Fillius YouTube Channel Opens

I am pleased to announce the launch of the Fillius Jazz Archive at Hamilton College YouTube channel which is now up and running. On it we are uploading complete video interviews we have recorded from our body of over 330 sessions with jazz luminaries here and abroad. Syncing the closed captioning transcripts with the video takes some time, so as of now there are twelve interviews uploaded. We will be adding more weekly, so be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the fun.

Click this link to get you to the channel.

A Unique Venue

Camerman Forrest Warner prepares for the streaming

-->

I had assumed I had played every kind of gig imaginable, from ballroom dance engagements to blues gigs to jazz venues to concert halls to playing on trains and boats. But the online course that I am leading, Jazz: The Music, The Stories, The Players provided an unexpected opportunity yesterday. My musical partners and I played an hour-long gig in the Little Pub at Hamilton College. By itself, the setting was not extraordinary. What made it unusual was the fact that we were live streaming to course participants not only in America but throughout the world.

People viewing the course could write in questions and comments as we performed, and a partial list of countries we heard from included Brazil, Finland, France, Spain, Germany, Peru, Greece, Scotland and Argentina. We literally were able to address questions from other continents and respond to them in real time from the stage. 

The MOOC team fields questions during the event.

I had anticipated the hour going by in a hurry but in fact the pressure of playing for a global audience made the time pass slowly. I think I can safely say that the music came through in fine form no doubt due to the flexibility of my first call musical partners, John Hutson on guitar, Tom McGrath on drums, and Sean Peters on bass. In addition, the participation of Hamilton College students enlivened the event.

This online course seems to have struck a positive chord with many participants and it’s not too late to sign up. Although we launch the last week today, the course will remain up for some time. If it piques your curiosity give it a try at this link where you can sign up for Jazz: The Music, The Stories, The Players.

Jazz Conversations

Great News!

Our collection of over 300 interviews with jazz musicians, arrangers, writers and critics, the jazz greats and the supporting cast from the 1930’s to the present, is now available online and free to the public courtesy of the Hamilton College Jazz Archive. Listeners can click on a link and read the transcripts or listen to interviews with some of the jazz world’s most well-known musicians, including Dave Brubeck, Lionel Hampton, Oscar Peterson and George Shearing as well as former members of bands led by Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Woody Herman, Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, Stan Kenton and the Dorsey Brothers. Interviews are searchable by subject and name. Selected video excerpts may also be viewed at the archive website.


The collection focuses primarily on artists associated with mainstream jazz and the swing era. The interviews, which range from 30 to 120 minutes, reveal the learning processes employed by musicians prior to the establishment of jazz education programs, and the realities of making a career in the jazz world. Those interviewed discuss stories of life on the road and in the New York City recording scene, as well as race relations past and present, in the jazz world and beyond. Anecdotes are woven throughout the interviews In addition to jazz lore, there is a wealth of material illuminating American society in the twentieth century. Stories about the depression, World War II, spirituality and commitment to the art form abound — all first-hand accounts.

The Jazz Archive was established by jazz enthusiast and Hamilton alumnus Milt Fillius Jr. ’44 who recognized the urgent need to document the life stories of notable jazz figures. It is physically located on the Hamilton College campus in Clinton, New York.

Interviews with Oscar Peterson, George Shearing, Clark Terry and Milt Hinton were conducted by jazz vocalist Joe Williams, who was instrumental in establishing the reputation of this oral history project. Approximately one-third of those interviewed are now deceased.

The interview transcripts and audio recordings are online as part of the Hamilton College Library Digital Collection which is comprised of several other notable holdings including those related to the Civil War and to communal societies.

Hamilton College is one of the nation’s top liberal arts colleges. It is independent, highly selective, coeducational and residential. Originally founded in 1793 as the Hamilton-Oneida Academy, Hamilton is now comprised of approximately 1,800 diverse and talented students from nearly all 50 states and approximately 40 countries. More information on the college can be found here.