Campus Pays Tribute to Late Saxophonist, Social Activist Fred Ho

GOLDEN GATE XPRESS -- Fred Ho was known for thinking outside the box with his musical compositions and political beliefs. Now, SF State pays tribute to the famous saxophonist, composer, writer and social activist who passed away last April after a long battle with colon cancer, on September 3. The event in Knuth Hall, located in the Creative Arts Building, is sponsored by the creative music studies program, which recently introduced a Bachelor of Arts emphasis in the School of Music and Dance, and is organized by SF State Professor Hafez Modirzadeh. Ben Barson, a baritone saxophonist who first met Ho in 2009, said he was influential in a different genre of jazz. “He’s like the Obama of jazz,” Barson said. “He was part of a movement of people who defined Asian jazz in the ’80s.”