Frederick C. Tillis

Frederick Charles Tillis
PhD
Born (1930-01-05) 5 January 1930
Galveston, Texas, United States
Nationality American
Education Central Side High School
Alma mater
Occupation Composer, professor of music, jazz saxophonist
Employer University of Massachusetts Amherst
Notable work See below
Style
Website www.fredericktillis.com

Frederick Charles Tillis, PhD (born January 5, 1930), is an American composer, jazz saxophonist, poet, and music educator at the collegiate level.

Early life

Growing up

Born in Galveston, Texas on January 5, 1930, Frederick Tillis was raised by his mother, Zelma Bernice Gardner, née Tillis (1913–2004), and his stepfather, General Gardner, and his maternal grandparents, Willie Tillis and Jessie Tillis-Hubbard (1893–1979).

His first musical experiences were courtesy of his mother, who played piano and sang to him as a child. Later, at George Washington Carver Elementary School, Tillis decided to join the school's drum and bugle corps. As he became more proficient on trumpet, Tillis found his first professional job as a musician in jazz bands when he was twelve years old, earning him the nickname "Baby Tillis". Tillis' band director at Central Side High School,[1] Fleming S. Huff, suggested that he start playing the saxophone.

Post secondary education

In 1946, Tillis was accepted at Wiley College on a music scholarship, and thus became the first person in his family to receive a college education. He graduated from Wiley in 1949 with a B.A. in music, accepting the position of college band director there almost immediately. He also married fellow Wiley music major Louise at this time. They moved from Texas in 1951 so that Tillis could attend the University of Iowa for graduate music studies. At this time, he also decided to volunteer in the United States Air Force at the outbreak of the Korean War, and became director of the 356th Air Force Band. He later went back to get his PhD under the GI Bill at University of North Texas College of Music, but then returned to the University of Iowa to finish his doctoral studies.[2][3]

Career as educator and composer

Completing his PhD in 1963, Tillis then held a succession of academic positions at Wiley College, Grambling College, and Kentucky State University. In 1970, Randolph Bromery recruited Tillis to the faculty of the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and he and his family moved to Massachusetts.[4] Joining the faculty as an associate professor of music, Tillis eventually held many faculty and administrative positions during his tenure at the University of Massachusetts. He retired in 1997, but still holds the title of Professor Emeritus in the Department of Music and Dance. Tillis serves as Director Emeritus of the University Fine Arts Center and Director of the Jazz in July Workshops in Improvisation at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.[5]

Tillis had been writing music since the age of twenty, and was influenced by Schoenberg, Bach, Prokofiev, Mussorgsky, African-American composers, and world music. Some of Tillis' more notable compositions include A Symphony of Songs, a choral/orchestral work based on poems by Wallace Stevens and commissioned by The Hartford Chorale, Inc. (1999); A Festival Journey (1992), and Ring Shout Concerto (1974), for percussion, written for Max Roach; and Concerto for Piano (Jazz Trio) and symphony orchestra (1983) written for Billy Taylor. Tillis has also written several books of poetry, as well as the textbook Jazz Theory and Improvisation.[2][6]

Compositions

Poetry books by Tillis

Textbooks by Tillis

Discography

  1. Motherless Child
  2. Spiritual Fantasy No. 12: Nobody Knows the Trouble I See
  3. Spiritual Fantasy No. 12: Wade in the Water
  4. Spiritual Fantasy No. 12: Crucifixian (He Never Said a Mumbelin' Word)
  5. Spiritual Fantasy No. 12: I'm A-Rollin'
  6. Spiritual Fantasy No. 9 (Sympathy)
  7. Freedom
  8. Beyond Shades of Doubt
  9. The Rain Forest
  10. Singing for The Sake of My Soul
  11. The Best Times

References

  1. ↑ Central High School, the first black high school in Texas (founded 1885), merged with Ball High School in 1968
  2. 1 2 Encyclopedia.com article on Tillis, Frederick 1930
  3. ↑ Aaron Horne, Brass Music of Black Composers: A Bibliography, Greenwood Publishing Group (1996)
  4. ↑ University of Massachusetts, "Randolph W. Bromery, Champion of Diversity, Du Bois and Jazz as UMass Amherst Chancellor, Dead at 87", February 27, 2013.
  5. ↑ Biographical notes at FrederickTillis.com
  6. ↑ UMass faculty bio

Further reading

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