Looking Back, Looking Ahead
How can I possibly capture three decades at Berklee on one page? This is what I am thinking as I sit down to write this. My immediate purpose is to tell you that I have decided to retire from the college next year. But more importantly, I want to tell you what it has meant to be a part of Berklee throughout my career.
Practical details first: As most of you know, Berklee’s trustees are launching the search to select President Berk’s successor (he will be a tough act to follow). The new president must be available to serve for an extended period of time to establish an effective working relationship with the trustees, and with the faculty and staff, all of whom are responsible for carrying out the college’s mission. This position requires talent and great effort consistently applied over a number of years. Since I am already in my sixties, I feel certain that it is time for me to bring my career at Berklee to a conclusion and I wish the new leadership of the college all possible success. As I announce this major transition in my life, I feel compelled to reflect on my experiences at Berklee.
Like all alumni, my Berklee experience began the day I arrived as a first-semester student. Berklee (then known as Berklee School of Music) was housed in a brownstone at the corner of Newbury and Gloucester Streets, and student enrollment numbered somewhere shy of two hundred. I still have vivid memories of my student years. The teachers were inspiring, and being surrounded with music all day long, day after day, was paradise. Most importantly, I was acquiring skills and gaining an understanding of how music works that would see me through many decades and countless new experiences as a professional musician. I’m convinced that helping students develop the ability to grow musically throughout their careers is Berklee’s greatest gift to them. It certainly was for me.
After living in New York during the 1960s to become an established player, I had the notion to combine teaching with my performing career, and Berklee was the only place I could envision teaching. So in 1971, I returned to Boston and joined the Berklee faculty. That first year I taught classes in improvisation, small-group arranging, ensemble, and vibraphone. It was a whole new learning experience. Thank goodness for people such as John LaPorta, Herb Pomeroy, Joe Viola, and several others already at Berklee on whom I could rely as role models. Teaching opened up a whole new awareness for me as a musician. I found myself learning more about the things I already knew as I searched for explanations and ways to demonstrate the things I was sharing with my students. I also came to appreciate all the more the creative interaction between musicians that is so necessary in our art form.
While I was away in the 1960s, Berklee had relocated to a larger building, expanded enrollment to more than 400 students, become accredited, and changed its name to Berklee College of Music. The setting was different, but a Berklee education was still what it was all about. Talented young musicians came from all over the country and all over the world to be part of this experience. Among my students that first year were Joe Lovano and John Scofield. And they were merely the first of many outstanding musicians I would meet in the classroom in the years to follow.
My professional career continued to thrive, and I found myself continually learning new music and new concepts from great musicians with whom I collaborated. With players such as Stan Getz, Chick Corea, and Pat Metheny, I was honored to explore new musical ideas inspired by these and many other innovative musicians. Through it all, my Berklee education never let me down.
Over time, Berklee grew in enrollment and facilities, adding concert halls, recording studios and labs, and eventually students numbering in the thousands. In the mid-1980s, I made a significant leap from faculty to administration, becoming dean of curriculum, which meant overseeing courses, programs, and support facilities. Having a job with a desk was something new, but it seemed to work out, and a decade later I was appointed executive vice president, which offered me the opportunity to work closely with President Lee Eliot Berk. Once again I was presented an opportunity to learn from an experienced leader. Now, as my career at Berklee enters its final year, it is the knowledge I acquired from some significant role models, within and outside of Berklee, that I remember most. John LaPorta taught me comping, Herb Pomeroy taught me changes, Stan Getz taught me melody, Chick Corea taught me artistic integrity, Pat Metheny taught me about dedication, and Lee Berk taught me about vision.
One of the enduring traditions among musicians is the willingness to help other musicians learn the craft. We learn as much from one another as we do from reading, listening, or practicing on our own. Throughout my career, I’ve been in the fortunate position to learn from the best and learn a lot. I hope that I have managed to pass on even half of what was generously imparted to me. Throughout its history, Berklee has continued to offer the best learning experience, and it has been a distinct honor to be a part of the Berklee tradition.
