Berklee College of Music president Roger H. Brown will present drum legend Harvey Mason with an honorary doctor of music degree at Berklee's commencement ceremony, Saturday, May 9, at the 7,000-seat Agganis Arena at Boston University. More than 900 Berklee graduates, their parents and invited guests will be in attendance.
Honorary doctorate recipients are recognized for their achievements and influences in music, and for their enduring contributions to American and international culture. Past recipients include Duke Ellington (the first, in 1971), Aretha Franklin, Dizzy Gillespie, Quincy Jones, Jimmy Page, Smokey Robinson, Steven Tyler, Loretta Lynn, David Bowie, Juan Luis Guerra, Annie Lennox, Paco de Lucia, Carole King, Willie Nelson, Alison Krauss, George Clinton, Plácido Domingo and A.R. Rahman.
Mason is among the most recorded, versatile and in-demand drummers of all-time. A legendary, multi-Grammy nominated session drummer, producer, composer and recording artist, he has worked with a pantheon of musical giants, including Barbra Streisand, James Brown, Herbie Hancock, Beyonce, Christina Aguilera, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Bjork, Carlos Santana, Michael Jackson, John Legend, Carole King, James Taylor, George Benson, and the London Symphony Orchestra. He has composed music for film, TV, commercials and written songs recorded by artists ranging from Nancy Wilson, Herbie Hancock and Mary J. Blige to the Notorious B.I.G., Lupe Fiasco, Nelly, P. Diddy and T.I. Mason’s groundbreaking, distinctive style has influenced generations of drummers. The recipient of the 2015 Modern Drummer Readers Poll award for best fusion drummer, he remains active as co-leader and founding member of the jazz super group Fourplay, as well as with his newest recording project, Chameleon.
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