handful of instrumental tracks¹¹.

In May '05, Botti was invited to perform at Oprah Winfrey’s Legends Ball weekend honoring her African American heroines.¹² In November, he performed in the opening of the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

In 2006, Billy Childs, Gil Goldstein & Heitor Pereira won the Grammy for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s): "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?" (Chris Botti & Sting) from Botti's album To Love Again - The Duets¹³. 2006 also marked his first PBS collaboration, Chris Botti Live: With Orchestra and Special Guests, released in early 2006. The CD and platinum-certified DVD included duets with Sting, Burt Bacharach, Gladys Knight, Jill Scott and Renee Olstead. ¹⁴

On September 25, 2007, Botti released his new album, Italia. The album places focus on Botti's Italian roots through such songs as "Ave Maria", "Venice", "Estatè", and the title track "Italia." In December 2007, it was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Album.

Early in 2009, Botti released his second CD/DVD PBS project, Chris Botti Live in Boston. Performing with the Boston Pops Orchestra, Botti shared the stage with Yo Yo Ma, Steven Tyler, Josh Groban, Katherine McPhee, John Mayer, Sting and others.

As of June 2009, Botti has released twelve solo albums. His first few releases could safely be classified as smooth jazz, though critic Alex Henderson argues that Botti's music was a cut above much of the genre; reviewing his 1999 album, Slowing Down the World, Henderson writes "it would be a major mistake to lump it in with the outright elevator muzak that Kenny G, Dave Koz, Najee, and Richard Elliot were known for ... Botti is capable of a lot more."¹⁵

In Media

Botti was the leader of the house band on the nationally syndicated daytime talk show The Caroline Rhea Show (a replacement for The Rosie O'Donnell Show) for its only season in 2002-2003.

He was named one of People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People of 2004.

For several years, Botti also hosted a radio show called Chill with Chris Botti, that focused mainly on "chill" music, which is described as "smooth jazz with a touch of cool jazz." In 2007, saxophonist Mindi Abair took over the hosting duties, and the show, using the same format as before, is now called Chill with Mindi Abair.

With the success of To Love Again, Botti hosted a special concert at the Wilshire Theatre in Los Angeles in December 2005 with many of the guest artists from the CD. It was recorded for airing on PBS in Spring 2006 as Chris Botti: Live with Orchestra and Special Guests, which also was released as a DVD.

Trumpet

Botti plays a Martin Committee Handcraft trumpet made in 1939, and uses a 3C silver plated mouthpiece from Bach made in 1926, having recently retired his 1920 3C Bach mouthpiece. He uses a Leblanc Vacchiano Harmon mute from the 1950s.¹⁶

Discography

• First Wish (1995)
• Midnight Without You (1997)
• Slowing Down the World (1999)
• Night Sessions (2001)
• The Very Best of Chris Botti (2002)
• December (2002)
• A Thousand Kisses Deep (2003)
• When I Fall In Love (2004)
• To Love Again: The Duets (2005)
• Live: With Orchestra and Special Guests (2006)
• Italia (2007)
• Chris Botti in Boston (2009)

See also

• 20th century brass instrumentalists
• List of trumpeters
• List of jazz trumpeters

References

External links

• Official site
• Discography
• Chill with Chris Botti Radio Show
• About.com Interview with Chris Botti
• Chris is interviewed 2008 by Joanna Gulbinska
• Music Man Chris Botti's Playlist - Nightline 05/29/09 - lists his 5 favorite musical influences