50th Anniversary of Beatlemania

After inciting “Beatlemania” in the United Kingdom in 1963, the Beatles exploded onto the music scene in the United States with a Feb. 9, 1964 appearance on the Ed Sullivan show, starting a musical revolution.

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of their U.S. arrival, Professor John Covach at the University of Rochester is available to speak with the media about the Beatles' musical legacy. According to Covach, author of What’s That Sound, an Intro. To Rock and Roll (the world’s leading textbook on rock music), the Beatles’ lasting contribution was their ability to cash “that initial fan popularity in for enough artistic freedom to really make a difference in the evolution and development of popular music.”

On the anniversary of that iconic Feb. 9 performance, Covach will launch a free, 6 week Coursera class on "The Music of the Beatles." Currently, around 20,000 students from around the world are enrolled.

Covach is a rock historian who has taught classes on the Beatles and History of Rock for almost twenty years. He also serves as director of the Institute of Popular Music at the University of Rochester, which was founded in 2012. He is no stranger to commenting on popular music in the media, both in print and on television.

If you'd like to interview John Covach about the Beatles, please contact Caitlin Mack at (585) 275-4119. The University of Rochester's broadcast studio is equipped with VideoLink ReadyCam® technology for live or live-to-tape taped television interviews.