By Rob Hochschild | October 9, 2012

Larry Monroe has been a force at Berklee since the 1960s. Hailing from a small town in Vermont, he enrolled at Berklee as a saxophonist and later joined the faculty. As the years went by, he rose through the ranks, as an academic chair, dean, and, most recently as vice president of academic affairs working to establish Berklee's campus in Valencia. With programs off the ground in Spain, Monroe recently decided to retire.

Berklee celebrates Monroe's many contributions over his 42 years at Berklee with a concert, Larry Monroe's Recuerdo, in the Berklee Performance Center, on October 18. Monroe will perform his original compositions and arrangements, supported by an all-star faculty band.

This week's podcast features a Monroe original that he and the band will perform in the BPC show.