Opening Celebration

The celebration for the new Bertram and Judith Kohl Building on the Oberlin College campus took place April 30 and May 1. Review activities for the weekend, which featured such notable guests as Bill and Camille Cosby, Stevie Wonder, James McBride '79, and Avery Brooks '70.

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FRIDAY, APRIL 30, 2010

The James R. and Susan Neumann Jazz Collection: Special Presentation by David H. Stull and James R. Neumann

3 p.m., Kulas Recital Hall, Conservatory
Free; No Ticket Required; Open To The Public; General Seating

Honorary Degree Ceremony

4 p.m., Tappan Square [weather permitting]
Free; No Ticket Required; Open To The Public [Rain Location: Finney Chapel]

At Oberlin, honorary degrees are awarded to those individuals who have made distinguished contributions in scholarship, music, the arts, philanthropic efforts, business, or in social service. Drs. Bill and Camille Cosby will be receiving the Doctorate of Humanities and Stevie Wonder will be receiving the Doctorate of Music. Dr. Johnnetta Cole will be presenting Drs. Bill and Camille Cosby's degrees, and Professor Wendell Logan will be presenting Stevie Wonder's degree. The immense contributions Drs. Bill and Camille Cosby have made as artists, educators, and philanthropists exemplify Oberlin’s traditions of academic excellence, innovation, and progressivism. Stevie Wonder’s distinguished career as a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, as well as his humanitarian efforts, and philanthropic leadership throughout his career is extremely laudable.
[About Drs. Bill and Camille Cosby] [About Stevie Wonder]

Jazz Film: Mo' Better Blues

7 p.m., Apollo Theatre
$5; Ticket Required; Open To The Public

A stylish film starring Academy Award-winning Denzel Washington, Wesley Snipes, Spike Lee (director and actor), and Samuel Jackson, Mo’ Better Blues (1990) is the story of a young jazz musician's rise to stardom, and his subsequent pitfalls in love. The film reveals the 1980s jazz world of Brooklyn, New York, through the eyes of Bleek Gilliam (played by Denzel Washington), a trumpet player with raw talent and charisma. After forming a jazz band, The Bleek Quintet, Bleek makes a series of decisions jeopardizing his playing career, friendships, and romances. With a Grammy-nominated soundtrack, striking performances, and powerful directing from Spike Lee, Mo’ Better Blues reveals the drama of a lively jazz musician performing in the busy nightclubs of New York City. (Rated R)

An Evening with Bill Cosby

8:30 p.m., Finney Chapel
Free; Ticket Required [Enter the Ticket Lottery]

Dr. Bill Cosby will present a show business comedy routine entitled "An Evening with Bill Cosby" in Finney Chapel at 8:30 p.m.
[About Dr. Cosby]

Finney Chapel will open 1 hour prior to the performance.

Warner Concert Hall will be available as the overflow space. Seating is on a first come, first served basis. Tickets are not required for Warner Concert Hall. Doors will open 1 hour prior to the performance.

Jam Session

11 p.m., Dionysis Disco ('Sco)
Free; No Ticket Required; Open To The Public

A jam session will be held at the the Dionysis Disco ('Sco). Come join in the festivities.

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SATURDAY, MAY 1, 2010

The Bertram and Judith Kohl Building Dedication Ceremony

11 a.m., Warner Concert Hall, Conservatory
Free; No Ticket Required; Open To The Public; First Come, First Served

The Bertram and Judith Kohl Building Open House and Self-Guided Tours

Afternoon, Bertram and Judith Kohl Building
Free; No Ticket Required; Open To The Public

One-on-One with Avery Brooks '70

2 - 3:30 p.m., Warner Concert Hall, Conservatory
Free; No Tickets Required; Open to The Public; General Seating

Mr. Brooks will share his reflections of his multifaceted artistic career on stage, in television, movies and music in conversation with Theater Arts and African American Studies faculty Caroline Jackson-Smith. He will address the challenges that face young artists, the quest for self, the reckoning and the exercise of freedom.
[About Mr. Brooks]

Jazz Film: 'Round Midnight

1 p.m., Apollo Theatre
$5; Ticket Required; Open To The Public

Starring real-life jazz legend Dexter Gordon, 'Round Midnight (1986) is the story of a fictional sax player performing in New York and Paris in the 1950s, and his jazz triumphs and difficulties with alcohol abuse. After travelling to Paris to perform, Dale Turner (Dexter Gordon) meets Francis Borier (Francois Cluzet), an unusual Parisian who is a longtime admirer of Turner's music, and their friendship that follows. Directed by Bertrand Tavernier, the film was inspired by the true lives of American pianist Bud Powell and his friend Francis Paudras, a French jazz enthusiast. With an Oscar-winning soundtrack by Herbie Hancock and an Oscar nomination for Best Lead Actor, ‘Round Midnight effortlessly captures the atmosphere of Parisian jazz clubs and the lives of their musicians. In the words of a New York Times review, "Dexter Gordon becomes the very embodiment of the music itself… No actor could do what [he] does in 'Round Midnight." (Rated R)

Designing the Bertram and Judith Kohl Building: Panel Discussion

4 - 5 p.m., Warner Concert Hall, Conservatory
Free; No Ticket Required; Open To The Public; First Come, First Served

Join David H. Stull, Dean of the Conservatory, Jonathan C. Kurtz, Associate and Project Designer, Westlake Reed Leskovsky, and Wilson Martin, Principal, GroundView LLC as they discuss the complex design process for the Bertram and Judith Kohl Building, including its innovative engineering and design intention to achieve the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Gold rating for a facility exclusively dedicated to music.
[About the Panelists]

The Bertram and Judith Kohl Building Celebration Jazz Concert

8 p.m., Finney Chapel
Free; Ticket Required [Enter the Ticket Lottery]

To celebrate the grand opening of the Bertram and Judith Kohl Building, American icon Stevie Wonder, for whom jazz is a vital part of his musical soul, joins Oberlin’s distinguished Jazz Studies faculty, alumni, and students in a celebratory jazz concert.
[About Stevie Wonder]
[About the Alumni & Faculty Performers]

Finney Chapel will open 1 hour prior to the Concert.

Warner Concert Hall and the Apollo Theatre will be available as the overflow spaces. Seating is on a first come, first served basis. Tickets are not required for Warner Concert Hall and the Apollo Theatre. Doors will open 1 hour prior to the Concert.

Post-Concert Jam Sessions

Following the Bertram and Judith Kohl Building Celebration Jazz Concert
Free; No ticket required; Open to the public

Post-concert jam sessions will be held at the the Dionysis Disco ('Sco) and Cat-in-the-Cream Coffee House. Come join in the festivities.

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Program, performers and locations are subject to change.