Greg McLean has written arrangements for many different musical artists including the Canadian Brass and Jens Lindemann. Others include Martin Hackleman, Hotlanta Dixieland Jazz and the DeKalb Symphony. Since he was a high school student, Greg has had an interest in arranging various types of music from hymns and Christmas carols to pop songs and classical works. In high school Greg’s Dad, Jim McLean, an art professor at Georgia State University, brought home a Teac reel to reel four-track tape deck. It had overdubbing capabilities which was still a relatively new technology. Greg began recording himself playing trumpet on multiple tracks and this inspired a need for written arrangements. By the time Greg was a music student at GSU he already had some experience with writing and recording.

While visiting home on holiday breaks from graduate school at Florida State University, Greg set about writing arrangements of Christmas pieces for four trumpets. He overdubbed all of the parts for fun. Years later, thanks to a connection with James Thompson, principal trumpet of the Atlanta Symphony at the time, these arrangements caught the attention of Rob Roy McGregor, whose publishing company Balquhidder Music was looking for new material. Since 1995, these arrangements have been published and are now available through Carl Fischer Music. As a freelance musician in the 1990’s Greg wrote arrangements for different bands and recording projects including several CD’s for blues artists like Theodis Ealy, Blues Boy Willie and Willie Hill.

Since becoming director of the Perimeter College Jazz Ensemble in 1998, Greg has written no fewer than eighteen original arrangements or compositions for the group. McLean has scored arrangements for the DeKalb Symphony Orchestra and in 2000 wrote an arrangement on commission from the famed Canadian Brass, thanks to some strings being pulled by friend and trumpet virtuoso Jens Lindemann, lead trumpeter in the group at that time. The arrangement, called Christmas in New York, was written for the annual combined performance of the CB and the New York Philharmonic Brass Quintet. The arrangement was a medley of “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” and “All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth,” both pieces stipulated by the Canadian Brass.

Greg continues to write arrangements for various groups and is available to write tailor made arrangements for your group. Contact Greg at [email protected] for more info.