[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 22 (Wednesday, February 7, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E127]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           BLACK HISTORY MONTH 2024: HONORING RODNEY WHITAKER

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ELISSA SLOTKIN

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 7, 2024

  Ms. SLOTKIN. Mr. Speaker, today I pay tribute to a member of the 
Michigan State University faculty who has contributed to the rich 
artistic landscape of our great state and helped shape the next 
generation of musical talents, all set to a distinctive jazz beat.
  As a young recording artist in Detroit, Rodney Whitaker likely never 
imagined he would one day build and lead one of the most distinguished 
jazz degree programs and performing faculties in the world. But the 
legendary bassist, known for his distinctive ``bear-sized'' tones, 
today serves as Director of Jazz Studies at MSU, a program he has 
transformed into a world class training ground whose students have gone 
on to perform alongside some of the top jazz artists in the world.
  It's a case of those who CAN do, teach, as Whitaker himself spent 
seven years as bassist with Wynton Marsalis' Septet and the Lincoln 
Center Jazz Orchestra, followed by a quarter-century touring around the 
world, collaborating and performing with ]egendary jazz artists from 
Dizzy Gillespie to Diana Krall. And he continues to teach master 
classes at universities around the world, all while serving as artistic 
director of the Michigan State University Professors of Jazz, the East 
Lansing Summer Solstice Jazz Festival, the Dr. Phillips Center Jazz 
Orchestra in Orlando, Florida, and the Gathering Orchestra in Detroit, 
to name a few of his many involvements.
  He has earned one of the highest distinctions in academia, the title 
of University Distinguished Professor, and he is proud to serve as a 
special assistant to the dean's office, directing the College of 
Music's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging efforts. In 2006, he 
was nominated for the Juno Award, Canada's equivalent to the Grammy, 
and in 2011, he received an Emmy nomination. Just last year he was 
named 2023 Detroit Jazz Hero by the Jazz Journalists Association.
  But strip away all the titles, all the awards, and Whitaker is simply 
a man who understands the power of the gift he has been given, and the 
necessity to pass it on. In his own words, Dr. Rodney Whitaker said, 
quote:
  ``That is my truth. I love passing on the knowledge of the history of 
music, and it's life-changing to see that lightbulb go off in someone. 
It certainly changed my life.''
  For all the lives he has enriched, changed, and set to music, I ask 
that his contributions forever be remembered.

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