Music award eludes Wilentz

History professor Sean Wilentz sat in the Staples Center in Los Angeles Sunday night as Alicia Keys and Maroon 5 took the stage. He didn't win a Grammy, but the trip was still a treat for the historian, who was nominated for an award for Best Album Notes.

"It's a great rock concert," he said, speaking Sunday night by phone from Los Angeles. "I wouldn't miss it."

Last week, Wilentz hopped a plane for his first trip to Hollywood to attend the 47th Grammy Awards.

The winner of his category was announced during a smaller, untelevised ceremony Sunday afternoon.

The award went to Loren Schoenberg, who wrote the notes to a Woody Herman album.

Though Wilentz made the trip to Los Angeles, many of his fellow nominees did not. "The guy who won wasn't there," he said.

Before the ceremony, Wilentz was modest about his chances, emphasizing that "this year's other nominees are all, as you'd expect, fine and expert writers with big followings among educated listeners, much bigger than anything I can claim."

Wilentz's wife, history professor Christine Stansell, described his attitude before the ceremony as "dubious." He didn't think he'd win, she said, but still wanted to attend the ceremony.

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"Because how many times are you going to get nominated for a Grammy as a professor?" said Stansell, who stayed home this weekend.

For Wilentz, combining the trip with his duties as a professor meant catching a 7 a.m. flight back this morning and rescheduling an afternoon precept to 8 p.m.

He promised to make it up to his students by bringing back chocolates from Los Angeles, said Aiala Levy '07, who is enrolled in the class.

Wilentz's nomination was for "The Bootleg Series Vol. 6: Bob Dylan Live 1964 – Concert at Philharmonic Hall," a re-release of Dylan's historic concert.

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Wilentz attended the concert at the age of 13, and the experience has affected him ever since.

Though he didn't walk away with a Grammy, he hopes his notes still have something to offer readers.

"I hope they help put that evening in some kind of historical and cultural context," he said, "especially for younger listeners who may not know much history, or know much history from that time."

Wilentz said Sunday night he already has another similar project lined up.

"Back to work," he said with a chuckle.