Gene Hall
 | The topic of this article may not meet Wikitia's general notability guideline. |
Dr. Morris Eugene Hall | |
|---|---|
| Add a Photo WFAA conducts an interview with Gene Hall | |
| Born | June 12, 1913 Whitewright, Texas |
| Died | March 4, 1993 (aged 79) Denton, Texas |
| Known for | One O'Clock Lab Band |
| Parent(s) | Benjamin Baxter and Leila G. Hall [1] |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | North Texas State Teacher's College (M.A.), New York University (Ph.D) |
| Thesis | The Development of a Curriculum for the Teaching of Dance Music at a College Level (1944) |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Music education |
Morris Eugene Hall M.E. "Gene" Hall (1913-1993) was an American Jazz educator at the University of North Texas.
Hall was the founder and first director of the One O'Clock Lab Band, and responsible for the first university curriculum for the study of Jazz (called "Dance Music" at the time) in the United States.
His master's thesis illustrated the curriculum for a formal class in Jazz education.
Early Life
Hall grew up in Whitewright, Texas learning the C melody saxophone and alto saxophone.
Hall first arrived in Denton, Texas in 1934, in the midst of the Great Depression, with the intent of attending college at the University of North Texas, then known as North Texas State Teacher's College. Unable to pay the $32 for tuition, he made up the deficit by painting the interior of the university President's House.
When he initially enrolled at UNT, he was part of band that failed to find new work in Denton, and later disbanded, leaving Hall to later join another college band at the University of Texas, that got stuck in Spain after being unable to afford airline tickets back home.
"...I got a job with a band at the University of Texas that was going to Europe. So I went out and joined them, and we went to Europe and got stuck for six months. Couldn't get back."[2]
Founding the One O'Clock Lab Band
Originally called the Laboratory Dance Band, the band was established with the purpose of experimenting with different band configurations, and giving students in the newly established "Dance Band" degree a place to put their studies to practice.
After starting the band program in 1947, Hall struggled to get the band off the ground because of a lack of music to perform; stating in an interview for the University of North Texas Music Library:
"When this program started in 1947, we had eight special arrangements, and sixty stock arrangements...'bet you can imagine how that sounded."[3]
By the end of the 1950's however, under the direction of Hall, the band had earned multiple awards, and had been featured on Voice of America.
After UNT
After Hall left as director of the Lab Band in 1959, he continued being a Jazz educator at Michigan State University, College of the Desert, and Stephen F. Austin State University.
He later served as the first president of the National Association of Jazz Educators, and was inducted into their hall of fame in 1981.[4][5]
Awards and Honors
In 1976, Hall was honored as Distinguished Professor by Stephen F. Austin State University, where he remarked that the honor surprised him, because "Jazz had not been considered too respectable as an academic field."[6]
References
- ↑ Oliphant, Dave. "Hall, Morris Eugene [Gene]". Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
- ↑ Feustle, Maristella (August 29, 2017). "From the Archives: Early Jazz Studies at UNT". UNT Digital Library (Podcast). UNT Music Library. Event occurs at 00:06:08. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ↑ "Dr. Gene Hall tells about the early days of the jazz program at UNT". Sherman Jazz Museum. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
- ↑ "Hall, Gene, 1913-1993". Social Networks and Archival Context. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ↑ Caraway, Dr. Georgia (October 6, 2014). Legendary Locals of Denton. Arcadia Publishing Incorporated. p. 54. ISBN 9781439647585. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
- ↑ "Gene Hall and Leon Breeden Interview 1976". Youtube. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
External links
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