Jazz Studies Professor Receives Mellon Foundation Fellowship

Oberlin Conservatory Associate Professor of Jazz Studies and world-renowned drummer Billy Hart has been named a Mellon Foundation 2025 Jazz Legacies Fellow. He is a member of the Foundation's first group of jazz artists recognized for their contributions to the music genre. Considered to be one of the most sought-after drummers of his generation, Hart was recognized by the Foundation as a "hero of jazz rhythm and an esteemed mentor."

Each fellow will be honored with a lifetime achievement award and receive an unrestricted grant of $100,000. With this new funding initiative, the Foundation is focusing on an effort that supports the cultural preservation of jazz—championing the legacy of artists who have played a pivotal role in its formation and the strengthening of the broader jazz ecosystem.

In a recent New York Times profile, collaborators and partners speak to Hart’s commitment to growing as a student of jazz, even after a career that spans more than 60 years. He has performed with jazz icons including Miles Davis, Stan Getz, Herbie Hancock, Pharoah Sanders, Wayne Shorter, and McCoy Tyner.

In 2022 Hart was recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts as a Jazz Master for his lifetime of contributions to jazz. To date, he has recorded 12 albums in his own name and performed as a sideman on more than 600 recordings.  And his work continues as he just released a new album, Just, with his long-running quartet.

Read more about this Oberlin jazz icon, profiled in a recent New York Times feature.