SAMMY NESTICO

'Samuel "Sammy" Lewis Nestico' (born February 6, 1924 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is a prolific and well known composer and arranger of big band music. Nestico is most known for his arrangements for the Count Basie orchestra.

Contents

Education

Career

Teaching

Television and film industry

Output

List of arrangements and compositions

Big band arrangements

Concert Band arrangements

Classical Arrangements

Solo Instrument Arrangements

External links

Education

He received a Bachelors degree in music education from Duquesne University in 1950, and has since then received an honorary Doctor of Music degree there, as well as numerous awards.

Career

He has been a professional music arranger since 1941, when he became a staff arranger for ABC radio station WCAE in Pittsburgh at age 17. During his career, he arranged music for the Count Basie Orchestra (1967 - 1984), the US Air Force Band (15 yrs) and the US Marine Band (5 years) both in Washington, DC.

Teaching

In 1998-1999 Nestico was a professor at the University of Georgia, teaching commercial orchestration and conducting the Studio Orchestra, but was unable to find the necessary administrative support to remain there. He also directed music programs at Pierce College, Los Angeles, CA, Westinghouse Memorial High School, and Wilmerding, PA.

Television and film industry

During his long career in the television and film industry, he has arranged and conducted projects for artists such as