1982
Citation:
Benny Goodman is a name recognized by even the causal music listener. The legendary performer has been playing clarinet for 63 years, and making musical history nearly as long. Chicago-born and the eighth of 11 children, the “King of Swing,” as he was dubbed by band member Gene Krupa, Goodman is most closely associated with jazz and the Swing Era of the 1930’s. But his roots are classical, the school in which he received his training. He began his professional jazz career playing with local bands when he was 14, then played with pit orchestras and all-star groups until he formed his own band in 1934 when he was 25. Too progressive at first for popular taste, the Benny Goodman Orchestra scored big in 1935, infecting the country with a passion for swing. Three years later the Goodman Orchestra performed the first jazz concert in New York’s esteemed Carnegie Hall. While making history, he was also changing it by hiring black musician for his band, breaking the color barrier in music. He has broken musical barriers as well, performing classical and jazz with equal prowess and delight.
Award was presented at the Presiden't Cabinet Fifteenth Annual Awards Dinner, May 7, 1982.