Ray Copeland (musician)

Ray Copeland (July 17, 1926 – May 18, 1984) was an American jazz trumpet player and teacher.

Personal life

Copeland was born in 1926 in Norfolk, Virginia, and died in 1984 in Sunderland, Massachusetts. He studied at Boys High School, Bedford-Stuyvesant.

His son Keith Copeland is a noted jazz drummer.

Career

Copeland's active career spanned from the 1940s to the 1980s. Throughout his career he participated on many swing and hard bop dates, appearing on the well known Monk's Music by Thelonious Monk in 1956. Copeland played with a swinging, upbeat approach, but was undoubtedly overshadowed by other top trumpeters of the era such as Lee Morgan and Clifford Brown. He toured with Thelonious Monk in 1968, and appeared at the 1973 Newport Jazz Festival. Later, Copeland was a Music Professor at Hampshire College, teaching jazz composition.

In 1974, he published the book The Ray Copeland Method and Approach to the Creative Art of Jazz Improvisation. Copeland never recorded as a session leader.

Discography

With Art Blakey

• Art Blakey Big Band (Bethlehem, 1957)

With Bob Brookmeyer

• Portrait of the Artist (Atlantic, 1960)

With Jimmy Cleveland

• A Map of Jimmy Cleveland (Mercury, 1959)

With Booker Ervin

• Booker 'n' Brass (Pacific Jazz, 1967)

With Art Farmer

• Listen to Art Farmer and the Orchestra (Mercury, 1962)

With Thelonious Monk

• Blue Monk, Vol. 2 (Prestige, 1954)
• Monk (Prestige, 1954)
• Monk's Music (Riverside, 1957)
• Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane (Riverside, 1957)

With Dave Pike

• Manhattan Latin (Decca, 1964)

With Randy Weston

• The Modern Art of Jazz by Randy Weston (Dawn, 1956)
• Little Niles (United Artists, 1958)
• Highlife (Colpix, 1963)
• Randy (Bakton, 1964) – rereleased in 1972 as African Cookbook (Atlantic)
• Monterey '66 (Verve, 1966)
• Tanjah (Polydor, 1973)

With Phil Woods

• Sugan (Status, 1957) – with Red Garland