
A Consequential Career During his 28 years at Berklee, Jay Kennedy, who retires in December, revamped the Contemporary Writing and Production Department as chair, and as vice president for Academic Affairs/vice provost he helped launch the Valencia campus and update college facilities.
By
Mark Small
November 22, 2022
Jay Kennedy
Image by John Huet
One could feel exhaustion just reading the long list of Jay Kennedy's accomplishments during his 28 years of service to the college and the achievements of his pre-Berklee musical career. The indefatigable Kennedy will retire on December 5 after a consequential career as Berklee's vice president for Academic Affairs and vice provost. It's been fun, he says with characteristic understatement. There has been a variety of things that have kept me interested and engaged that I hope have in some way benefited Berklee.
Kennedy's expertise and labor on some of Berklee's highest-profile initiatives have indeed been impactful. For the launch of the Valencia campus, he worked on space design, financial planning, and curriculum and policy development. He also oversaw academic space planning for the recording and technology facilities at 160 Massachusetts Avenue and the renovation and updating of Berklee's other academic buildings as well as recording studios A and C. He has stewarded Berklee's capital and academic equipment operating budgets, and managed the implementation of the laptop purchase program and a reorganization of the Academic Technology Division. He expanded internships and experiential-learning opportunities for students, and assisted with the integration of Boston Conservatory faculty members into the Berklee Faculty Union. These are only a few highlights.
Image by John Huet
Additionally, Kennedy deployed his formidable musical skills at Berklee by arranging and conducting music for several concerts in the Great American Songbook series and by producing the 2018 commencement concert celebrating the music and lives of Nile Rodgers, Esperanza Spalding B.M. '05, and Rosanne Cash, who all received honorary doctorates that year.
Kennedy has also served outside of Berklee as an adjudicator for drum and bugle corps, marching bands, and indoor percussion ensembles, as well as a composer and arranger for drum and bugle corps, percussion ensembles, symphonic wind bands, and jazz acts. Notably, he penned arrangements for the Grammy-nominated Virtuosi album by vibraphonist Gary Burton '62 '89H and pianist Makoto Ozone '83 '03H.
I love all kinds of music, he says. I am involved as a judge and administrator for Drum Corps International and have been judging for them since the mid-seventies. For 10 or 11 years I wrote for one of the groups and was the brass arranger and program coordinator for the Boston Crusaders.
Kennedy, who spent his childhood in Franklin, Pennsylvania, and high school years in Kenosha, Wisconsin, left a successful career in Los Angeles as a jingle writer and orchestrator for movies and television to accept a post in 1994 as chair of Berklee's Commercial Arranging Department. The job description for the chair position described what I'd been doing every day: using technology to create tracks and combining acoustic instruments with electronic ones, Kennedy recalls. At that point, I had been doing jingles for almost 20 years, starting in Chicago and later founding my own jingle company in L.A. During this time, Kennedy wrote commercials for such corporations as Coca-Cola, Pontiac, McDonalds, and Nike, working regularly with top L.A. studio musicians, including Berklee alumni, such as Vinnie Colaiuta '75, Neil Stubenhaus '75, and Abe Laboriel Sr. '72 '05H. For various reasons, Kennedy felt the time was right for a change of career and locale, and moved his family to Boston.
Keeping the student experience at the forefront has always been the guide in making these decisions.- Jay Kennedy
Berklee's arranging curriculum hadn't caught up with the technological tools arrangers were using, he says. I was charged by Joe Smith [Berklee's Writing Division dean at the time] to bring things up to speed. With help from faculty members, we designed new courses, updated several, and eliminated a few. We also changed the department name to Contemporary Writing and Production to reflect changes that were happening in the music business. Kennedy and his colleagues also added business courses to teach students about contracts, fee structures, and more.
Incorporating new courses wasn't hard, but eliminating some existing ones was, he says, adding, There are so many choices for students, but you can't do everything. We strive to maintain history and tradition in the curriculum while addressing how students are learning today and where they will be going in the industry. The mixture he landed on paved the way for contemporary arranging and production to become the third most popular major at the college.
Image by Kelly Davidson
In 2001, Kennedy became Berklee's assistant vice president for Academic Affairs, and was later named vice president for Academic Affairs and vice provost. I might be weird for saying this, but I've always enjoyed administrative work, he says, laughing. I like being involved in strategic conversations about the direction of a division or the whole institution and helping people do what they want to do and become more successful.
His favorite part of his job? Of course, the people, he says. I enjoyed working with the students as a department chair and on the concerts I produced with student musicians. I enjoyed their energy and freshness. Working with faculty members has always been a highlight. They are creative and energetic and bring so much to the institution. It's been great workin
Most recent headlines
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
04/07/2025
By Lucy Spicer
Editor's note: We are deeply saddened by the passing of Robe...
04/07/2025
The Summer Reading Challenge has inspired children across the U.K. to embrace a ...
04/07/2025
Introducing CVP Auctions: Trusted Tech, At Auction-Only Prices
Brie Clayton July 4, 2025
0 Comments
A New Destination for Film and Broadcast Gear at U...
04/07/2025
Unveiling China's Ecological Wonders with URSA Mini Pro 12K
Brie Clayton July 4, 2025
0 Comments
Nature Documentaries Freeze Epic Momentsin Extrem...
04/07/2025
Create Any Planet in After Effects
Graham Quince July 4, 2025
0 Comments
The Advanced 3D renderer in After Effects makes it really easy to import 3D o...
04/07/2025
Custom Gradient Colorize for Resolve Fusion
Simon Ubsdell July 4, 2025
0 Comments
Digging into the theory of the gradient colorize process to build ou...
04/07/2025
Watching live sports on TV these days is a delicate balance for broadcasters how much information is too much?...
04/07/2025
WASHINGTON As Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr works to achieve his goal of a very busy, productive summer at the FCC, the agency has rele...
04/07/2025
Other World Computing Launches OWC Guardian USB-C Hardware-Encrypted Portable SS...
04/07/2025
CANAL Brings MotoGP to Vision Pro with Blackmagic URSA Cine Immersive
Brie Clayton July 3, 2025
0 Comments
Experience MotoGP like never before as CA...
04/07/2025
Friday 4 July 2025
Watch the trailer here https://youtu.be/Od5WpvWmDr8
Further...
04/07/2025
The Pitch comes to RT Radio 1 airwaves this Sunday at 7pm. The Pitch is a brand...
03/07/2025
For our Vario-Jib, as well as for a repertoire of weights, we now have carts that make transport easier...
03/07/2025
One of our latest innovations: Slider Drive Unit!
Our Vario Slider not only comes with improvements and new features, but also with its own drive unit!
Our i...
03/07/2025
The 360 EVO lives up to its name: 360-degree rotation not only on the pan axis, but also on the roll axis, enables filmmakers to take their creative visions eve...
03/07/2025
What a buzzing few days at BSCExpo in London!
We were thrilled to connect with so many talented professionals from the world of cinematography.
A huge thank ...
03/07/2025
ADOLESCENCE - Shot with Panther Tower"The whole rig had to be detachable mid-episode
Netflix limited drama series Adolescence has been gaining attentio...
03/07/2025
To achieve a true level of decisive overmatch, communication systems must be as ...
03/07/2025
The Broadcasters Foundation of America has named Ray Hopkins, president of U.S. distribution at Paramount Global, to its board of directors....
03/07/2025
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. In his first major policy speech, Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr outlined his Build America Agenda for the agency'...
03/07/2025
As the industry is making a major push to transition to NextGen TV and develop new businesses that will fund the next generation of broadcasting, TV Tech's ...
03/07/2025
Despite enabling its subscribers to watch films and TV shows in the highest possible resolution, Netflix has revealed it is taking things old school with the in...
03/07/2025
WASHINGTON In response to news that Paramount Global has agreed to pay $16 million to settle a lawsuit by President Donald Trump, Democrats and other administra...
03/07/2025
WUPPERTAL, Germany Riedel Communications today launched RefSuite for professional sports workflows....
03/07/2025
WEITERSTADT, Germany LYNX Technik, a provider of modular signal processing solutions, has announced that founder and longtime CEO Winfried Deckelmann is steppin...
03/07/2025
WASHINGTON Representatives from six trade groups representing tech, pay TV, broadband, LPTV and other sectors recently met with Federal Communications Commissio...
03/07/2025
PLYMOUTH, Wis. Dan Whealy has acquired Heartland Video Systems and will be its new owner and president, the systems integrator said....
03/07/2025
Acclaimed filmmaker, educator, and industry veteran Jay Holben has released his most ambitious work to date: The Director's Guide to Everything a sweeping...
03/07/2025
For Los Angeles-based photographer Scout Pruski, documenting the annual Dyke Day LA is a way to honor and give back to the city's legacy queer community and...
03/07/2025
Modular, Travel-Ready Solution Matthews Studio Equipment launches the new Chimera V-Flat Panel Frame Kit, the lightweight and modular, ultra-durable alternativ...
03/07/2025
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the release of Dalet Flex 2025.6 LTS (long-term support), introdu...
03/07/2025
Lightware's LARA Wizard makes it quicker and easier than ever to set up audio-visual (AV) room automation and control configurations, ensuring anyone, from ...
03/07/2025
Alfalite, the only European manufacturer of LED screens, has obtained both the NCAGE Code (NATO Commercial and Government Entity) and TAA (Trade Agreements Act)...
03/07/2025
nxtedition is implementing a new solution for WIN Network, based in its headquarters in Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia. The nxtedition integrated platfo...
03/07/2025
ORS Group and Insys Video Technologies today announce the launch of a new joint brand identity: Big Blue Marble. The move reflects the evolution of a long-stand...
03/07/2025
Evergent, a global leader in customer lifecycle management and monetization solutions for subscription-based businesses, today announced the successful results ...
03/07/2025
LYNX Technik, provider of modular signal processing solutions today announces an executive leadership transition, effective July 1, 2025. Markus Motzko has been...
03/07/2025
Chaos Releases V-Ray for Blender
Brie Clayton July 2, 2025
0 Comments
Production-Proven Renderer V-Ray Arrives Natively in Blender for the First Time;...
03/07/2025
Calvin University Adds Blackmagic Replay to Broadcasts and Streams
Brie Clayton July 2, 2025
0 Comments
Replay workflow joins 14 Blackmagic Design cam...
03/07/2025
Berklee's Gospel Performance Program Welcomes Jonathan Nelson as the Herb Al...
03/07/2025
Back to All News
Get Ready for Even More Action! Netflix Has Confirmed the Thir...
03/07/2025
Back to All News
Get ready for even more action! Netflix has confirmed the thir...
03/07/2025
In today's fragmented media landscape, advertisers expect more than just reach - they want seamless cross-platform campaigns that deliver measurable results...
03/07/2025
** MEDIA ALERT ** Shonen Jump Store Hosting Los Angeles Pop-up During Anime Exp...
03/07/2025
Thursday 3 July 2025
David Harewood and Matthew Broome in Mozart: Genius for Hi...
03/07/2025
The Sky WNT Fund supports Womens National Team players with a 30,000 bursaryThursday 3 July 2025
Sky Ireland has announced the four recipients of the 2025 Sky...
03/07/2025
The forecast this month is showing a 100% chance of epic gaming. Catch the scorching lineup of 20 titles coming to the cloud, which gamers can play whether indo...
02/07/2025
Hege Wik and Odin appear in FOLKTALES by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, an official selection of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institut...