Fred Ho ’79 to Receive Harvard Arts Medal

Recognizing a saxophonist and self-described "revolutionary artist"

Fred Ho

Chinese-American jazz saxophonist, composer, writer, and self-described “radical, revolutionary artist” Fred Ho '79 will receive a Harvard Arts Medal on November 13, an unusual conferral of such an honor, which is typically made in the spring at Arts First.

Harvard Magazine's profile of Ho, "Chords of Revolution," began, vividly:

Fred Ho ’79 has never owned a car, nor is he “married with children.” No boss dictates his workday, and he buys very little. He has not even stepped into a clothing store in more than 12 years because he designs his own apparel, though he generally prefers to be naked. “What I create is better than Armani, better than Ralph Lauren, better than these boring mass marketers,” says Ho, whose signature piece is a fire-engine-red silk duster patterned with white cranes, made from a recycled Japanese wedding kimono. “I am not a Luddite and I don’t subscribe to purist positions regarding consumer capitalism. I just choose to consume something better.”

The news release about the award also announces a concert with the Harvard Jazz Bands on the following day, featuring the world premiere of Ho's "Take the Zen Train."

You might also like

Reparations as Public Health

A Harvard forum on the racial health gap

Unionizing Harvard Academic Workers

Pay, child care, workplace protections at issue 

Should AI Be Scaled Down?

The case for maximizing AI models’ efficiency—not size

Most popular

AWOL from Academics

Behind students' increasing pull toward extracurriculars

The Broken Social Contract

Danielle Allen on America’s broken social contract

Why Americans Love to Hate Harvard

The president emeritus on elite universities’ academic accomplishments—and a rising tide of antagonism

More to explore

Darker Days

The current disquiets compared to Harvard’s Vietnam-era traumas

Making Space

The natural history of Junko Yamamoto’s art and architecture

Spellbound on Stage

Actor and young adult novelist Aislinn Brophy