Description
The collection consists of sound
recordings, musical compositions and arrangements of Horace Tapscott and other composers,
and the performances of the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra and the Union of God's Musicians
and Artists Ascension. The collection is in the midst of being processed, and updates will
be made to this finding aid periodically.
Background
Horace Elva Tapscott (b. Houston, 6 April 1934; d. Los Angeles, 27 Feb 1999) began piano
studies at the age of six with his mother, the pianist Mary Lou Malone, and took up trombone
two years later. His family moved to Los Angeles in 1943 and he studied trombone in school,
playing with Frank Morgan in a high-school band; other young associates from this period
included Don Cherry and Billy Higgins. Tapscott worked with Gerald Wilson's orchestra before
graduating from Jefferson High School in 1952. After studying briefly at Los Angeles City
College he enlisted in the air force, and served in a band in Wyoming (1953-7). He then
returned to Los Angeles and worked with various local bands before touring as a trombonist
with Lionel Hampton (1959 to early 1961), for whom he also wrote a number of arrangements
and at times sat in on piano. By the early 1960s he was playing piano exclusively, in part
because of persistent dental problems resulting from an automobile accident during his
high-school years.
Extent
37.5 Linear Feet
(75 boxes)
Restrictions
Property rights to the physical objects belong to UCLA Library Special Collections. All
other rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the
responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the
copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not
hold the copyright.
Availability
Open for research. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in
advance using the request button located on this page.