American Music Review

Vol. LI, Issue 1, Fall 2021

By Jeffrey Taylor

Tania León and Jeffrey Taylor

When I first came on board as a junior faculty member at Brooklyn College, H. Wiley Hitchcock had just retired, but we met occasionally for lunch at a bistro near his Upper East Side apartment (as well as at the Century Club, where we both unabashedly people-watched). I remember that at one of these early meals he brought up Tania León and how much he admired her. His words to me were something like “you must get to know Tania.” It was only a handful of years ago that Tania mentioned to me she had just finished her third decade at CUNY, and as I approach that milestone myself, I realize I didn’t heed Wiley’s advice sufficiently. Tania brought a unique voice and perspective to our department; her spirited calls for diversity, musical inclusion, and a greater appreciation for contemporary music were an important feature of our faculty meetings, even if she was often frustrated by our institution’s lack of movement in those areas. I wish I had taken better advantage of the years we were colleagues, but her truly inspiring presence did play a major role in how I viewed my own teaching and professional work. Most likely, Wiley would not let me off the hook so easily and comment: “there is still time!”

-Jeffrey Taylor