As principal of Washington Elementary School in the 1960s, Herb Wong, right, invited world-class big bands to perform for students. Photo: Suzanne McCullough
Herb Wong, the founding father of the pioneering jazz program at Berkeley’s schools, died on Sunday April 20, 2014. He was 88.
In an obituary published today on Berkeleyside, Sarah Cline, Jazz Program Director at Berkeley High School, remembers the visionary principal of Washington Elementary School who believed in jazz education for young children — as music education, as a part of the civil rights movement, and as a way of propagating a democratic and artistic spirit — and who brought famous jazz musicians, including Duke Ellington and Oscar Peterson, to give concerts at the school.(...)
Read the rest of Herb Wong: Visionary founder of Berkeley jazz program (42 words)
By Tracey Taylor. |
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Post tags: Berkeley High Jazz Program, Berkeley school jazz program, Berkeley Unified School District, BUSD, Herb Wong, Sarah Cline