Scott Grimaldi

From a gifted, musical family, Scott’s formal music training began with guitar lessons at 8 years old.  A few years later, he gravitated toward the flute in the school band and thus began his serious studies with all of the woodwinds.  In high school he mastered the bass guitar and studied woodwinds with jazz legend, Lenny Hambro while playing on the weekends with his parents’ popular club date band.  After graduation, Scott attended Berklee College of Music, Boston, Mass. Within three years, he was sought after to work professionally on the road as an arranger/woodwinds player for a touring show band.  After a two year stint, Scott returned to NJ to pursue work as a musician in the fields of recording, performances and as an arranger for songwriter, Bill Giant. During that time, Scott studied privately with legendary teachers Adolph Sandole and Danny Trimboli and received a B.M. degree from the Manhattan School of Music, NY, NY.

Scott released his debut album, The Color of Midnight featuring his performances on an array of saxophones and other woodwinds. He is also the producer and arranger for the project.  Scott composed three of the tracks and has assembled an impressive group of the best NJ/NY vocalists and musicians to bring The Color of Midnight to reality. After years of not so gentle nudging from legendary record producer, Tony Camillo, for whom Scott played in the studio since the 80’s, Scott finally got his chance to break out his own unique sound on this innovative project and groundbreaking album, one that cannot be defined by a single musical genre.

The Color of Midnight contains fresh new arrangements of classic hits from Stevie Wonder, Bruno Mars, Henry Mancini, Peter Cetera, Michael Jackson and R. Kelly, combined with Scott’s original compositions Batteries Not Included, I Promise & The Color Of Midnight.  The work identifies his high-energy signature sound.  A fan of jazz can hear Scott’s most profound jazz influences: David Sanborn, Tom Scott, Hubert Laws and Chicago.

For over two decades, Scott has performed with popular and iconic stage acts that include Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, The Manhattan Transfer, Vanessa Williams, Frank Sinatra Jr., Rosemary Clooney, Linda Eder, Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons, The Temptations, The Four Tops, Little Anthony & The Imperials, The Duprees and Etta James. His performance work includes several Broadway musicals including “Steel Pier”, “Kiss Of The Spider Woman” and “Me And My Girl”.

As a recording studio musician, Scott was a regular at Venture Sound Studios, playing for Grammy award winning record producer, Tony Camillo.  He played for T.C. Records recording artists that include Freda Payne, The Dramatics & The 5th Dimension and produced Sandy Sasso’s “Mixed Grill”. His musical credits span television, film, and advertising.

In addition, Scott was a recognized industry expert in the field of music copyright infringement.  His transcriptions were utilized by the iconic artists of the 80’s and 90’s, including Janet Jackson, R. Kelly, Billy Joel, Madonna and Aerosmith. His publishing  credits include “The Rolling Stones Singles Collection”, “Phil Spector, Back To Mono” and “Sam Cooke’s Night Beat”.

In the field of music education, Mr. Grimaldi has demonstrated a passion for leaving another legacy by developing young musicians. Scott was an Adjunct Professor of the Fine Arts Dept. at Manhattan College, Riverdale, NY, for 23 years before retiring from their faculty.  Currently, as co-director of the Jazz program at Princeton High School, Princeton, NJ, Scott has led his students to national recognition annually. His passion for developing musical proteges has led to enormous student achievements including top chair positions in Regions & All-State Bands/Orchestras, NJ Youth Symphony, NJPAC Jazz For Teens, as well as acceptances at the top conservatories in the nation.