Grammy-nominated saxophonist and NEA Jazz Master Dave Liebman has donated his personal archive to Berklee College of Music in Boston, Mass. The archive—which contains papers, photographs, audio and video recordings, and a variety of memorabilia covering the years from 1955 to 2017—will now reside in the college’s Stan Getz Library.
The Liebman collection presents a comprehensive picture of his professional and personal activities, from gigging and grant proposals to teaching materials and manuscripts both published and unpublished, as well as ample documentation of his nearly 50-year recording career. Personal items include clippings, photographs, programs, posters, and more eccentric items such as T-shirt fragments.
Liebman worked closely with staff from Berklee’s library at his home in Stroudsburg, Pa., organizing and packing artifacts for the archive transfer. “I am thrilled about the new relationship that has come my way with Berklee and my archives,” he said. “Beginning in the 1960s, my collection of materials that reflect my artistic path is quite voluminous. To have the number-one jazz institution in the world be the repository of my life’s work is beyond words.”
“Our students have been honored by Dave Liebman’s presence and performances on our campus, and the devotion he shows to jazz,” said Berklee’s president Roger Brown. “He is a vital figure in this American art form, and his influence will continue to inspire musicians for decades to come with his archives on our campus.”
The official opening of the Dave Liebman collection will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 27, at the Berklee Media Center in Boston; the event will be free and open to the general public. Go here for more information.
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