BOSTON, April 12, 1995 -- Adult contemporary crooners James Taylor and Natalie Cole will each accept honorary doctorate of music degrees at the Berklee College of Music commencement ceremony on Sunday, May 7, at Boston's Hynes Convention Center. Taylor, who is completing a tour of Asia and will spend the rest of the year writing material for his next studio album, will address more than 500 Berklee graduates and 3,000 guests as commencement speaker. Cole is currently writing songs for her next album, which she will record this summer, and finishing an autobiography.
Also receiving an honorary doctorate will be retiring Berklee professor Herb Pomeroy, a teacher at the college for 40 years. Pomeroy has also been a member of the Charlie Parker, Lionel Hampton, and Stan Kenton bands, and has performed with Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, and Sarah Vaughn, among other jazz legends.
Taylor, Cole, and Pomeroy will join such honorary doctorate recipients as Duke Ellington, B.B. King, Nancy Wilson, Sting, Manhattan Transfer, Dizzy Gillespie, Buddy Rich, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Bonnie Raitt, Phil Collins, and alumnus Quincy Jones.
On commencement eve, at the Berklee Performance Center, Berklee's top students will present a concert in tribute to Taylor, Cole, and Pomeroy, featuring highlights from the honorees' award-winning careers.
In honor of Berklee's 50th anniversary, a number of special guests will attend the commencement, including previously honored doctorate of music recipients Joe Zawinul, Phil Ramone, and Ahmet Ertegun. Also joining in the celebration will be members of the class of 1966, the first group upon which Berklee bestowed bachelor of music degrees.
Founded in 1945, Berklee is the world's largest independent college of music and the premier institution for the study of contemporary music. Berklee has a multicultural enrollment of 2,600 students, more than a third of whom are international, representing 75 foreign countries.