JAZZ @ THE SANDBAR: Victor Atkins

Jazz pianist, composer and arranger, Victor Atkins, is a professor of music at the UNO School of the Arts where he serves as graduate coordinator for the Department of Music and instructor of jazz theory, composition, arranging, class piano, ensemble, and applied keyboard. He is a graduate of Berklee College of Music where he studied with Donald Brown, James Williams, and Mulgrew Miller and earned a B.M. before attending Manhattan School of Music, where he earned an M.M and studied with Kenny Barron and David Berger. 

Atkins won a Grammy with the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra (NOJO) in 2009 for Book One (World Village, 2009). For the past 15 years, he has been the pianist and principal staff arranger for the orchestra. His arrangements can be heard on Dee Dee Bridgewater’s "Dee Dee’s Feathers" (Sony/Okeh 2014) which features NOJO and on two NOJO CD’s: "The Songs of Allen Toussaint" (Storyville Records, 2018), featuring Dee Dee Bridgewater and Dr. John, and the soon to be released "Petit Fleur," featuring Cyrille Aimée. The band has performed notable concert halls and festivals throughout the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Australia. In 2012, they performed at Carnegie Hall with Ms. Bridgewater, Aaron Neville, and Branford Marsalis. In 2013, NOJO was the house band for “Great Jazz,” a Kultura-TV jazz competition television series that ran for seven weeks in Russia. Victor oversaw the production of 72 big band scores by a staff of arrangers. He wrote 20 charts for the show, one of which was performed by the Bolshoi Ballet on opening night. 

Prior to joining NOJO, Atkins toured with the Elvin Jones Jazz Machine, the Headhunters (Evolution Revolution, Basin Street Records, 2003), Mark Whitfield, Nnenna Freelon, Donald Harrison, Delfeayo Marsalis (Pontius Pilot’s Decision, RCA/Novus, 1992; Sweet Thunder, Troubadour Jass Records, 2011), Leroy Jones, and Kermit Ruffins (Hold on Tight, Justice Records, 1995), and worked with many prominent artists such as Freddie Hubbard, Jimmie Heath, Frank Foster, Frank Morgan, Al Grey (Echoes of New Orleans, Progressive 1998), Herlin Riley, Wes Anderson, and Nicholas Payton.

Atkins’ arrangements have been featured on commercial recordings by Grammy and Pulitzer Award winner, Wynton Marsalis and Ellis Marsalis ("Joe Cool’s Blues," Columbia Records, 1995) and New Orleans R&B and pop icon, Aaron Neville ("Christmas Prayer," EMI, 2005). As a member of the Billboard and Downbeat Award-winning, Grammy-nominated Los Hombres Calientes, Atkins composed and arranged music on a several Basin Street Record releases from 1998-2005.

His work on television and movie soundtracks include "The Green Book" (DreamWorks, 11/16/2018), which won numerous Academy Awards and Golden Globe Awards; "The Last Laugh" (Netflix, 01/11/2019); "NCIS: New Orleans" (CBS, 2018); "Southern Nights" (Columbia/TriStar, 2005), with Keith Richards, Bonnie Raitt, The Neville Brothers, and The Meters; and "Moon Over Miami" (ABC-TV, 1993). His television performances include "Treme" (HBO), "The Tonight Show" (NBC), "CBS Sunday Morning" (CBS), "Good Morning America" (ABC), and "World Beat" (CNN). 

Sets at 7:00pm and 8:30pm.

Admission is $10 at the door  |  All Ages

FREE for students & staff. 

Admission proceeds benefit the students of the Jazz Studies program at UNO.

THE SANDBAR is LOCATED at 100 Founders Rd. inside "The Cove" on the campus of the University of New Orleans. (Enter from 2000 Lakeshore Drive) - See the Map to The Cove on the Sandbar series page here >>> https://www.nojc.org/sandbar