Douglas Purviance established his professional career in 1975 during a two-year engagement with the highly acclaimed Stan Kenton Orchestra. Born in Baltimore, he moved to New York in 1977 to build a career characterized by diversity and leadership. The next year, he became a member of the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra, now the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra. He is a charter member of the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band. In addition, he was featured as senior bass trombonist in the renowned Broadway musical CATS for its entire 18 year run.
Douglas manages production, engineering and marketing of the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra recordings, including Thad Jones Legacy and Lickety Split, which received a 1998 Grammy Award Nomination. He oversees the band's financial management and worldwide tour booking; and is executive director of Sixteen as One Music, a not-for-profit fund-raising entity for educational and multi-cultural initiatives.
Douglas has scored and edited soundtracks for numerous film and television productions; among them The Winter in Lisbon and People Magazine's 20th Anniversary. He has toured extensively with Slide Hampton, Steve Turre, Dizzy Gillespie and the Mingus Big Band, among others. Douglas is an active jazz educator and clinician on a worldwide basis and regularly participates in master class tours.
