Jazz legend to perform for faculty and students

Legendary jazz lyricist Jon Hendricks will be celebrating his 90th birthday with the UT Jazz program at Crystal Lounge tonight and at the Center for Performing Arts tomorrow night.

Hendricks will perform tonight after CrossCurrents, the jazz faculty group, and Jon Hendricks' Vocalstra, a student jazz vocal group. Tomorrow, he will perform with the Vocalstra on their concert in the CPA Recital Hall, and the Jazz Lab Band will also perform.

"We can't believe he turned 90 this year and he's as spry as ever," said Gunnar Mossblad, professor of saxophone and director of jazz studies.

Hendricks, UT distinguished professor of jazz, is a world renowned jazz writer and singer, and is considered by many critics as the "Father of Vocalese," the art of lyricizing instrumental jazz lines.

In an interview with National Public Radio, Hendricks said lyrics make a song.

"You find a word that exactly describes that sound, and then you've got it. Words are very flexible things," Hendricks said.

He has written vocalese versions of pieces from jazz artists such as Count Basie and Duke Ellington, and arranged Rimsky-Korsakov's "Scheherazade" for the Volcastra, premiering it with the Toledo Symphony Orchestra in 2003.

One of Hendricks' more famous collaborations was with the vocal group The Manhattan Transfer. His arrangement of "Birdland" on their 1979 album "Extensions" won a Grammy, and their 1985 album "Vocalese," which Hendricks wrote all the lyrics for, won seven of the 12 Grammy nominations it received.

Crystal Lounge is housed within the Ramada Inn on Secor Road, one mile north of campus. The cover charges for both performances are $5 for the general public and $3 for students and seniors.