Keith Copeland (born in New York City on April 18, 1946, died in Germany on February 14, 2015) was a jazz drummer and music educator.

Career

His father,

Ray Copeland Ray may refer to: Fish * Ray (fish), any cartilaginous fish of the superorder Batoidea * Ray (fish fin anatomy), a bony or horny spine on a fin Science and mathematics * Ray (geometry), half of a line proceeding from an initial point * Ray (gra ...

, was a jazz trumpeter, and he learned by watching him, but he decided to play drums after studying

Art Blakey Arthur Blakey (October 11, 1919 – October 16, 1990) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. He was also known as Abdullah Ibn Buhaina after he converted to Islam for a short time in the late 1940s. Blakey made a name for himself in the 1 ...

's records with The Jazz Messengers. In his teens he played with

Barry Harris Barry Doyle Harris (December 15, 1929 – December 8, 2021) was an American jazz pianist, bandleader, composer, arranger, and educator. He was an exponent of the bebop style. Life and career Harris was born in Detroit, Michigan, on December ...

. He later worked with the

Heath Brothers The Heath Brothers was an American jazz group, formed in 1975 in Philadelphia, by the brothers Jimmy Heath, Jimmy (tenor saxophone), Percy Heath, Percy (bass), and Tootie Heath, Albert "Tootie" Heath (drums); and pianist Stanley Cowell. Tony Purr ...

, but

Percy Heath Percy Heath (April 30, 1923 – April 28, 2005) was an American jazz bassist, brother of saxophonist Jimmy Heath and drummer Albert Heath, with whom he formed the Heath Brothers in 1975. Heath played with the Modern Jazz Quartet throughout ...

disliked his style, leading to arguments and to Copeland quitting. During his musical career, Copeland played with Sam Jones,

Billy Taylor Billy Taylor (July 24, 1921 – December 28, 2010) was an American jazz pianist, composer, broadcaster and educator. He was the Robert L. Jones Distinguished Professor of Music at East Carolina University in Greenville, and from 1994 was the ...

Johnny Griffin John Arnold Griffin III (April 24, 1928 – July 25, 2008) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Nicknamed "the Little Giant" for his short stature and forceful playing, Griffin's career began in the mid-1940s and continued until the month of ...

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

Rory Stuart Rory Stuart (born January 9, 1956) is an American jazz guitarist. Although he has performed as a sideman with many jazz musicians, he is best known for his work as leader of groups and for his role as an educator. Career Stuart was born in New ...

, George Russell, and

Hank Jones Henry Jones Jr. (July 31, 1918 – May 16, 2010) was an American jazz pianist, bandleader, arranger, and composer. Critics and musicians described Jones as eloquent, lyrical, and impeccable. In 1989, The National Endowment for the Arts honored ...

. He also led his own European-based groups, including one with Irish bassist Ronan Guilfoyle. Copeland taught at The New School University in New York City, Rutgers, and Berklee College of Music before moving to Germany in 1992 and teaching in the Hochschule system. His students include

Terri Lyne Carrington Terri Lyne Carrington (born August 4, 1965) is an American jazz drummer, composer, producer, and educator. She has played with Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, Clark Terry, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Joe Sample, Al Jarreau, Yellowjackets, and ma ...

, Darren Beckett and

Adam Cruz } Adam Cruz is an American jazz drummer from New York City. Biography He is best known for his work with pianist Danilo Perez, saxophonist Steve Wilson, David Sanchez, and pianist Edward Simon. He has also toured and recorded with the Mingus ...

Discography

As leader

* ''On Target'' (Jazz Mania, 1993) * ''The Irish Connection'' (

SteepleChase Steeplechase may refer to: * Steeplechase (horse racing), a type of horse race in which participants are required to jump over obstacles * Steeplechase (athletics), an event in athletics that derives its name from the steeplechase in horse racing ...

, 1996) * ''Round Trip'' (

, 1997) * ''Postcard from Vancouver'' (Jazz Focus, 1998)

As sideman

With

Howard Alden Howard Vincent Alden (born October 17, 1958) is an American jazz guitarist born in Newport Beach, California. Alden has recorded many albums for Concord Records, including four with seven-string guitar innovator George Van Eps. Early life How ...

* ''Misterioso'' (

Concord Jazz Concord Jazz is a record company and label founded in 1973 by Carl Jefferson, the former owner of Jefferson Motors Lincoln Mercury dealership in Concord, California. The label was named after the city in the East San Francisco Bay area, and the j ...

, 1991) With

Ben Besiakov Ben Besiakov, also Ben Besiakow (born October 27, 1956, Copenhagen) is a Danish jazz pianist and keyboardist. Besiakov played in jazz and jazz fusion ensembles starting in the early 1970s, including the groups Buki-Yamaz, Creme Fraiche, Engine, ...

* ''You Stepped Out of a Dream'' (

, 1990) With

Paul Bley Paul Bley, CM (November 10, 1932 – January 3, 2016) was a jazz pianist known for his contributions to the free jazz movement of the 1960s as well as his innovations and influence on trio playing and his early live performance on the Moog and ...

* '' BeBopBeBopBeBopBeBop'' (

, 1990) With

Joshua Breakstone Joshua Breakstone (born July 22, 1955) is an American jazz guitarist. Breakstone came into contact with the music business early in life through his parents and siblings. His sister was a lighting technician at the Fillmore East theater, where ...

*'' Echoes'' (

Contemporary Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from approximately 1945 to the present. Contemporary history is either a subset of the late modern period, or it is o ...

, 1987) *'' Evening Star'' (

, 1988) *''Sittin' on the Thing with Ming'' (

Capri Capri ( , ; ; ) is an island located in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the Sorrento Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples in the Campania region of Italy. The main town of Capri that is located on the island shares the name. It has been ...

, 1993) *''Remembering Grant Green'' (Evidence, 1993) *''The Music of Bud Powell'' (

Double Time In popular music, half-time is a type of meter and tempo that alters the rhythmic feel by essentially ''doubling the tempo resolution'' or metric division/level in comparison to common-time. Thus, two measures of approximate a single measure o ...

, 2000) *''Tomorrow's Hours'' (

, 2002) With Charles Brown * ''All My Life'' ( Bullseye Blues, 1990) With

Chris Conner Christopher Ryan Conner (born December 23, 1983) is an American former professional ice hockey winger who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). Early life Conner grew up in Westland, Michigan and attended Churchill High School in Livo ...

* ''As Time Goes by'' (

Enja Enja Records is a German jazz record company and label based in Munich which was founded by jazz enthusiasts Matthias Winckelmann and Horst Weber in 1971. The label's first release was by Mal Waldron, and early releases included European and Ja ...

, 1992) With

Stanley Cowell Stanley Cowell (May 5, 1941 – December 17, 2020) was an American jazz pianist and co-founder of the Strata-East Records label. Early life Cowell was born in Toledo, Ohio. He began playing the piano around the age of four, and became interest ...

* ''

Sienna Sienna (from it, terra di Siena, meaning "Siena earth") is an earth pigment containing iron oxide and manganese oxide. In its natural state, it is yellowish brown and is called raw sienna. When heated, it becomes a reddish brown and is call ...

'' (

, 1989) * ''Departure #2'' (

, 1990) * ''Hear Me One'' (

, 1996) With Meredith d'Ambrosio * ''The Cove'' ( Sunnyside, 1988) * ''Love Is Not a Game'' (Sunnyside, 1991) With

John Dankworth Sir John Phillip William Dankworth, CBE (20 September 1927 – 6 February 2010), also known as Johnny Dankworth, was an English jazz composer, saxophonist, clarinettist and writer of film scores. With his wife, jazz singer Dame Cleo Laine, he ...

* ''Echoes of Harlem'' (Compendia, 1988) With Stanton Davis * ''Brighter Days'' (Outrageous Records Incorporated, 1977) With Frank Foster and the SDR Big Band * ''A Fresh Taste of the Blues'' (Intercord, 1996) With Hugh Frasier/

Jean Toussaint Jean Toussaint (born July 27, 1960) is an American jazz tenor and soprano saxophonist. Life and career Toussaint was born in Aruba, Dutch Antilles, and was raised in Saint Thomas and New York City. He learned to play calypso as a child and atte ...

Quartet * ''Back to Back'' (Jazz Focus, 1998) With David Gazarov * ''Autumnal Giant Steps'' (Episode Records, 1994) With

Al Grey Al Grey (June 6, 1925 – March 24, 2000) was an American jazz trombonist who was a member of the Count Basie orchestra. He was known for his plunger mute technique and wrote an instructional book in 1987 called ''Plunger Techniques''. Care ...

* ''Christmas Stockin' Stuffer'' (

, 1992) With

*'' Return of the Griffin'' (

Galaxy A galaxy is a system of stars, stellar remnants, interstellar gas, dust, dark matter, bound together by gravity. The word is derived from the Greek ' (), literally 'milky', a reference to the Milky Way galaxy that contains the Solar System. ...

, 1978) With

Johnny Hartman John Maurice Hartman (July 3, 1923 – September 15, 1983) was an American jazz singer who specialized in ballads. He sang and recorded with Earl Hines' and Dizzy Gillespie's big bands and with Erroll Garner. Hartman is best remembered for hi ...

*''

Once in Every Life ''Once in Every Life'' is an album by vocalist Johnny Hartman which was recorded in 1980 and released on the Bee Hive label.Bee Hive A beehive is an enclosed structure in which some honey bee species of the subgenus '' Apis'' live and raise their young. Though the word ''beehive'' is commonly used to describe the nest of any bee colony, scientific and professional literature ...

, 1980) With the

* ''In Motion'' ( Columbia, 1979) With Sam Jones * '' The Bassist!'' (Interplay, 1979) With Mark Kirk * ''Lavender Mist'' (Jazz Mania, 1993) with Steve Gilmore With Ann Malcolm * ''Incident'ly'' (Sound Hills Records, 1994) With

Susannah McCorkle Susannah McCorkle (January 1, 1946 – May 19, 2001) was an American jazz singer. Life and career A native of Berkeley, California, McCorkle studied Italian literature at the University of California at Berkeley before dropping out to move to E ...

* ''I'll Take Romance'' (

, 1992) With Sandy McLeod * ''Conversations with Love'' (CGM, 2003) With

Jackie Paris 'Carlo Jackie Paris (September 20, 1924 – June 17, 2004) was an American jazz singer and guitarist. He is best known for his recordings of "Skylark" and " 'Round Midnight" from the late 1940s to the early 1950s. Music career Early years Paris ...

* ''Nobody Else but Me'' (

Audiophile An audiophile is a person who is enthusiastic about high-fidelity sound reproduction. An audiophile seeks to reproduce the sound of a piece of recorded music or a live musical performance, typically inside closed headphones, In-ear monitors, open ...

, 1988) With Bill Pierce * ''Complete William the Conqueror Sessions'' ( Sunnyside, 1995) With Mike Richmond * ''Dance for Andy'' (

) (1989) With

Bob Rockwell Bob Rockwell (born May 1945 in Miami, Oklahoma) is a jazz saxophonist. He was born in the U.S. but emigrated to Denmark in 1983. Biography Rockwell was raised in Minneapolis, and in his early career he toured the U.S. in rock and rhythm and blu ...

* ''Shades of Blue'' (SteepleChase, 1996) With

Charlie Rouse Charlie Rouse (April 6, 1924 – November 30, 1988) was an American hard bop tenor saxophonist and flautist. His career is marked by his collaboration with Thelonious Monk, which lasted for more than ten years. Biography Rouse was born in Wash ...

*''

The Upper Manhattan Jazz Society ''The Upper Manhattan Jazz Society'' is an album by saxophonist Charlie Rouse and trumpeter Benny Bailey which was recorded in 1981 and released on the Enja label in 1985.985 Year 985 (Roman numerals, CMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Summer – Henry II, Duke of Bavaria, Henry II (the Wrangler) is rest ...

with

Benny Bailey Ernest Harold "Benny" Bailey (August 13, 1925 – April 14, 2005) was an American jazz trumpeter. Biography A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Bailey briefly studied flute and piano before turning to trumpet. He attended the Cleveland Institute ...

With George Russell * '' Electronic Sonata for Souls Loved by Nature'' (

Soul Note Black Saint and Soul Note are two affiliated Italian independent record labels. Since their conception in the 1970s, they have released albums from a variety of influential jazz musicians, particularly in the genre of free jazz. History Black S ...

, 1980) * ''

So What So What may refer to: Law *Demurrer, colloquially called a "So what?" pleading Music Albums * ''So What'' (Anti-Nowhere League album) or the 1981 title song (see below), 2000 * '' So What?: Early Demos and Live Abuse'', by Anti-Nowhere League, ...

'' (

Blue Note In jazz and blues, a blue note is a note that—for expressive purposes—is sung or played at a slightly different pitch from standard. Typically the alteration is between a quartertone and a semitone, but this varies depending on the musical co ...

, 1987) With

Perico Sambeat Perico Sambeat (born July 13, 1962) is a Spanish jazz saxophonist. He is an instructor at Berklee's campus in Valencia, Spain. Discography * ''Uptown Dance'' (EGT, 1992) * ''Dual Force'' ( Ronnie Scott's Jazz House, 1996) * ''Jindungo'' (Fresh ...

* ''Uptown Dance'' (EGT, 1992) With Larry Schneider * ''Just Cole Porter'' (

, 1991) * ''Blind Date'' (

, 1992) * ''Freedom Jazz Dance'' (

Steeplechase Steeplechase may refer to: * Steeplechase (horse racing), a type of horse race in which participants are required to jump over obstacles * Steeplechase (athletics), an event in athletics that derives its name from the steeplechase in horse racing ...

, 1996) With Jurgen Seefelder * ''Naide'' (Westwind Records, 1996) With Louis Smith * ''Ballads for Lulu'' (SteepleChase, 1990) * ''Once in a While'' (SteepleChase, 2000) With

* ''Hurricane'' ( Sunnyside, 1986) With

* ''Where've You Been?'' (

, 1981) With

Chris Walden Chris Walden (born October 10, 1966 in Hamburg, West Germany) is a German composer, arranger, and conductor living in the U.S. He leads the Chris Walden Big Band, and was nominated seven times for a Grammy Award. He has written big band and or ...

* ''Ticino'' (ACT, 1996) With Chris White * ''The Chris White Project'' (Muse, 1992) With Martin Wind * ''Gone with the Wind'' (September, 1993) with

Bill Mays William Allen Mays (born February 5, 1944), known professionally as Bill Mays, is an American jazz pianist from Sacramento, California. Biography Mays came from a musical family and at the age of 15 became interested in jazz at an Earl Hines co ...

* ''Tender Waves'' (A Records, 1995)

References

External links

Keith Copeland website
- archived 27 September 2022 {{DEFAULTSORT:Copeland, Keith 1946 births 2015 deaths American jazz drummers Academic staff of the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln Queens College, City University of New York faculty Rutgers University faculty The New School faculty Jazz musicians from New York (state)