Darcy James Argue
Darcy James Argue is a jazz composer and bandleader known for his work with his 18-piece ensemble, Secret Society. Biography. Argue was born in Vancouver, British Columbia. He studied at McGill University in Montreal from 1993–1998, and in 2000 he moved to the U.S. to study composition at New England Conservatory of Music with jazz composer Bob Brookmeyer. Following his studies at New England Conservatory, Argue moved to Brooklyn in 2003. Secret Society. In 2005, Argue founded Darcy James Argue's Secret Society, an eighteen-piece big band. In 2009, the group released their first studio  album, "Infernal Machines", on New Amsterdam Records, an independent record label in New York City. The album received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album and a Juno Award nomination in Canada for Contemporary Jazz Album of the Year. It was recognized multiple times in the "Down Beat" magazine Critics' Poll and included on annual lists at "The New York Times", NPR, "The Wall Street Journal", "Paste", and the "Ottawa Citizen". The Society's second album, "Brooklyn Babylon" (2013), was based on a multimedia performance created with visual artist Danijel Zezelj and premiered at the BAM Next  Wave Festival in November 2011. The album received Grammy and Juno Award nominations. It won the top positions for Arranger and Big Band in the 2013 "Down Beat" Critics' Poll, was named Best Album of 2013 by "The New Republic", and included in the Top 10 Albums of the 2013 NPR Music Jazz Critics' Poll. The Society's third album, "Real Enemies" (New Amsterdam, 2016) received a Grammy nomination for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album. Commissions. Argue has received commissions from the Fromm Music Foundation, the Jazz Gallery, the Manhattan New Music Project, the Jerome Foundation, and Brooklyn Academy of  Music, as well as ensembles including the Danish Radio Big Band, the Hard Rubber Orchestra, the Jazz Knights, and the Orquestra Jazz de Matosinhos. He is the recipient of grants and fellowships from New Music USA, the Aaron Copland Fund for Music, the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, the Canada Council for the Arts, and the MacDowell Colony.