William Franklin Lee III, who as head of the University of Miami’s School of Music from 1964-1982 introduced jazz as a major course of study, died on Sunday at a hospital in New Smyrna Beach, where he lived.
Born in February 1929 in Galveston, Texas, he was 82. Daughter Patricia Lee said her father died of natural causes.
A multi-instrumentalist, Lee was inducted into the International Association of Jazz Education’s Jazz Educators Hall of Fame in 1988.
A UM statement released Tuesday said that “jazz programs at the university level were virtually nonexistent’’ when Lee became dean. He had been chairman of the music department at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas, before joining the UM faculty, and was an authority on the work of jazz piano great Stan Kenton.
“Realizing that jazz was not a passing fad but a legitimate art form, Lee quickly infused it into UM’s curriculum, creating a jazz program in the mid-1960s that eventually grew into a full-fledged department,’’ the statement said.
Calling Lee “an accomplished jazz pianist, composer, arranger and educator,’’ the statement noted that he also introduced a music merchandising program, “and bucked other trends by offering instruction in instruments such as the saxophone and electric guitar.’’
He also introduced a slew of new courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, including sacred music, conducting, music therapy, jazz pedagogy, and studio arranging and producing.
Lee is credited with creating a relationship with Patricia L. Frost and her husband Dr. Philip Frost that resulted in the major financial gift that renamed the UM music school in their honor.
The department had 150 students when Lee took over. By the time his stint as dean ended in 1982, “enrollment topped 825, and the school had raised about $18 million, added four new buildings, and constructed a major addition to the Foster Building,’’ according to the UM statement.
Lee retired from UM in 1989 as distinguished professor of music theory and composition emeritus, and composer in residence.
He spent a year at Florida International University, then returned to the University of Texas, where he’d earned a master’s degree in music composition and a Ph.D. in music school administration. He also held a bachelor’s of music and a master’s of science degree from the University of North Texas.
Daughter Patricia said he returned to Florida about six years ago.
In addition to Patricia, of New Smyrna Beach, Lee is survived by daughter Peggy Ann Lee, also of New Smyrna Beach, son Robert Terry Lee of Orlando, and son Will Lee of New York, where he plays bass with Paul Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra on The Late Show with David Letterman.
Jacqueline Tyler Lee, his former wife, also survives.
A memorial scholarship fund will be established in his name at the Frost School of Music. Lee requested that his family not hold a memorial service.
Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/10/25/2471372/obituary-william-franklin-lee.html#ixzz1bqrFLwov
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