Wendell Morris Logan (November 24, 1940 – June 15, 2010), was an American jazz and concert music

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

who created the jazz department at the

Oberlin Conservatory of Music The Oberlin Conservatory of Music is a private music school, music conservatory of Oberlin College, a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio. It was founded in 1865 and is the ...

Biography

Wendell Logan was born in

Thomson, Georgia Thomson (originally called Slashes) is a city and the county seat of McDuffie County, Georgia, McDuffie County, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. The population was 6,814 at the 2020 census. Thomson's nickname is "The Camellia City of ...

on November 24, 1940. His first musical studies were with his father, an amateur

alto saxophonist The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in the key of E, smaller tha ...

. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in music in 1962 from the

historically black Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of serving African Americans. Most are in the Southern U ...

Florida A&M University Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), commonly known as Florida A&M, is a Public university, public Historically black colleges and universities, historically black land-grant university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. ...

, which he had attended on a football scholarship. At Florida A&M in 1962, Logan heard

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ( – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century c ...

's '' Firebird Suite'' for the first time. This initial exposure to the

twelve-tone technique The twelve-tone technique—also known as dodecaphony, twelve-tone serialism, and (in British usage) twelve-note composition—is a method of musical composition. The technique is a means of ensuring that all 12 notes of the chromatic scale ...

led Logan to undertake a path leading to a career as a composer.Janas, Marci
"Wendell Logan, Legendary Founder of Oberlin’s Jazz Studies Department, Dies at 69"

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1833, it is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational lib ...

News, June 17, 2010. Accessed June 24, 2010. He earned a master's degree in music in 1964 from

Southern Illinois University Carbondale Southern Illinois University (SIU) is a public research university in Carbondale, Illinois, United States. Chartered in 1869, SIU is the oldest and flagship campus of the Southern Illinois University system. SIU enrolls students from all 50 sta ...

and was awarded a Ph.D. in music theory and composition in 1968 from the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

.Fox, Margalit
"Wendell Logan, Composer of Jazz and Concert Music, Dies at 69"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', June 22, 2010. Accessed June 24, 2010. After graduating from college, Logan served on the faculties of

Ball State University Ball State University (Ball State or BSU) is a public research university in Muncie, Indiana, United States. The university has three off-campus centers in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, and Fishers, Indiana. The university is composed of seven aca ...

, Florida A&M University and

Western Illinois University Western Illinois University (WIU) is a public university in Macomb, Illinois, United States. It was founded in 1899 as Western Illinois State Normal School. As the normal school grew, it became Western Illinois State Teachers College. Once West ...

, before joining the faculty of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in 1973, where he eventually become chairman of the jazz studies department and professor of

African-American music African-American music is a broad term covering a diverse range of musical genres largely developed by African Americans and their African-American culture, culture. Its origins are in musical forms that developed as a result of the Slavery in ...

. When Logan first arrived at Oberlin, jazz was exclusively an extracurricular activity. Dr. Logan began teaching jazz music shortly after joining Oberlin, forming the Oberlin Jazz Ensemble in 1973. Logan developed a curriculum for a jazz major in 1989, and by 1991 he helped modify Oberlin's admission standards to allow students to be selected for admission to the conservatory based on their talent as jazz performers.Wolff, Carlo
"Wendell Logan, Jazz Composer and Educator, Dies: Logan brought jazz to the Oberlin Conservatory of Music"
''

JazzTimes ''JazzTimes'' was an American print magazine devoted to jazz. Published 10 times a year, it was founded in Washington, D.C., in 1970 by Ira Sabin as the newsletter ''Radio Free Jazz'' to complement his record store. Coverage After a decade ...

'', June 16, 2010. In addition to playing

soprano saxophone The soprano saxophone is a small, high-pitched member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented in the 1840s by Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax. Built in B♭ an octave above the tenor saxophone (or rarely, slightly small ...

and

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...

, Logan composed both jazz and concert music. Among his concert works are the 1989 "Runagate, Runagate" based on a poem by

Robert Hayden Robert Hayden (August 4, 1913February 25, 1980) was an American poet, essayist, and educator. He served as Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 1976 to 1978, a role today known as US Poet Laureate. He was the first African-Americ ...

about a fugitive slave and "Doxology Opera: The Doxy Canticles" in 2001 which features a libretto by

Paul Carter Harrison Paul Carter Harrison (March 1, 1936 – December 27, 2021) was an American playwright and professor. Harrison was known for works such as his Obie Award winning play '' The Great MacDaddy'' and scholarly writings on theater and performance. Betwee ...

. Logan's music has been recorded on Orion Records and other labels. Logan believed that being described as a "black composer" was a two-edged sword. He would have preferred music by African-American composers to simply be performed alongside works by other composers. Regarding that distinction, he remarked: "No one is asking for a special day: 'Here's the day for black American composers.' That's kind of demeaning. But it's better than nothing". On his Oberlin College profile, Logan described

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

as "our classical music" and said that it "belongs here just as much as Americans belong on this soil." He was selected for a

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are Grant (money), grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, endowed by the late Simon Guggenheim, Simon and Olga Hirsh Guggenheim. These awards are bestowed upon indiv ...

in 1991. A resident of

Oberlin, Ohio Oberlin () is a city in Lorain County, Ohio, United States. It is located about southwest of Cleveland within the Cleveland metropolitan area. The population was 8,555 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Oberlin is the home of Oberlin ...

, Logan died in

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

at age 69 on June 15, 2010, after suffering a short illness. He was survived by his wife, the former Bettye Reese, as well as by a daughter, a son and four grandchildren.

Selected works

Orchestral

* Concert Music (1963) * Polyphony I (1968) * Orbits, sym. band (1982) * The Drum Major: in memoriam Dr M.L. King (1983) * Ibo Landing (1994–5)

Vocal

* What time is it? for soprano and piano (1967) * Songs of our Time for SATB and chamber ensemble (1969) * 3 Fragments (K. Patchen) for soprano, clarinet, piano, percussion (1974) * Ice and Fire (M. Evans), song cycle for soprano, baritone, and piano (1975) * Malcolm, Malcolm for SATB and tape (1976) * Hughes Set (L. Hughes) for TTB and percussion (1978) * Dream Boogie for voice and piano (1979) * Sling Along (J.W. Johnson) for baritone (1982) * Runagate, Runagate for tenor, flute, clarinet, piano, violin, and violoncello (1990) * Runagate, Runagate for tenor and orchestra (1993-1994) * My Lord What a Morning for SATB (1988) * Variations on Doo-Wah for TTBB (1988)

Chamber and solo instrumental

* Ww Qnt (1964) * Stanza for 3 Players for flute, violoncello, and piano (1967) * Evocation, harmonica, tape, (1973) * Music for Brass for brass quintet (1976) * Song of the Witchdoktor for flute, violoncello, piano, and percussion (1976) * 3 Pieces for violin and piano (1977) * Duo Exchanges for clarinet and percussion (1978) * To Mingus for vibraphone (1979) * Praeludium for wind ensemble (1983) * 4 Miniatures for saxophone (1985) * Children's Pieces (1989) * Roots, Branches, Shapes and Shades (of Green) for piano and chamber orchestra (1991) * Moments for alto flute, piccolo, clarinet and bass clarinet, piano, percussion, violin, and violoncello (1992)

Multimedia

* From Hell to Breakfast for jazz quintet, speakers, lights, tape (1973) * Noah (A Jazz Cant.) for narrator, chorus, dancers, jazz quintet, tape (1983) * Return of the Collard People for dancers, tape (1988)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Logan, Wendell 1940 births 2010 deaths American jazz composers American male jazz composers American jazz soprano saxophonists American male saxophonists American jazz trumpeters American male trumpeters Musicians from Georgia (U.S. state) Ball State University faculty Florida A&M University alumni Florida A&M University faculty People from Oberlin, Ohio Southern Illinois University Carbondale alumni University of Iowa alumni Western Illinois University faculty Jazz musicians from Ohio Oberlin Jazz Ensemble members 20th-century American saxophonists