JAZZ LEGEND CLARK TERRY DONATES HIS ARCHIVE TO WILLIAM PATERSON
UNIVERSITY IN WAYNE, N.J.
—Clark Terry Archive will include
manuscripts, recordings and other memorabilia of the renowned trumpet
player and educator
—Establishment of archive begins University initiative to
raise funds for new concert hall and jazz archival center
—Terry performs with University students from renowned jazz
studies program at ceremony celebrating creation of the archive
 |
Jazz legend Clark Terry has donated his
extensive archive, including manuscripts, recordings and memorabilia,
to William Paterson University, home of the internationally renowned
jazz studies program.
A major figure in the history of jazz, Terry played with Count Basie,
was a featured soloist in Duke Ellington’s orchestra, mentored
a young Miles Davis, has led his own ensembles through a long career,
and is recognized as a “founding father” of jazz education.
Now 83, Terry continues to actively perform and teach young musicians.
As part of the establishment of the
Clark Terry Archive, William Paterson University announced its intention
to raise funds for a new concert hall that will house the archival
materials and will be the new home for the University’s acclaimed
Jazz Room Series and other performances.
“We are honored that Clark Terry has chosen William Paterson
University as home for his personal archive, which represents a
significant period of jazz history,” says Arnold Speert, president
of William Paterson University. “I look forward to a day in
the not-too-distant future when the Clark Terry Archive will be
available to our students and other music scholars in a visible
and accessible archive, housed in a new concert hall that will benefit
students and the community on an ongoing basis.”
“I’m completely flattered to be associated with the
wonderful Jazz Studies Program and the entire campus of William
Paterson University,” says Terry. “I made this choice
because the school has a reputation for being the most equipped
university in this part of the world in terms of its students and
faculty, who are knowledgeable, talented and active musicians.”
The archive will include original manuscripts and arrangements by
Ernie Wilkins, Quincy Jones and Frank Foster and many other well-known
arrangers, written for Terry’s big band; recordings; original
manuscripts of virtually all of Terry’s composition repertoire;
custom instruments created especially for Terry; personal correspondence
from other jazz musicians; and assorted memorabilia.
“This archive is significant in terms of American jazz and
jazz education because Clark Terry is one of the central, most influential
figures in both,” says David Demsey, professor of music and
coordinator of jazz studies at William Paterson. “His music
virtually spans the history of modern jazz since the 1940s, and
includes so much personal contact with the roots of the music, particularly
Duke Ellington and Count Basie. He is one of the founding fathers
of jazz education, and was one of the first ‘major-league’
jazz players to embrace jazz education and realize its importance
in perpetuating that art form. Without his work and that of only
a few others, jazz would not be seen today as the American treasure
that it is. This material represents his life's work as a musician,
bandleader, teacher and humanitarian, and will provide a wealth
of material for students and scholars, both those enrolled in our
program and on a national scale.”
A musical ceremony to celebrate the archive’s creation was
held on December 8 and featured a special performance by Terry and
the William Paterson University Jazz Ensemble under the direction
of David Demsey.
Blending the St. Louis tone of his youth with contemporary styles,
Terry’s sound influenced a generation, including Miles Davis
and Quincy Jones. He began his career with successful stints in
the bands of Charlie Barnet, Charlie Ventura, and Eddie Vinson before
joining Count Basie’s band in 1948. In 1951, he was asked
to join Duke Ellington’s orchestra, where he stayed for eight
years as featured soloist. Also a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz,
Terry was a standout in the NBC-TV Orchestra for 12 years. During
this period, he appeared regularly on the Tonight Show and also
scored a smash hit as a singer with his signature tune, “Mumbles.”
When the Tonight Show moved to Los Angeles, Terry remained in New
York, pursuing a busy schedule as a studio musician as well as performing
and recording with his own bands, including Clark Terry’s
Big Band and his quintet, the Jolly Giants.
Inducted into the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Hall of Fame
in 1991, Terry has toured the Middle East and Africa with his band
as American ambassadors of good will sponsored by the U.S. State
Department. He has increasingly focused his attention on jazz education,
serving as director of the Clark Terry Great Plains Jazz Camp, an
advisor to the National Association of Jazz Educators, and as a
much sought-after clinician. He served as artist-in-residence for
William Paterson’s 11th Annual Jazz Improvisation Workshop
for high school and college students in July.
William Paterson University’s Archive currently includes original
scores and charts composed or arranged by Thad Jones, the University’s
first director of jazz studies, which were written for the Thad
Jones-Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra, now the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra.
It also contains compositions, arrangements and nearly 300 rehearsal
and live performance tapes recorded by James Williams, who served
as the third director of jazz studies at William Paterson from 1999
until his death in July 2004.
William Paterson University, one of the nine state colleges and
universities in New Jersey, offers 30 undergraduate and 19 graduate
programs through five colleges: Arts and Communication, Business,
Education, Humanities and Social Sciences, and Science and Health.
Located on 370 hilltop acres in Wayne, the university enrolls nearly
11,600 students and provides housing for nearly 2,300 students.
The institution’s 368 full-time faculty are highly distinguished
and diverse scholars and teachers, many of whom are recipients of
prestigious awards and grants from the Fulbright Program (27 scholars),
the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities,
the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation
and the American Philosophical Society.
For more information, call Shea Center for Performing Arts Box Office
at 973-720-2371.
# # #
For Further Information, contact:
Mary Beth Zeman, Director, Public
Relations 973-720-2966
12/8/04
|
|
