See also the Celebration webpage of the College of Humanities and Fine Arts for more information about Max Roach and his UMass legacy. See below for the full schedule of Centennial Celebration events.
Seven guest artists, five student ensembles and nine faculty members, many of them with direct ties to Max Roach, will join together for a tribute concert to honor the legendary drummer who spent 20 years of his life as a member of the UMass Amherst faculty.
The concert, which takes place on Wednesday, October 23rd at 7:30 PM in Tillis Performance Hall, is part of the Max Roach Centennial Celebration, which runs from October 21st-26th and is co-hosted by The College of Humanities and Fine Arts, Department of Music and Dance, the W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies, and the Fine Arts Center.
Among the guest artists, many of whom either worked with Max or were members of the Music Department alongside him, are drummer royal hartigan ‘81 and bassist Avery Sharpe ‘76, members of hartigan's Akoma Ensemble, which also includes fellow UMass alum Charles Langford '97 on tenor sax and pianist Art Hirahara. Also returning to campus as guest artists are drummers Herman LeBeaux ’91MM and Tom Briggs ‘78, while Dawning Holmes will provide vocals during the concert.
Boyer, Salvatore Macchia
The night is being organized by Jeffrey W. Holmes, Director of Jazz and African-American Music Studies, who will lead the Jazz Ensemble I and also play trumpet and piano. Holmes and longtime double bass and composition professor Salvatore Macchia were colleagues of Max, and Holmes also worked with Roach annually during the UMass Jazz in July Summer Workshops, including the very popular Bright Moments outdoor concert series at which Roach was a regular.
Additional UMass jazz faculty performing in the concert are Carl Clements, saxophone; Haneef Nelson, trumpet; Fumi Tomita, bass and Tom Giampietro, drums. On the “Freedom Now Suite”, Mount Holyoke College faculty Kwame Michael Ofori and Mustapha Braimah will play percussion. Ensemble directors are Matthew Westgate (Wind Ensemble), Jeffrey W. Holmes (Jazz Ensemble I), Tom Giampietro (M’Boom Ensemble), Ian Hale (Minuteman Drumline) and Timothy T. Anderson (Minuteman Marching Band).
The concert program will feature a night of tunes performed and composed by Roach over his career. Highlights include We Insist! Max Roach’s Freedom Now Suite, Frederick C. Tillis' Festival Journey for Solo Percussion and Wind Ensemble, Roach’s The Drum Also Waltzes, Dr. Free-Zee, Tender Warriors, Ghost Dance and Holmes' Pedal Suite for Double Jazz Quartet (Mvt 1). There will also be music (in tribute to or performed by Roach) by royal hartigan, Joe Chambers, Billy Strayhorn, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie/Charlie Parker & Avery Sharpe.
Tickets for the event are $15 for general admission and $5 for seniors, non-UMass students and UMass employees. UMass students are free with an ID. Order tickets online or by calling (413) 545-2511.
A schedule of events for the Max Roach Centennial Celebration is as follows.
Deeds Not Words: Celebrating the Life and Music of Percussionist and Drummer Max Roach in his Centennial Year, Edward Cohen Photography
Sept. 9, 2024 through Dec. 20, 2024
New Africa House Lobby
Hosted by: W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies, in partnership with photographer and alumnus Edward Cohen '75
Opening Reception: Tuesday, October 8, 2024, 4-6 pm, New Africa House Lobby
Edward Cohen '75 is a graduate of UMass Amherst and has been an active commercial photographer in Western Massachusetts since finishing at UMass. In addition to typical work for hire subject matter, Cohen has specialized in event and concert photography, including the contents of the Edward Cohen Photographs of Max Roach collection, which was purchased by the University's Special Collections & University Archives.
The collection is comprised of seventeen mounted photographs of Max Roach at UMass in the late 1980s, early 1990s. Roach is depicted in concert, backstage, and interacting with well-known musicians, UMass faculty, and members of the UMass community.
Honoring the Legacy of Max Roach: A Panel and Conversation
Monday, Oct. 21, 2024
3-4:30 p.m., Old Chapel, Great Hall
Hosted by: W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies
Panelists include Terri Lyne Carrington (Multiple Grammy Award–winning drummer, producer, and educator, Berklee School of Music); Guthrie Ramsey (Edmund J. and Louise W. Kahn Term Professor of Music, University of Pennsylvania); Sonia Sanchez (Poet, Activist, and Scholar), and royal hartigan (Jazz Drummer). Professor Amilcar Shabazz will moderate the panel and Professor James Smethurst will provide introductions (both are faculty in the W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies).
The Listening Room: royal hartigan & friends talk Max Roach
Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2024
11 a.m. to noon, Bezanson Recital Hall, Free
Hosted by: Department of Music and Dance
Part of The Listening Room series, this talk features UMass alumnus royal hartigan, who will be joined by his Akoma Ensemble, consisting of Avery Sharpe, acoustic bass; Art Hirahira, piano; Charles Langford, saxophone and royal hartigan, drums. Jazz program director Jeffrey Holmes is the host.
Sharpe and hartigan were students in the Music Program in the 1970s to the early 1980s, and Max Roach was one of their primary teachers. They will speak about how Professor Roach influenced their lives and the musical legacy he left them and countless other students and play a piece or pieces related to their work with him.
Max Roach Tribute Concert by UMass Ensembles, Faculty, and Guests
Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024
7:30 p.m., Tillis Hall
Tickets: $15 General; $5 Seniors, students, UMass employees
Free for UMass students with ID
Hosted by: Department of Music and Dance
The Department of Music and Dance brings together guest artists (some of whom played with Max Roach during his time here) and current faculty and student performers to pay tribute to Max Roach with a fast-paced and diverse concert.
Performers include:
- Guests: royal hartigan, drums; Herman LeBeaux, drums; Tom Briggs, drums; Avery Sharpe, bass; Charles Langford, saxophone; Art Hirahara, piano; Dawning Holmes, voice
- Faculty: Jeff Holmes, piano/trumpet; Carl Clements, saxophone; Haneef Nelson, trumpet; Fumi Tomita, bass; Tom Giampietro, drums; Salvatore Macchia, bass
- Wind Ensemble, Matthew Westgate, conductor
- Jazz Ensemble I, Jeffrey W. Holmes, director
- Minuteman Marching Band, Timothy T. Anderson, conductor
- UMass M'Boom Tribute Ensemble, Tom Giampietro, director
Order tickets online or by calling (413) 545-2511.
Fine Arts Center Concert: Makaya McCraven & His Band
Friday, Oct. 25, 2024
8 p.m., Frederick C. Tillis Performance Hall
Reserved $50, $40, $30; Youth 17 and under and Five College students $15
Hosted by: Fine Arts Center
Makaya McCraven, who stands among the finest and most innovative drummers, composers, and bandleaders working in jazz today, leads this concert celebration. McCraven—who grew up in Amherst, the son of jazz drummer Stephen McCraven—has a lifelong association with Roach. Roach was a mentor to McCraven's father, Stephen, and a family friend. McCraven is also an alumnus of UMass and of Jazz In July, the Fine Arts Center’s summer jazz education program, which Roach helped found. Join the Fine Arts Center for this very special tribute to a true legend.
UMass Band Day at UMass Football
Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024
3:30-6:30 p.m.
McGuirk Alumni Stadium
Cost: Entrance into football game
Hosted by: UMass Minuteman Marching Band
The UMass Minuteman Marching Band performs a jazz-themed halftime show, including "Ghost Dance" by Max Roach.
To learn more, please visit umass.edu/humanities-arts/max-roach-centennial-celebration.