DOC FEST
6140 Hwy 6, Suite 289
Missouri City,
TEXAS 77459
http://www.docfestjazz.org
DocFest, Inc. was conceived during the summer of 2013 by Chris Walker
and Ashley (Tamar) Davis, both alumni of Houston's High School for
Performing and Visual Arts (HSPVA), to honor the career of Robert "Doc"
Morgan, HSPVA Director of Jazz Studies (1976 - 1999) and music
department chair (1978 - 1992). Under Dr. Morgan's guidance, the HSPVA
jazz program became internationally known as an exceptional model for
the successful training of young jazz aspirants, a reputation continuing
today under the supervision of Warren Sneed, himself an HSPVA alumnus.
The program’s effectiveness is evidenced by the many alumni currently
enjoying significant international success, including pianist/composer
Jason Moran (recipient of a 2010 MacArthur Foundation "Genius Grant")
and pianist/composer Robert Glasper (recipient of a 2010 Grammy).
The primary activity supported by DocFest, Inc., is a
concert/reunion/jam session ("DocFest") held annually during the
late-December holiday season at a major Houston concert venue. In
consultation with Dr. Morgan and his wife, Helen, it has been
established that funds generated by DocFest will be dedicated to the
Helen and Bob Morgan Jazz Scholarship Fund at New York's New School for
Jazz and Contemporary Music, endowed by the Morgans (with assistance
from SBC Foundation) in 1999.
As DocFest matures, it is
anticipated that additional beneficiaries will be considered (for
example, there are also Morgan endowed scholarships at the University of
North Texas, Berklee College of Music, and University of Illinois), but
it is the DocFest founding board's intention, and the Morgans' wishes,
that New School/Jazz will be the primary beneficiary in perpetuity,
noting that both Chris Walker and Robert Glasper attended New
School/Jazz.
pon the opening of New York's New School for Jazz
and Contemporary Music (NS/J) in 1986, there was an immediate bond
between NS/J and Houston's High School for Performing and Visual Arts
(HSPVA), thanks to the outreach of NS/J's founding artistic director,
Arnie Lawrence (1938 - 2005). Largely due to Mr. Lawrence's efforts,
HSPVA bassist Chris Walker was a member of NS/J's very first student
body, having been heavily "recruited" by Arnie. In the subsequent years,
many of HSPVA's best jazz students have enrolled at NS/J, virtually all
with substantial scholarship support from the university.
Robert
"Doc" Morgan retired in 1999 after a twenty-three year career as
Director of Jazz Studies at HSPVA. To commemorate his career and the
invaluable opportunities afforded HSPVA graduates by NS/J, in August,
1999, Doc and Helen Morgan, in partnership with the SBC Foundation,
endowed the "Helen and Bob Morgan Jazz Scholarship" at the New School.
One "Morgan Scholar" is chosen each year, with he/she receiving a
substantial tuition credit from the endowment fund. The student must be a
graduate of HSPVA, and, once awarded, the scholarship may be renewed to
same student for a total of four years (assuming he/she remains in good
standing, etc.). Selection of recipient is determined by mutual
conversation among the New School, Warren Sneed (current HSPVA Director
of Jazz Studies), and the Morgans.
