Celebrating a half-century of jazz at TU

By Rebecca Kirkman on November 21, 2018

This year, Towson University celebrates the 50th anniversary of its jazz program.

Founded in 1968 under the leadership of iconic jazz composer and musician Hank Levy, the milestone will be recognized with “Honoring Hank Levy,” a concert by the TU Jazz Orchestra at 8 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 7, at the Center for the Arts Recital Hall.

The program’s longevity underscores the university’s early embrace of jazz studies.

“In many academic institutions, jazz studies struggle for acceptance as an equal discipline worthy of study along with classical music,” noted David Ballou, assistant chair of the music department and co-leader of the jazz/commercial music division. “This 50th anniversary points to the fact that Towson University has long supported the inclusion of jazz music practices and continues to be a leading innovator in creative music education.”

At the December concert, members of the TU Jazz Orchestra will perform eight of the most popular works in Levy’s repertoire. “The audience will hear current students of the jazz/commercial music program perform compositions created by Hank Levy for students of the program 40 – 50 years ago,” said Ballou. “Having the current students learn these compositions brings them into the sound world of Hank Levy and connects them to this tradition.”

Levy, who died in 2001 at 73 years old, was an innovator known for his incorporation of unusual odd time signatures in his compositions. “Simply stated, instead of an even number of beats in the rhythm of the music—two and four being the most common—Hank explored using odd numbers of beats, such as seven, nine and 13,” explained Ballou. “This approach to meter combined with the traditional arranging techniques for the jazz orchestra became the most identifying and enduring trait of his music.”

This new approach took the jazz world by storm. Levy and his Towson State Jazz Ensemble won several jazz festivals and competitions, performing at the prestigious Quinnipiac Jazz Festival and being selected as the college band to open the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., in 1971.

The anniversary program will include “Whiplash,” one of Levy’s most-recognized compositions, which was featured in the 2014 Academy Award-winning film of the same name.

To get an idea of the scope of Levy’s compositions, Ballou recommends listening to “A Time for a Change,” which he describes as a much different piece than “Whiplash.”

At the Dec. 7 concert, the TU Jazz Orchestra will be joined by Bernard Robier, bass trombone player and co-manager of the Hank Levy Legacy Band. Robier met Levy in the early 1960s at a small supper club on Bel Air Road. He became close with Levy over the years, playing in the Hank Levy Legacy Band that formed around the time Levy retired from teaching at TU in 1989.

Robier said he struggled with Levy’s challenging odd-meter compositions at first. “Even some of the good professional players that aren’t experienced playing odd meters struggle with it for a while, but once you get the concept down and learn how to subdivide everything, it’s not that difficult,” Robier said, pausing. “It’s just strange.”

Fifty years later, Levy’s music continues to challenge and inspire musicians across the globe. “It’s great music, and it’s still played all over the country and around the world by some really great organizations,” he said. “Hank’s music still lives.”

This story is one of several related to President Kim Schatzel’s priorities for Towson University: TU Matters to Maryland.