[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 146 (Tuesday, September 19, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1810]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING JAZZ GREAT BARRY HARRIS

                                 ______


                         HON. JOHN CONYERS, JR.

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 19, 1995

  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor jazz pianist, 
composer, and teacher, Barry Doyle Harris. Barry was born gifted, and 
started learning piano at the age of 4 from his mother. He followed in 
her footsteps and played for his church, but soon became fascinated by 
jazz. He played in his hometown of Detroit throughout the 1950's, the 
time when I was first awestruck by his shows. In those years, his piano 
genius took him from the bowling alleys to the Blue Bird Inn, the Motor 
City's most prominent jazz club. Already, he had as much a passion for 
imparting his knowledge of music as he had for performing it.
  He put out his first album in 1955 at the age of 25 under the 
direction of Donald Byrd. That same year he worked for several months 
with Miles Davis. By 1957, he was widely acclaimed in bebop circles and 
he began teaching formally that year. In 1960, he took his act to New 
York City where he played with Cannonball Adderley, Yusef Lateef, and 
Coleman Hawkins for many years. In the early 1980's, he played with a 
75-piece orchestra, performed at Carnegie Hall, and then founded the 
Jazz Cultural Center, an educational institute and club in Manhattan.
  From the day that Barry Harris started teaching, he knew that talent 
was really a torch to pass on to the next generation. This brought him 
to a lifelong commitment to getting young people exposed to jazz, 
keeping music in the schools, and defending the larger role of the arts 
in our society. He once said, ``Teachers should teach where they come 
from, not where they are. They tell you life is complex and you have to 
suffer to give of yourself, and that's not true. Life is very simple, 
and if you simply live and simply learn to play, you'll really give.'' 
Today, with these words, I hope to reciprocate Barry's spirit of giving 
with a token of gratitude for his inspiring contribution to jazz, a 
great national treasure, just like him.

                          ____________________