From IDS Reports
Assistant professor in the Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies, Tyron Cooper, won two regional Emmys this Saturday.
Cooper also serves as the director of IU Soul Revue. He is a mentor, composer and ethnomusicologist, according to an IU press release.
Cooper won an award in the Musical Composition/Arrangement category for his original score for the WFYI documentary “Bobby ‘Slick’ Leonard: Heart of a Hoosier.”
“Bobby Slick: Heart of Hoosier” also earned Emmys for its writer and producer, Ted Green, in the Documentary and Writer-Program categories according to the release.
Green was the first to inform Cooper of the good news. The release said he informed him through a text message saying, “You just won an Emmy brother!” to which Cooper responded “Get out of here!!! For what?”
“Working with Ted Green is a new and refreshing experience every time,” Cooper said. “We have created a very unique relationship...I welcome and value every opportunity to work with Ted”
“In the process of producing the soundtrack for his life experiences, I identified so much more about the broader American fabric,” Cooper said. “That, in turn, sparked my creativity to the fullest extent that I could offer at the time”.
Cooper also won in the Historical/Cultural Program or Special category as part of the WFYI and SALT team which produced “Strange Fruit.” SALT is a nonprofit project dedicated to reclaiming and sharing the beauty of Christian life through film, photography, music, poetry and ideas, according to their website.
“It is gratifying to know people are experiencing your work and acknowledging something you created,” Cooper said.
Leonard was born in Terre Haute and played basketball on IU’s 1953 NCAA National Championship team, according to the release.
He overcame early hardships and eventually played professional basketball, coached the Indiana Pacers and became a beloved announcer.
Cooper said he greatly appreciates the opportunity to combine teaching with his other musical endeavors.
“I really thank my department and the head of the Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies, Valerie Grim, who is very supportive,” Cooper said. “I also would like to thank my colleagues in the African American Arts Institute, who are all cheerleaders for each other. I want to make sure they know I am grateful they allow me the freedom and the autonomy to express my creative activity along with my scholarship.”
Cooper also said he is indebted to his partner in music and life according to the release.
WTIU also won an award for the “Renew and Reclaim” episode of “The Weekly Special”. The prgram featured Delta Upsilon cyclist Tom Larson, who raced in the 2014 Little 500 after receiving a triple organ transplant, according to the release.
Bailey Moser
