Students, Former Colleagues, & Special Guests to Honor Max Roach’s Centennial at UMass Amherst Tribute Concert

Source: UMass Department of Music and Dance

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 23, at 7:30 p.m. in Tillis Performance Hall, is part of the Max Roach Centennial Celebration, which runs from October 20th-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. Roach would have

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, members of the “The Akoma Ensemble” which will also include fellow UMass alum Charles Langford (’97) on tenor sax and pianist Art Hirahara (piano). Also returning to campus as guest artists are drummers Herman LeBeaux ’91 (MM) and Tom Briggs ‘78, while Dawning Holmes will provide vocals during the concert.

The night is being organized by Jeffrey 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.

Other featured student ensembles include the UMass Wind Ensemble, Matt Westgate, conductor , the Minuteman Marching Band, Tim Anderson, director and Minuteman Drumline, Ian Hale director.  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,The Drum Also Waltzes, and Holmes’ Pedal Suite for Double Jazz Quartet (Mvt 1).

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. 

The Max Roach Centennial Celebration was made possible through funding from the UMass Chancellor’s Office. The celebration was created in collaboration with the Max Roach Estate, as well as the UMass Amherst Fine Arts Center, W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies, Department of Music and Dance, and the UMass Minuteman Marching Band.

A full schedule of events for the UMass 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 p.m., 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 
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 / 7:30-9:30 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 will bring together professional jazz musicians, distinguished alumni, and current faculty and student performers to pay tribute to Max Roach with a fast-paced and diverse collage concert in Tillis Hall on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024.  

Performers will include: 

• Guests: royal hartigan, drums; Herman Lebeaux, drums; Tom Briggs, drums; Avery Sharpe, bass; Charles Langford, saxophone 
• Faculty: Jeff Holmes, piano/trumpet; Carl Clements, saxophone; Haneef Nelson, trumpet; Fumi Tomita, bass; Tom Giampietro, drums; Salvatore Macchia, bass 
• UMass Wind Ensemble, Matthew Westgate, conductor 
• Jazz Ensemble I, Jeffrey W. Holmes, director 
• Minuteman Marching Band, Timothy T. Anderson, director 
• And many more! 

Order tickets online or by calling (413) 545-2511. 

Max Roach Centennial Celebration Featuring Makaya McCraven 
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, visit umass.edu/humanities-arts/max-roach-centennial-celebration.