Horace Elva Tapscott (April 6, 1934 – February 27, 1999) was an American jazz pianist and composer.[1] He formed the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra (also known as P.A.P.A., or The Ark) in 1961 and led the ensemble through the 1990s.[2]
After service in the Air Force in Wyoming, he returned to Los Angeles and played trombone with various bands, notably Lionel Hampton (1959–61). Soon after, though, he quit playing trombone and focused on piano.[3]
Enthusiasts of his music formed two labels in the 1970s and 1980s, Interplay and Nimbus, for which he recorded.[3]
From allmusicguide.com:
"His pianistic technique was hard and percussive, likened by some to that of Thelonious Monk and Herbie Nichols and every bit as distinctive. In contexts ranging from freely improvised duos to highly arranged big bands, Tapscott exhibited a solo and compositional voice that was his own."
Death and legacy
Having been suffering from brain cancer, Tapscott died aged 64 on February 27, 1999, the day before a planned tribute concert in his honor took place at Los Angeles' Leimart Park.[6]
An engraving in the sidewalk along Degnan Boulevard in the Leimert Park neighborhood reads: "Horace Tapscott, the local pianist and organizer whose ensemble, the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra, gave many musicians their first gigs and helped heal a community impacted by racism."[7]
His personal archive of manuscripts, arrangements and recordings was donated to UCLA Library in 2003 by his wife, Cecilia Tapscott.[8]
Dailey, Raleigh. "The Dark Tree: Jazz and the Community Arts in Los Angeles" (review). Notes Volume 63, Number 3, March 2007, pp. 632–634.
Isoardi, Steven L. The Dark Tree: Jazz and the Community Arts in Los Angeles. April 2006. 394p. illus. index. University of California, $34.95 (0-520-24591-1).
Isoardi, Steven L. Songs of the Unsung: The Musical and Social Journey of Horace Tapscott. Duke University Press, 2001.
Isoardi, Steven L. The Music Finds a Way: A PAPA/UGMAA Oral History of Growing Up In Postwar South Central Los Angeles. Dark Tree, 2020.