06/11/91
CONTACT: Stanford University News Service (650) 723-2558
STANFORD -- A summer jazz concert series and two fall concerts are among the Stanford University events planned in memory of Stan Getz, famed tenor saxophonist, who died June 6 of cancer at his Malibu home. He was 64.
An 11-time Grammy winner, Getz began teaching in Stanford's Summer Jazz Workshop in 1982 and became artist-in-residence in the Music Department's Program in Jazz in 1985.
In addition to teaching small ensembles, theory classes and jazz history classes, Getz played four sold-out concerts a year in support of the Stanford Program in Jazz, one of the first offered by a top-ranked university.
"Stan's presence helped Stanford to grow into an important national center for jazz study," said Jim Nadel, coordinator of jazz studies at Stanford and a lecturer in jazz theory and chamber music.
"He was a very intuitive teacher; that's the way he approached his music as well. He had the most remarkable ear I've ever encountered. His ability to create melody was unmatched in jazz."
Getz took a leave of absence from Stanford in 1987 to undergo chest surgery for removal of a tumor. Within five months he played again at Stanford to a sell-out crowd at Dinkelspiel Auditorium, then left on a tour of Europe that included 20 performances in 28 days.
His last performance for Stanford came almost exactly one year ago, in a Bay cruise concert to establish the Stan Getz Scholarship Fund at Stanford.
"He sounded better than I've ever heard him," Nadel said. "We've lost a friend and one of the greatest people who ever played music. It makes us very sad."
The Stanford summer jazz concert series in memory of Getz, June 26-Aug. 10, will feature more than 20 on-campus performances by some of the nation's most talented jazz artists.
Fall events dedicated to Getz include a Stanford Jazz Band concert at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20, in Dinkelspiel Auditorium. Also planned is a Committee for Jazz memorial concert with guest artists, at a time and place to be announced. Tickets for all the concerts are available from the Tresidder Union Ticket Office, (415) 723-4317.
Getz's family requested that donations in his memory be sent to the Stan Getz Scholarship Fund, which helps low-income youth attend the Stanford Summer Jazz Workshop, or to the Stan Getz Memorial Fund in the Music Department, which provides music lessons for Stanford students. Donations also may be sent to the International Association of Jazz Educators, which assists outstanding high school age jazz musicians.
Memorial services for Getz, who was cremated, are planned in New York City and Los Angeles at the end of June. For more information on services and donations, contact the Stanford jazz program office at (415) 386-8535.
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