The idea of string quartet and woodwinds was different… It gave me a wide palette with which to play over. It was not big band sounding.
— Michael Brecker, interview with Ted Panken (2003)
Photo: Ssirus Pakzad
Michael Brecker — Cover image from Bill Milkowski’s Ode to a Tenor Titan: The Life and Times and Music of Michael Brecker.
A Full Sample of a New Arrangement: AFRICAN SKIES (Michael Brecker, arr. MEG OKURA)
MBQ Birdland Promo Videos
Donny McCaslin — tenor saxophone
Charles Pillow — flutes, soprano saxophone
Dan Willis — oboe, English horn
Roger Rosenberg — bass clarinet, baritone sax
David Smith — trumpet, flugelhorn
Jacob Garchik — trombone
Justin Mullens — French horn
Pete McCann — guitar
Meg Okura — violin, arranger, musical director,
Tomoko Akaboshi — violin
Benjamin von Gutzeit — viola
Dave Eggar — cello
Boris Kozlov — bass
E.J. Strickland — drums
Daniel Sadownick — percussion
Erica Seguine - associate artistic director & conductor
Ryuta Yoshimura - producer, conductor
View the photo gallery on JazzTrail.
Booking
Inquiries
The Michael Brecker Quindectet is available for festival, concert, and jazz club engagements.
For booking inquiries, availability, and program details, please contact Meg Okura at meg@mbq15.com.
Legacy & Acknowledgments
With gratitude to the individuals and institutions whose support and contributions helped launch this new chapter of the Michael Brecker Quindectet.
SUSAN BRECKER
Special thanks to Susan Brecker for her support of the project and her continued stewardship of Michael Brecker’s legacy.
GIL GOLDSTEIN
With gratitude to Gil Goldstein for his blessing of the project’s launch and for his original arrangements for Michael Brecker’s Quindectet.
DR. DAVID DEMSEY
Special thanks to David Demsey and the Living Jazz Archives at William Paterson University’s Cheng Library for preserving Michael Brecker’s recordings, scores, photographs, videos, and related materials. Their archival work provided an essential foundation for the research and preparation that supported this project’s launch.
LOUIS GERRITS
With thanks to Louis Gerrits and the “In Honor of Michael Brecker” community for preserving and sharing historical materials that helped inform the project’s early development.
THE TENOR CHAIR"
Michael Brecker is widely regarded as one of the most influential tenor saxophonists in modern jazz. While no one can replace him, generations of players have studied his work deeply.
In this project, the tenor chair is approached with care for each performance, inviting leading saxophonists to engage with the music while honoring Brecker’s voice. Each artist brings their own perspective while remaining connected to the spirit of the original ensemble.
The ensemble will feature musicians from the original Wide Angles Quindectet touring ensemble, joined by additional artists as needed.
The Original Quindectet
In 2003, Michael Brecker formed the Quindectet, a fifteen-piece ensemble created to record the music for his landmark album Wide Angles. The album was released September 9, 2003 on Verve Records under the name Michael Brecker Quindectet.
Wide Angles received the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album.
The group brought together an extraordinary assembly of musicians, including Antonio Sánchez, John Patitucci, Daniel Sadownick, Adam Rogers, Steve Wilson, Charles Pillow, Iain Dixon, Alex Sipiagin, Robin Eubanks, Peter Gordon, Mark Feldman, Joyce Hamman, Lois Martin, and Erik Friedlander, among others.
The Quindectet performed internationally, including a tour of Japan with engagements at Blue Note Tokyo. These performances were documented and later released as Michael Brecker Quindectet – Angel of Repose / Live in Japan (Jazz Door, 2011), conducted by Gil Goldstein, recorded at Blue Note Tokyo.
For the touring performances, several musicians joined the ensemble in place of members from the original recording session. The touring ensemble featured Bob Sheppard, Roger Rosenberg, Dan Willis, Boris Kozlov, Dave Eggar, and Meg Okura.
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  Michael Brecker & Antonio Sanchez |
 Alex Sipiagin, Michael Brecker, and Meg Okura (backstage, Japan) |  |  |
 |
At the center of the Quindectet is Michael Brecker’s music and his vision for a large ensemble that would avoid the conventional big-band sound. To realize that concept, Brecker brought in Gil Goldstein to arrange and orchestrate compositions from Brecker’s existing catalog for the ensemble’s distinctive instrumentation.
The Quindectet repertoire ultimately extended beyond the music recorded on Wide Angles. Goldstein created additional arrangements that became part of the ensemble’s touring repertoire.
For the ensemble’s return in 2026, the repertoire itself has required substantial preparation. Scores and parts that had remained largely untouched for approximately 25 years are being reconstructed, newly engraved, edited, and adapted into new digital performance editions for the current ensemble, a 15-piece large jazz ensemble with integrated strings.
At the same time, the repertoire is moving forward. Beginning in 2026, Meg Okura is creating new arrangements of additional Michael Brecker compositions for the Quindectet, beginning with:
African Skies
Itsbynne Reel
The repertoire will continue to grow through new arrangements by Okura while retaining the original Quindectet works. Future plans also include the possibility of commissioning contemporary composers and arrangers to contribute new music and arrangements for the ensemble.
The goal is to preserve the original repertoire while allowing the Quindectet to continue developing as a living ensemble for 2026 and beyond.
Artistic Direction - MEG OKURA
Hollywood Bowl — August 25, 2004
Meg Okura with Michael Brecker
The project honors Michael Brecker’s original conception of the Quindectet while allowing the ensemble to evolve under the artistic and musical direction of Meg Okura. Rather than functioning solely as a historical reconstruction, the Quindectet is being developed as a living musical format capable of continued growth and reinterpretation.
Composer, arranger, and violinist MEG OKURA joined the touring Michael Brecker Quindectet following the release of Wide Angles. She was a featured soloist on Brecker’s composition “Timbuktu,” documented on the ensemble’s live recording from Blue Note Tokyo.
In the years since, Okura has established her own body of work as a composer, arranger, and bandleader working at the intersection of jazz improvisation, chamber music, and expanded ensemble writing.
Her 2026 album ISAIAH (Adhyâropa Records) with the Pan Asian Chamber Jazz Ensemble includes her arrangement of Michael Brecker’s “African Skies,” featuring Randy Brecker. Her recent work has received recognition including the ISJAC Fundamental Freedoms Commissioning Prize and the Symphonic Jazz Orchestra George Duke Commission Prize.
Having experienced the original Quindectet from within the ensemble—and subsequently developed her own work across jazz and chamber-orchestral forms—Okura now leads the Quindectet into its next chapter, preserving its history while expanding its repertoire and possibilities for the future.
A short clip from a documentary film "Michael Brecker in Japan" by Peter Freed
"She (Meg Okura) just completely brought the house down. And the minute she played the first chorus, she echoed the last chorus. And I realized, Oh my god, this girl can play."
- Michael Brecker
Sample Program
THE MICHAEL BRECKER QUINDECTET
featuring DONNY McCASLIN
PROGRAM:
*Original arrangements from 2004 by Gil Goldstein, newly adapted for the 2026 Michael Brecker Quindectet
Broadband*
Arc of the Pendulum*
Delta City Blues*
Syzygy*
Plus the world premieres of two new arrangements by Meg Okura:
African Skies
Itsbynne Reel
New performance editions and music preparation: Meg Okura & Ryuta Yoshimura
Additional repertoire will be announced at the concert.
Why Now?
With the 20th anniversary of Michael Brecker’s passing approaching in 2027, this is a meaningful moment to revisit the music of the Wide Angles Quindectet and bring it back to the stage.
A core group of musicians from the original touring ensemble have already expressed their commitment to participate, creating a rare opportunity to present this remarkable body of work again in a live setting.
The project is now inviting collaborations with festivals, concert presenters, and select venues interested in bringing this music back to the stage.
Contact
Meg Okura
General Inquiries
Media / PR Contact
Matt Merewitz
Fully Altered Media
matt@fullyaltered.com