The Henry and Leigh Bienen School of Music is the music and performance arts school of

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

. It is located on

's campus in

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, Wil ...

, United States. The school was previously known as the Northwestern University School of Music from 1895 until September 2008, when it was renamed to honor retiring

University president A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and former Commonwealth n ...

Henry Bienen Henry Samuel Bienen (born 1939) is an American academic and administrator. He was named President of the Poetry Foundation in 2015, and is President Emeritus of Northwestern University, where he served from 1995 to 2009. Life and career Bienen re ...

and his wife, Leigh Buchanan Bienen.

Description

The Bienen School offers performance degrees in all orchestral instruments, piano, guitar, voice, jazz studies, and conducting, as well as academic degrees in composition, musicology, music history, music education, and music theory and cognition. It offers a dual-degree undergraduate program in liberal arts, journalism, engineering, communication, or education and social policy in conjunction with those respective university schools. The Bienen School has approximately 125 faculty members, 400 undergraduate students, and 200 graduate students.

History

The Bienen School of Music is one of the oldest degree-granting music schools in the United States. Its beginnings date to 1873, when the Northwestern Female College and the Evanston College for Ladies were incorporated into the Northwestern University Woman's College. This new institution established the Conservatory of Music, and in 1891, Peter Christian Lutkin was named its director. In 1895, it became the School of Music, with Lutkin serving as its first dean. During Lutkin's 33-year tenure, a new music building opened, the "Beehive" practice facility was constructed, and the first honorary doctor of music degree was awarded in 1915 to Frederick Stock, conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Lutkin was succeeded in 1928 by Carl Beecher, who had earned the school's first bachelor's degree. Music education professor John W. Beattie was appointed the school's third dean in 1936. During his administration the graduate program was expanded and Lutkin Hall constructed in 1941. George Howerton, assumed the deanship in 1951. Under his leadership the school established an opera program, began a series of guest artist master classes, and increased the music library's holdings. He was succeeded in 1971 by Thomas Miller, whose tenure brought sweeping revisions to the undergraduate curriculum as well as the opening of Pick-Staiger Concert Hall in 1975 and Regenstein Hall of Music in 1977. Bernard J. Dobroski became the school's sixth dean in 1990. His term featured an emphasis on faculty and student recruitment, expansion of course offerings for nonmajors, and community engagement programs. Toni-Marie Montgomery has served as dean since 2003. Under her leadership the school has established two international awards, the Jean Gimbel Lane Prize in Piano Performance and the Michael Ludwig Nemmers Prize in Music Composition; focused on guest-artist residencies; established the Institute for New Music; provided all doctor of musical arts candidates with full-tuition scholarships; opened the Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Center for the Musical Arts; appointed the

Dover Quartet The Dover Quartet is an American string quartet. It was formed at the Curtis Institute of Music in 2008 and its members are graduates of both the Curtis Institute of Music and the Rice University Shepherd School of Music. Its name is taken from ...

as the school's quartet-in-residence; and secured funding for a tour to Asia in 2018 by the Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra.

Areas of study

The Bienen School of Music offers 15 academic majors in six degree programs. The ad hoc, or self-designed, major offers an option for students whose interests fall outside the school's standard offerings. The Bienen School offers programs in the following areas of study:

Music Performance

* Brass * Percussion * Strings * Harp * Piano and Piano Pedagogy * Woodwinds * Voice and Opera * Jazz Studies * Conducting

Music Studies

* Composition and Music Technology * Music Education * Music Theory and Cognition * Musicology

Performing Ensembles

The Bienen School of Music currently sponsors 20 ensembles: the Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra, Baroque Music Ensemble, Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band, Contemporary Music Ensemble, Philharmonia, Concert Band, Jazz Orchestra, Jazz Small Ensembles, University Chorale, University Singers, Bienen Contemporary/Early Vocal Ensemble, Alice Millar Chapel Choir, Northwestern Camerata, Brass Choir, Cello Ensemble, Saxophone Ensemble, Percussion Ensemble, and Guitar Ensemble. Some ensembles are open to music majors only. In addition, students can form

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...

groups of their own. Victor Yampolsky is the director of orchestras,

Donald Nally Donald Nally (born December 27, 1960) is an American conductor, chorus master, and professor of conducting, specializing in chamber choirs, opera, and new music. He is conductor of the professional new-music choir, The Crossing, based in Philadelp ...

is the director of choral organizations, and Mallory Thompson is the director of bands.

Guest Artist Series

The Bienen School of Music currently hosts 4 professional guest artist subscription series. Established in 1993, the Segovia Classical Guitar Series brings artists and young rising stars, including winners of the Guitar Foundation of America International Competition, to Chicago's North Shore. Recently, the series has welcomed classical guitarists Eduardo Fernandez, Ekachai Jearakul, lutenist

Paul O'Dette Paul Raymond O'Dette (born February 2, 1954) is an American lutenist, conductor, and musicologist specializing in early music. Biography O'Dette, who was born in Pittsburgh, began playing the electric guitar in a rock band in Columbus, Ohio, w ...

, the Assad Brothers, and Raphaella Smits, among others. The Skyline Piano Artist Series was established in 2015 to bring pianists from around the world to perform in the Mary B. Galvin Recital Hall. Recently, the series has hosted

Jonathan Biss Jonathan Biss (born September 18, 1980) is an American pianist, teacher, and writer based in Philadelphia. He is the co-artistic director (with Mitsuko Uchida) of the Marlboro Music Festival. Early life and education Biss was born into a famil ...

Emanuel Ax Emanuel "Manny" Ax (born 8 June 1949) is a Grammy-winning American classical pianist. He is a teacher in the Juilliard School. Early life Ax was born to a Polish-Jewish family in Lviv, Ukraine, (in what was then the Soviet Union) to Joachim and ...

Sergei Babayan Sergei Babayan ( hy, Սերգեյ Բաբայան; born 1 January 1961) is an Armenian-American pianist. Described by ''Le Devoir'' as a "genius", Babayan won many international competitions, including the Robert Casadesus International Piano Comp ...

, Jorge Federico Osorio, and 2017

Van Cliburn International Piano Competition The Van Cliburn International Piano Competition (The Cliburn) is an American piano competition by The Cliburn, first held in 1962 in Fort Worth, Texas and hosted by the Van Cliburn Foundation. Initially held at Texas Christian University, the c ...

winner

Yekwon Sunwoo Yekwon Sunwoo ( ko, 선우예권; born February 10, 1989, in Anyang) is a South Korean classical pianist. In 2017, at 28 years old, Sunwoo was the first Korean to win the gold medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. He won th ...

. The Tichio-Finnie Vocal Master Class Series debuted in 2014 and has featured such vocalists as

Renée Fleming Renée Lynn Fleming (born February 14, 1959) is an American soprano, known for performances in opera, concerts, recordings, theater, film, and at major public occasions. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, Fleming has been nominated for 1 ...

Isabel Leonard Isabel Leonard (born February 18, 1982) is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer based in New York City. She is of Argentine ancestry on her mother's side. Education Leonard was born in New York City. For five years she sang with the Manhattan ...

Marilyn Horne Marilyn Horne (born January 16, 1934) is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer. She specialized in roles requiring beauty of tone, excellent breath support, and the ability to execute difficult coloratura passages. She is a recipient of the Natio ...

Matthew Polenzani Matthew Polenzani (born 1968) is an American lyric tenor. He has appeared with the Metropolitan Opera, Seattle Opera, Royal Opera House, Bayerische Staatsoper, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Vienna State Opera, and San Francisco Opera, among others. He ...

, and composer

Jake Heggie Jake Heggie (born March 31, 1961) is an American composer of opera, vocal, orchestral, and chamber music. He is best known for his operas and art songs as well as for his collaborations with internationally renowned performers and writers. B ...

. The series allows Bienen School voice and opera program students to perform for and be coached by opera professionals. The Winter Chamber Music Festival hosts guest artists and Bienen School faculty for three weekends each January. This series is focused heavily on string quartets and other chamber ensembles and has featured artists including the Dover Quartet,

Pinchas Zukerman Pinchas Zukerman ( he, פנחס צוקרמן, born 16 July 1948) is an Israeli-American violinist, violist and conductor. Life and career Zukerman was born in Tel Aviv, to Jewish parents and Holocaust survivors Yehuda and Miriam Lieberman Zuk ...

, Simone Lamsma, and the

Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio The Kalichstein–Laredo–Robinson Trio is an American piano trio consisting of violinist Jaime Laredo, cellist Sharon Robinson, and pianist Joseph Kalichstein. The trio is one of the longest-lasting chamber ensembles with all of its original mem ...

Bienen School Prizes

Michael Ludwig Nemmers Prize in Music Composition

In fall 2003, the Bienen School of Music established the Michael Ludwig Nemmers Prize in Music Composition, a biennial award honoring classical music composers of outstanding achievement. Nominations are solicited worldwide and the winner is determined by a three-member selection committee, comprising individuals of widely recognized stature in the music community. The prize includes a cash award of $100,000 and a performance by the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) was founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891. The ensemble makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival. The music director is Riccardo Muti, who began his tenure ...

. The recipient is expected to participate in two to three nonconsecutive weeks of residency at the Bienen School of Music interacting with students and faculty. In addition to the Michael Ludwig Nemmers Prize in Music Composition, Northwestern University administers four other Nemmers prizes: the Frederic Esser Nemmers Prize in Mathematics, the

Erwin Plein Nemmers Prize in Economics The Erwin Plein Nemmers Prize in Economics is awarded biennially from Northwestern University. It was initially endowed along with a companion prize, the Frederic Esser Nemmers Prize in Mathematics. Both are part a $14 million donation from the Nem ...

, the Mechthild Esser Nemmers Prize in Medical Science, and the Nemmers Prize in Earth Sciences. Past winners include: * 2004:

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...

* 2006:

Oliver Knussen Stuart Oliver Knussen (12 June 1952 – 8 July 2018) was a British composer and conductor. Early life Oliver Knussen was born in Glasgow, Scotland. His father, Stuart Knussen, was principal double bass of the London Symphony Orchestra, and a ...

* 2008:

Kaija Saariaho Kaija Anneli Saariaho (; ; born 14 October 1952) is a Finnish composer based in Paris, France. During the course of her career, Saariaho has received commissions from the Lincoln Center for the Kronos Quartet and from IRCAM for the Ensemble Inter ...

* 2010:

John Luther Adams John Luther Adams (born January 23, 1953) is an American composer whose music is inspired by nature, especially the landscapes of Alaska, where he lived from 1978 to 2014. His orchestral work '' Become Ocean'' was awarded the 2014 Pulitzer Priz ...

* 2012:

Aaron Jay Kernis Aaron Jay Kernis (born January 15, 1960) is a Pulitzer Prize- and Grammy Award-winning American composer serving as a member of the Yale School of Music faculty. Kernis spent 15 years as the music advisor to the Minnesota Orchestra and as Dir ...

* 2014:

Esa-Pekka Salonen Esa-Pekka Salonen (; born 30 June 1958) is a Finnish orchestral conductor and composer. He is principal conductor and artistic advisor of the Philharmonia Orchestra in London, conductor laureate of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and music di ...

* 2016:

Steve Reich Stephen Michael Reich ( ; born October 3, 1936) is an American composer known for his contribution to the development of minimal music in the mid to late 1960s. Reich's work is marked by its use of repetitive figures, slow harmonic rhythm, a ...

* 2018: Jennifer Higdon

The Jean Gimbel Lane Prize in Piano Performance

In 2005, the Bienen School of Music established the biennial Jean Gimbel Lane Prize in Piano Performance to honor pianists who have achieved the highest levels of national and international recognition. Winners receive a $50,000 cash award and spend two to three non-consecutive weeks in residence at the Bienen School of Music, interacting with students and faculty. As part of one of the residency weeks, winners offer a public performance. Past winners include: * 2006:

Richard Goode Richard Goode (born June 1, 1943) is an American classical pianist who is especially known for his interpretations of Mozart and Beethoven. Early life Goode was born in the East Bronx, New York. He studied piano with Elvira Szigeti, Claude Fra ...

* 2008:

Stephen Hough Sir Stephen Andrew Gill Hough (; born 22 November 1961) is a British-born classical pianist, composer and writer. He became an Australian citizen in 2005 and thus has dual nationality (his father was born in Australia in 1926). Biography Houg ...

* 2010:

Yefim Bronfman Yefim "Fima" Naumovich Bronfman (russian: Ефим Наумович Бронфман; born April 10, 1958) is a Soviet-born Israeli-American pianist. Biography Bronfman was born in Tashkent, Uzbek SSR, and immigrated to Israel at the age of 15. H ...

* 2012: Murray Perahia * 2014:

Garrick Ohlsson Garrick Olof Ohlsson (born April 3, 1948) is an American classical pianist. He is the only American to have won first prize in the International Chopin Piano Competition, at the VIII competition in 1970. He also won first prize at the Busoni Com ...

* 2016:

* 2018:

Marc-André Hamelin Marc-André Hamelin, OC, CQ (born September 5, 1961), is a Canadian virtuoso pianist and composer. Hamelin is recognized worldwide for the originality and technical proficiency of his performances of the classic repertoire. He has received 11 Gr ...

Facilities

School Buildings

In its earlier Days, the Bienen School of Music was housed in two buildings. The Music Administration Building was designed by

Gurdon P. Randall Gurdon P. Randall (February 18, 1821– September 20, 18841884) was an architect in Chicago, Illinois. Early in his career, he studied in Boston, Massachusetts, in the office of Asher Benjamin. He moved to Chicago when he was 30, and practiced th ...

and built in 1873 as the Women's College of Northwestern University. In 1901 it was named for

Frances E. Willard Frances Elizabeth Caroline Willard (September 28, 1839 – February 17, 1898) was an Americans, American educator, Temperance movement, temperance reformer, and women's suffrage, women's suffragist. Willard became the national president of Wom ...

, and served as a women's dormitory. It became the home of the Northwestern School of Music in 1940, and was renovated in 1988. Vocal studies, piano, and composition departments were housed in this building, in addition to administrative offices and academic classrooms. The organ department, which formerly occupied a wing in this building, was controversially closed in 2003. Regenstein Hall of Music was built in 1977. This building sits on the "Lakefill" and overlooks

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that o ...

. It houses studios for the instrumental and conducting programs, practice rooms, a rehearsal room, and a recital hall. In February 2008, the University announced that a new $105 million five-story building was to be erected as part of a renovation plan for the southeast corner of the campus. Construction began in June 2012. The new building, named after donors Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan, opened in Fall 2015. The building unites all music faculty and departments in a common location for the first time since the early 1970s and includes classrooms, teaching labs, teaching studios, practice rooms, student lounges, a choral rehearsal room and library, an opera rehearsal room and black box theater, and a 400-seat recital hall.

Performance Venues

Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Center for the Musical Arts

Designed by Chicago-based architectural firm Goettsch Partners, the music building is situated on the lakefront, connected to Regenstein Hall of Music. The Ryan Center houses teaching studios, faculty and administrative offices, 10 classrooms, 99 practice rooms, and three performance spaces: the Mary B. Galvin Recital Hall, the David and Carol McClintock Choral and Recital Room, and the Shirley Welsh Ryan Opera Theater. The design features a limestone base supporting a primarily glass exterior. Mary B

Ryan Center Performance Spaces

* ''Mary B. Galvin Recital Hall.'' This 400-seat hall, with main floor and balcony seating, features a 40-foot glass wall. Walls on each side of the hall are made from undulating wood, covered by African moabi wood, providing optimal acoustics. John van Rein of the Chicago Tribune named Galvin Hall the "most impressive new Chicago concert facility" in 2015. * ''David and Carol McClintock Choral and Recital Room''. This is a 120-seat performance space flexible enough for choral rehearsals, small ensemble performances, and student recitals. The walls are paneled with the same moabi wood as the Mary B. Galvin Recital Hall *''Shirley Welsh Ryan Opera Theater''. This 163-seat hall is a theater space for opera performances and recitals, with double-height ceilings. Waukegan Steel Company provided steel beams, catwalks, and stairs for the space. The retractable seating was designed and constructed in the UK.

Pick-Staiger Concert Hall

Pick-Staiger Concert Hall Pick-Staiger Concert Hall is a concert hall on the campus of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. The hall was donated by hotel executive Albert Pick Jr. and his brother-in-law Charles Staiger, and named for Corinne Frada Pick, Pick's ...

's 1,000-seat venue is the main performance space not only for the Bienen School but for the university as a whole. Pick-stage

Additional Performance Spaces

* ''Regenstein Hall of Music''. The building connects directly to the new Ryan Center for the Musical Arts, with two connections between the buildings on each of Regenstein's three levels. It is home to the Department of Music Performance and University Bands faculty and contains 38 practice rooms. The building also includes a 200-seat Master Class Room (also known as "MCR"), which hosts hundreds of performances and events annually. * ''Cahn Auditorium''. Located in Scott Hall (1940), this 1000-seat venue is the only space on campus with a full orchestra pit and is used primarily for operatic productions. The space is also equipped and suitable for musical theater productions, concerts, speeches, convocation ceremonies and other large-scale events. * ''Alice Millar Chapel & Religious Center''. Built in 1962, this

neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

church in stone and brick houses a 100-rank

Aeolian-Skinner Æolian-Skinner Organ Company, Inc. of Boston, Massachusetts was an American builder of a large number of pipe organs from its inception as the Skinner Organ Company in 1901 until its closure in 1972. Key figures were Ernest M. Skinner (1866– ...

organ and is used for choral, mixed ensemble performances, concerts, lectures, and recitals. The building houses two chapels: the Millar Chapel with 700 seats, and the Vail Chapel with 125 seats. An adjacent building, Parkes Hall, houses classrooms and the chaplain's office, and completes the Alice Millar complex. The building was a gift to Northwestern University from Mr. and Mrs. McGaw. Mrs. McGaw was a graduate of Northwestern, and Mr. McGaw served for many years as a trustee of the university. *''Lutkin Hall.'' Built in 1941 and named for the first dean of the Music School, Peter Lutkin, this 400-seat hall was used primarily as a recital space. It ceased to be a Bienen School performance space in 2015, with the opening of the Ryan Center for the Musical Arts, and is now operated by the Norris University Center.

Music Library

Founded in 1945, the Northwestern University Music Library occupies the second floor of the Charles Deering Library and serves the Bienen School of Music, the entire Northwestern University community, and researchers from around the world.

Notable alumni

* Christopher M. Anderson ('96) – Director,

Goin' Band from Raiderland The Goin' Band from Raiderland is the 375-member marching band of Texas Tech University. History The Goin' Band from Raiderland, originally known as The Matador Band, is nearly as old as Texas Tech itself. Under the direction of W. Waghorne, it ...

; associate director of bands; associate professor of music,

Texas Tech University School of Music Texas Tech University School of Music is the music school at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. Previously a department of the College of Arts & Sciences, the School of Music has been within the Talkington College of Visual & Performing Ar ...

Andrew Bird Andrew Wegman Bird (born July 11, 1973) is an American indie rock multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. Since 1996, he has released 16 studio albums, as well as several live albums and EPs, spanning various genres including swing musi ...

('95) – Musician, songwriter * Mark Camphouse ('75) – Professor of music and director of the Wind Symphony,

George Mason University George Mason University (George Mason, Mason, or GMU) is a public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia with an independent City of Fairfax, Virginia postal address in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The university was origin ...

Kay Davis Kathryn Elizabeth Wimp known professionally as Kay Davis (December 5, 1920 – January 27, 2012 in Apopka, Florida) was an American jazz singer who performed with the Duke Ellington orchestra. Davis was born in Evanston, Illinois, and attended ...

('42) – Singer with Duke Ellington band *

Rollo Dilworth Rollo A. Dilworth'' (born July 31st, 1970) is an American choral composer, arranger, conductor, and music educator from St. Louis, Missouri. Education Early education Dilworth, as a young boy, was impassioned by singing experiences in his schoo ...

('03) – Chair of Music Education and Music Therapy at Boyer College of Music and Dance at

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

* Eric Garcia ('02, '07) – Music director of the Boise Philharmonic *

Giancarlo Guerrero Giancarlo Guerrero (born 1969) is a Costa Rican, Nicaraguan-born, US-based music director. He is the music director of the Nashville Symphony in Nashville, Tennessee. Guerrero is also Music Director of the Wrocław Philharmonic at the National Fo ...

(G '92) music director,

Nashville Symphony The Nashville Symphony is an American symphony orchestra, based in Nashville, Tennessee. The orchestra is resident at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center. History In 1920, prior to the 1946 founding of the Nashville Symphony, a group of amateur an ...

*Jeff Cline ('95) – Audio engineer, producer, Music Industry Division Head at the

University of Memphis } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering ...

Nancy Gustafson Nancy Gustafson (born June 27, 1956, in Evanston, Illinois) is an American opera singer. She received her B.A. from Mount Holyoke College in 1978 and her M.Mus. from Northwestern University. She has appeared in numerous productions at venues bo ...

(G' 80) soprano *

Howard Hanson Howard Harold Hanson (October 28, 1896 – February 26, 1981)''The New York Times'' – Obituaries. Harold C. Schonberg. February 28, 1981 p. 1011/ref> was an American composer, conductor, educator, music theorist, and champion of American class ...

('17) – Composer, president of

Eastman School of Music The Eastman School of Music is the music school of the University of Rochester, a private research university in Rochester, New York. It was established in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman. It offers Bachelor of Music (B.M ...

Sheldon Harnick Sheldon Mayer Harnick (born April 30, 1924) is an American lyricist and songwriter best known for his collaborations with composer Jerry Bock on musicals such as ''Fiorello!'' and ''Fiddler on the Roof''. Early life Sheldon Mayer Harnick was bo ...

('49) – Lyricist for musicals, including Fiddler on the Roof *

David Hattner David Hattner is an American professional clarinetist and conductor currently serving as music director of the Portland Youth Philharmonic. Raised in Toledo, Ohio, Hattner attended the Interlochen Arts Camp and Arts Academy, experiences which in ...

('90) – Musical Director,

Portland Youth Philharmonic The Portland Youth Philharmonic (PYP) is the oldest youth orchestra in the United States, established in 1924 as the Portland Junior Symphony (PJS). Now based in Portland, Oregon, the orchestra's origin dates back to 1910, when music teacher Mary ...

* Brian Hecht – Bass Trombone,

Atlanta Symphony The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO) is an American orchestra based in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. The ASO's main concert venue is Atlanta Symphony Hall in the Woodruff Arts Center. History Though earlier organizations bearing the same name date ba ...

* Timothy Higgins – Principal Trombone, San Francisco Symphony * Han Kuo-Huang ('74) – Ethno-musicologist, musician * Dan Novak ('89) – Director of the Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center at the

Lyric Opera of Chicago Lyric Opera of Chicago is one of the leading opera companies in the United States. It was founded in Chicago in 1954, under the name 'Lyric Theatre of Chicago' by Carol Fox, Nicola Rescigno and Lawrence Kelly, with a season that included Maria ...

* Will James ('04)- Principal percussion,

St. Louis Symphony The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra based in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1880 by Joseph Otten as the St. Louis Choral Society, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) is the second-oldest professional symphony or ...

Andrew Mason Andrew D. Mason (born 1981) is an American businessman and entrepreneur. He is the founder and former CEO of Groupon, a Chicago-based website offering users discounts on local businesses and scholarships. He is also the founder and CEO of Desc ...

('03) – Founder and former CEO,

Groupon Groupon is an American global e-commerce marketplace connecting subscribers with local merchants by offering activities, travel, goods and services in 13 countries. Based in Chicago, Groupon was launched there in November 2008, launching soon af ...

Sherrill Milnes Sherrill Milnes (born January 10, 1935) is an American dramatic baritone most famous for his Verdi roles. From 1965 until 1997 he was associated with the Metropolitan Opera. His voice is a high dramatic baritone, combining good legato with an in ...

('56) – Opera singer, Northwestern professor emeritus * Toby Oft – Principal Trombone,

Boston Symphony Orchestra The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, ...

George N. Parks George N. Parks (May 23, 1953 – September 16, 2010) was the director of the University of Massachusetts Minuteman Marching Band at University of Massachusetts Amherst from 1977 until 2010. He also led the George N. Parks Drum Major Academy, a ...

– Director,

University of Massachusetts Minuteman Marching Band The University of Massachusetts Minuteman Marching Band (UMMB) is the marching band for the University of Massachusetts Amherst known for its drum corps style and nationally renowned percussion section. The Minuteman Band is also known for its us ...

Mary Beth Peil Mary Beth Peil (born June 25, 1940) is an American actress and soprano. She began her career as an opera singer in 1962 with the Goldovsky Opera Theater. In 1964 she won two major singing competitions, the Young Concert Artists International Au ...

('62) – Actress who has starred in The Stepford Wives and Jersey Girl *

Jenny Powers Jennifer Diane Powers (born August 29, 1979) is an American actress, singer, and beauty pageant contestant. She won the title of Miss Illinois in 2000, and has had major roles in Broadway productions such as '' Little Women'' and '' Grease''. ...

('03) – Actress * Howard Reich ('77) Arts writer,

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

* Steve Rodby ('77) – Grammy Award-winning jazz bassist; album producer *

Ned Rorem Ned Rorem (October 23, 1923 – November 18, 2022) was an American composer of contemporary classical music and writer. Best known for his art songs, which number over 500, Rorem was the leading American of his time writing in the genre. Althou ...

('44) – Composer *

Arnie Roth Arnold Roth (born April 28, 1953) is an American conductor, composer, and record producer. His work includes conducting concerts for video game music. He is also a classically trained violinist and a member of the Grammy Award-winning music g ...

('75) – Grammy Award-winning music director and principal conductor, Chicagoland Pops Orchestra *

David Sanborn David William Sanborn (born July 30, 1945) is an American alto saxophonist. Though Sanborn has worked in many genres, his solo recordings typically blend jazz with instrumental pop and R&B. He released his first solo album ''Taking Off'' in 1 ...

('67) – Jazz saxophonist *

Greg Suran Greg Suran is the lead guitarist in the B-52s, a role he has performed since 2013. He replaced Keith Strickland on the road after Strickland announced in December 2012 that he would no longer be touring with the B-52s but would continue as a me ...

('93) – Acoustic and electric guitarist with B-52s *

Frederick Swann Frederick Lewis Swann (July 30, 1931 – November 13, 2022) was an American church and concert organist, choral conductor, composer, and president of the American Guild of Organists. His extensive discography includes both solo organ works and ...

– Organist, composer and past President of the

American Guild of Organists The American Guild of Organists (AGO) is an international organization of academic, church, and concert organists in the US, headquartered in New York City with its administrative offices in the Interchurch Center. Founded as a professional educat ...

Augusta Read Thomas Augusta Read Thomas (born April 24, 1964) is an American composer and professor. Biography Thomas studied composition with Oliver Knussen at Tanglewood; Jacob Druckman at Yale University; Alan Stout and Bill Karlins at Northwestern University ...

('87) – Composer and university professor,

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

* Mallory Thompson – Director of Bands, Northwestern University; see Northwestern University Wildcat Marching Band * William VerMeulen- Principal horn, Houston Symphony & professor of horn,

Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...

Ralph Votapek Ralph Votapek (born 1939 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) is an American pianist notable for winning the First Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 1962; thinaugural competition's First Place prizewas $10,000. He is the Jury Chairman of th2022 (E ...

('60) Pianist *

Donald Reid Womack Donald Reid Womack (born 1966) is a composer of contemporary classical music. He was born in Virginia, raised in East Tennessee and studied at Furman University and Northwestern University, receiving degrees in philosophy, music theory, and music ...

('90, '93) – Composer and Professor, University of Hawaii

References

;Notes ;General references *Pridmore, Jay. ''Northwestern University: Celebrating 150 Years''. Northwestern University Press, 2000. *Rebstock, Heather. ''Advancing Music for a Century: The First Hundred Years of Northwestern's School of Music''. Northwestern University Press, 2002. {{Authority control Music schools in Illinois Northwestern University Educational institutions established in 1895 1895 establishments in Illinois