ABOUT MUSIC INN
Philip and Stephanie Barber founded Music Inn, a summer resort within
walking distance of the Boston Symphony Orchestra's Tanglewood Festival,
in 1950. During the early years, the Barbers invited jazz and folk artists
to participate in roundtables for the benefit of the Inn guests during August.
The popularity of the roundtables increased to the extent that in 1955,
the Barbers remodeled one of the estate buildings to accommodate a 1,000
seat auditorium, the Berkshire Music Barn, to house a summer long season
of jazz and folk concerts. The first venue of its kind devoted solely to
the presentation of jazz and folk, the Barn hosted the leading artists of
the period including Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Sarah
Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, the Weavers, and Odetta. Mahalia Jackson gave
her first concert outside her church in this hall. The Modern Jazz Quartet
became a group in residence and Dave Brubeck and his family spent an entire
summer in guest rooms adjoining the Barn stage. Atlantic Records recorded
The Modern Jazz Quartet with Sonny Rollins on the Barn stage.
THE SCHOOL OF JAZZ
The School of Jazz (1957 - 1960) grew out of a remarkable series of jazz
panel discussions organized by historian Marshall Stearns with the sponsorship
of the Barbers at Music Inn. During four annual three week sessions on the
Inn grounds, the School of Jazz developed the first totally jazz oriented
curriculum in the history of jazz. With John Lewis as artistic director
and J. Foster as administrative dean, the faculty included John Lewis, Bob
Brookmeyer, Ray Brown, Kenny Dorham, Herb Ellis, John Garvey, Dizzy Gillespie, |
Jimmy Giuffre, Jim Hall, Percy Heath, Milt Jackson, J.J. Johnson, Connie
Kay, Lee Konitz, Herb Pomeroy, Oscar Peterson, Max Roach, George Russell,
Bill Russo, Gunther Schuller and Marshall Stearns.
The School developed a high international reputation and accepted a total
of 155 students. Foreign students attended from Africa, Austria, Sweden,
Holland, India, Canada, Turkey, and Brazil and American students attended
from 20 states.
Alumni of the School include Ornette Coleman, Don Cherry, Don Ellis and
Gary McFarland. Students from the School joined the bands of Woody Herman
and Quincy Jones and groups of George Russell and Kenny Dorham. The School
also inspired the introduction of jazz studies in major universities and
conservatories and hastened the collapse of the artistic and social barriers
between the major classical organizations and the jazz artist.
The Music Inn, the Berkshire Music Barn and the School of Jazz became
landmarks in jazz and festival history.
A book, A Photographic Memoir of Music Inn, is in process,
authored by Stephanie Barber, Music Inn founder, with J. Foster, Berkshire
Music Barn manager and School of Jazz dean. The volume documents the development
of the Inn, Barn and School from 1950 and includes Stephanie Barber's personal
memoirs; historic photographs by Clemens Kalischer, Warren D. Fowler and
others; and contributions from major artists who participated in Music Inn
activities.
Further information regarding this book is available
by e mail from:
jfoster444@aol.com |
