The Eastman School of Music is the

music school A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger ins ...

of the University of Rochester, a private research university in

Rochester, New York Rochester () is a city in the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, and Yonkers, with a population of 211,328 at the 2020 United States census. Located in W ...

. It was established in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist

George Eastman George Eastman (July 12, 1854March 14, 1932) was an American entrepreneur who founded the Eastman Kodak Company and helped to bring the photographic use of roll film into the mainstream. He was a major philanthropist, establishing the Eastman ...

. It offers Bachelor of Music (B.M.) degrees,

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...

(M.A.) degrees, Master of Music (M.M.) degrees,

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

(Ph.D.) degrees, and

Doctor of Musical Arts The Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) is a doctoral academic degree in music. The DMA combines advanced studies in an applied area of specialization (usually music performance, music composition, or conducting) with graduate-level academic study in su ...

(D.M.A.) degrees in many musical fields. The school also awards a "Performer's Certificate" or "Artist's Diploma". In 2015, there were more than 900 students enrolled in the collegiate division of the Eastman School (approximately 500 undergraduate and 400 graduate students). Students came from almost every state of the United States, with approximately 25% foreign students. Each year approximately 2000 students apply (1000 undergraduates and 1000 graduates). The acceptance rate was 13% in 2011 and about 1,000 students (ranging in age from 16 years to over 80 years of age) are enrolled in the Eastman School’s Community Music School.

History

Alfred Klingenberg, a Norwegian pianist, was the school's first director, serving from 1921 to 1923. He was succeeded by composer

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 ...

in 1924, who had an enormous impact on the development of the school, including influencing the creation the first Doctor of Musical Arts degree in the United States. Upon his retirement in 1964, after serving as director of the school for 40 years, Hanson was succeeded by conductor

Walter Hendl Walter Hendl (January 12, 1917April 10, 2007) was an American conductor, composer and pianist. Biography Hendl was born in West New York, New Jersey, and later went on to study with Fritz Reiner at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia ...

. Hendl served as director from 1964 to 1972, and was then succeeded by pianist and musicologist Robert Freeman who served from 1972 to 1996. Associate Director Daniel Patrylak served as the acting director from the time of Mr. Hendl’s resignation (May 1972) until Robert Freeman assumed the position in July 1973. Following the resignation of Robert Freeman in 1996, James Undercofler was then appointed Director and Dean of the Eastman School, and held that position until he resigned in 2006 to accept the position of C.E.O. and President of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Jamal Rossi, an Eastman alumnus, was appointed Interim Dean of the Eastman School in April 2006. On May 21, 2007, composer/conductor Douglas Lowry, formerly the dean of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, was appointed Dean of the Eastman School, to begin serving in 2007. Following Lowry's death in 2013, Rossi was appointed Dean.

Campus and facilities

The Eastman School occupies parts of five buildings in downtown

. The main hall includes the renovated 3,094-seat Eastman Theater, the 455-seat Kilbourn Hall, the 222-seat Hatch Recital Hall, and offices for faculty. The

Eastman Theatre Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre is the largest performance venue at the Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester, located in downtown Rochester, New York. The theatre was established by industrialist George Eastman and opened on Septe ...

opened in 1922 as a center for music, dance, and silent film with orchestral and organ accompaniment. Today, the 3,094-seat theatre is the primary concert hall for the Eastman School's larger ensembles, including its orchestras, wind ensembles, jazz ensembles, and chorale. Also, the Eastman Opera Theatre presents fully staged operatic productions in the theatre each spring. It also is the principal performance venue for the

Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is an American orchestra based in the city of Rochester, New York. Its primary concert venue is the Eastman Theatre at the Eastman School of Music. History George Eastman, founder of Eastman Kodak Compa ...

. A $5 million renovation of the theatre was completed in 2004. The theatre is located at 60 Gibbs Street, on the corner of Main and Gibbs Streets. Due to a $10 million donation by Eastman Kodak Inc. in April 2008, the Eastman Theatre was officially renamed "Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre" upon the renovation's completion in 2010. The

Sibley Music Library Sibley Music Library is the library of the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY. It was founded in 1904 by Hiram Watson Sibley in honor of his father Hiram Sibley and is said to be the largest university music library in the US. History The li ...

—the largest academic music library in North America, is located across the street from the main hall.

Hiram Watson Sibley Hiram W. Sibley (February 6, 1807 – July 12, 1888), was an American industrialist, entrepreneur, and philanthropist who was a pioneer of the telegraph in the United States. Early life Sibley was born in North Adams, Massachusetts on February 6 ...

founded the library in 1904 using the fortune he made as first president of Western Union. It moved to its current location in 1989, and occupies on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th floors of the Miller Center, formerly known as Eastman Place. The Sibley Music Library currently holds almost 750,000 items, ranging from 11th century codices to the latest compositions and recordings. Considered among its jewels are the original drafts of Debussy's impressionistic masterpiece, "La Mer". The Student Living Center, which is located at 100 Gibbs Street, is the dormitory building of the Eastman School of Music. In 1991, the new building was opened at the corner of Main and Gibbs Streets, replacing the University Avenue dormitories built nearly 70 years earlier. It is a four-story quadrangle and 14-story tower surrounding a landscaped inner courtyard, and contains its own dining hall. The majority of students enrolled in the undergraduate program live on campus in this building.

Academics

The school offers Bachelor of Music (B.M.) degrees,

(M.A.) degrees, Master of Music (M.M.) degrees,

(Ph.D.) degrees, and

(D.M.A.) degrees in many musical fields. The school also awards a "Performer's Certificate" or "Artist's Diploma" to students who demonstrate exceptionally outstanding performance ability. The Institute for Music Leadership, which was formed in 2001, offers a variety of diploma programs designed to educate and give students the skills and experience necessary to meet the demands of performance and education in today’s changing musical world. In 2018, The Institute for Music Leadership created a

degree in Music Leadership for musicians who seek to lead traditional or non-traditional musical arts organizations.

Faculty and alumni

Eastman alumni include singer Renée Fleming, Canadian Brass co-founder

Charles Daellenbach Conrad Charles Daellenbach C.M. (born July 12, 1945) is an American and CanadianProfile
at Cana ...

, cellist

Robert deMaine Robert DeMaine (born December 6, 1969 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) is an American virtuoso cellist, best known as Principal Cello of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Early life From a musical family, Robert DeMaine began learning music at age 4 fr ...

, drummer

Steve Gadd Stephen Kendall Gadd (born April 9, 1945) is an American drummer, percussionist, and session musician. Gadd is one of the best-known and highly regarded session and studio drummers in the industry, recognized by his induction into the '' Modern ...

, flugelhornist Chuck Mangione, author and journalist Michael Walsh, trumpeter Allen Vizzutti, scholar Horace Clarence Boyer and composers

Maria Schneider Maria Schneider may refer to: * Maria Schneider (politician) (born 1923), East German politician * Maria Schneider (actress) (1952–2011), French actress * Maria Schneider (musician) Maria Lynn Schneider (born November 27, 1960) is an Americ ...

and Cardon V. Burnham. Current faculty include musicians and pedagogues like the

Ying Quartet Ying may refer to: People * Yíng (嬴), a Chinese surname, the ancestral name of Qin Shi Huang, first Emperor of China in the Qin Dynasty, and some contemporary rival royal families such as the Zhaos * Yīng (应), a Chinese surname from the Zh ...

, Anthony Dean Griffey, Katherine Ciesinski and Paul O'Dette.

Directors and deans

* Alfred Klingenberg (Director, 1921–1923) * Raymond Wilson (Acting Director, 1923–1924) *

(Director, 1924–1964) *

(Director, 1964–1972) * Daniel Patrylak (Acting Director, 1972–1973) * Robert Freeman (Director, 1973–1996) * James Undercofler (Acting Director, 1996–1997; Director, 1997–2006) * Jamal Rossi (Acting Director, 2006–2007; Acting Dean, 2013) * Douglas Lowry (Dean, 2007–2013) * Jamal Rossi (Dean, 2014–present)

Notable teachers

* Samuel Adler, composition * John H. Beck, percussion * Warren Benson, composition * Bonita Boyd, flute * David Burge, piano * Charles Martin Castleman, violin *Heidi Castleman, viola * Katherine Ciesinski, voice * David Craighead, organ * Robert De Cormier, choral conductor * Jan De Gaetani, voice * Leonardo De Lorenzo, flute * David Effron, orchestral conductor *Cecile Genhart, piano * Frank Glazer, piano *

Harold Gleason Harold Gleason (1892–1980) was an American organist, teacher, lecturer, and scholar. He is best known as the author of ''Method of Organ Playing,'' published in numerous editions made by him and later by his wife, concert organist Catharine Croz ...

, organ * Nicholas Goluses, guitar * Anthony Dean Griffey, voice * Arthur Hartmann, violin *

Stanley Hasty Donald Stanley Hasty(February 21, 1920 - June 22, 2011) was professor emeritus of clarinet at the Eastman School of Music. Hasty joined the Eastman faculty and the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra in 1955. Before coming to Rochester, he served as ...

, clarinet * David Higgs, organ * Donald Hunsberger, wind ensemble conductor * Mark Kellogg, euphonium & trombone * Henry Klumpenhouwer, music theory * Alexander Kobrin, piano * Oleh Krysa, violin *W. Peter Kurau, horn * Ralph P. Locke, musicologist * Eileen Malone, harp * Jon Manasse, clarinet * Chuck Mangione, jazz ensemble * John Marcellus, trombone * Paul O'Dette, lute, early music * Thomas Paul, voice * Emory Remington, trombone *

Mendi Rodan Mendi Rodan (Hebrew: מנדי רודן) (born 17 April 1929; died 9 May 2009) was an Israeli conductor and educator. Biography Mendi Rodan (Rosenblum) was born in Iaşi, Romania, one of three children of Solomon and Miriam Rosenblum. Mendi began p ...

, orchestral conductor * Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez, composition *

Joseph Schwantner Joseph Clyde Schwantner (born March 22, 1943, Chicago, Illinois) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American composer, educator and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters since 2002. He was awarded the 1970 Charles Ives Prize. Schwantne ...

, composition *, piano * William G. Street, percussion * Yi-Kwei Sze, voice * K. David van Hoesen, bassoon * Ruth Taiko Watanabe, music librarian * Marion Weed, voice * Rayburn Wright, jazz and contemporary media * Zvi Zeitlin, violin * Oscar Zimmerman, double bass

Notable alumni

* Sasami Ashworth, singer * Roger Bobo, tubist * Bonita Boyd, flutist * Horace Clarence Boyer, scholar * Angelo Badalamenti, film and television composer * Rosemarie Brancato, soprano * Jeff Briggs, video game developer * Cardon V. Burnham, composer * Ron Carter, bassist * Alexander Courage, film composer * Michael Patrick Coyle, composer, producer * Paul Crawford, jazz musician, music historian *

Charles Daellenbach Conrad Charles Daellenbach C.M. (born July 12, 1945) is an American and CanadianProfile
at Cana ...

, OC, co-founder of Canadian Brass * David Daniels, conductor and author *

, cellist *

Doriot Anthony Dwyer Doriot Anthony Dwyer (; March 6, 1922 – March 14, 2020) was an American flutist. She was one of the first women to be awarded principal chair for a major U.S. orchestra (following hornist Helen Kotas, who was appointed principal horn of the C ...

, flutist * Frederick Fennell, band conductor * David Finck, jazz bassist * Pamela Fleming, trumpeter, composer * Renée Fleming, singer * Cynthia Folio, flutist, theorist, composer *

, drummer * Julia Gaines, percussionist * Ayşedeniz Gökçin, pianist * Diana Haskell, clarinetist * Christos Hatzis, composer * Yoshishisa Hirano, anime composer *

Katherine Hoover Katherine Hoover (December 2, 1937 – September 21, 2018) is remembered by the National Flute Association as an "artist—flutist, teacher, entrepreneur, poet, and, most notably, a distinguished composer". Her work received many honors, includi ...

, composer, flutist, educator, author *Kent Jordan, jazz flutist *

Michael Isaacson Michael Isaacson (born in Brooklyn, New York, USA in 1946) is a composer of Jewish synagogue music, and one of the originators of the Jewish camp song movement.Alexander Gelfand"A Musical Midrashist" ''The Forward'', December 5, 2007. His camp ...

, Jewish music composer * Donald Kendrick, choir director, organist * Kay Lande, composer and singer * Judith LeClair, bassoonist *

Tony Levin Anthony Frederick Levin (born June 6, 1946) is an American musician and composer, specializing in electric bass, Chapman Stick and upright bass. He also sings and plays synthesizer. Levin is best known for his work with King Crimson (since 1 ...

, bassist * Scott Lindroth, composer * Bob Ludwig, mastering engineer * Chuck Mangione, flugelhornist * Ailbhe McDonagh, cellist, composer *

Mitch Miller Mitchell William Miller (July 4, 1911 – July 31, 2010) was an American choral conductor, record producer, record-industry executive, and professional oboist. He was involved in almost all aspects of the industry, particularly as a conductor ...

, oboist, conductor, record company executive *

Erin Morley Erin Morley (born October 11, 1980) is an American operatic soprano. Early years Morley was born in Salt Lake City, Utah to David Palmer, a former singer in the Tabernacle Choir, and Elizabeth Palmer, a current concertmaster of the Salt Lake Sy ...

, operatic sopranoBurger, David
"Salt Lake City native and Brighton High grad Erin Morley wins big opera prize"
'' The Salt Lake Tribune'', 15 April 2013. Retrieved on 29 March 2021. * Lee Musiker, arranger * Kim Scharnberg, composer, arranger, conductor, record producer *

, composer * Byron Stripling, jazz trumpeter *

Jeff Tyzik Jeff Tyzik (born August 1, 1951) is an American conductor, arranger, and trumpeter. He has recorded jazz albums as a soloist and arranged pop and jazz music for orchestras. Early life and education Tyzik, born in Hyde Park, New York, started pl ...

, jazz trumpeter * Allen Vizzutti, trumpeter *Mark Volpe, president & CEO, Boston Symphony Orchestra * George Vosburgh, trumpeter * Michael Walsh, author and journalist *

Leehom Wang Wang Leehom (; born May 17, 1976), sometimes credited as Leehom Wang, is an American singer-songwriter, actor, producer, and film director. Formally trained at Eastman School of Music, Williams College and Berklee College of Music, his music i ...

, singer *

William Warfield William Caesar Warfield (January 22, 1920 – August 25, 2002) was an American concert bass-baritone singer and actor, known for his appearances in stage productions, Hollywood films, and television programs. A prominent African American artist ...

, singer *Richard Wargo, composer * Helen L. Weiss, composer * Norma Wendelburg, composer * Alec Wilder, composer * Jeffrey Zeigler, celli

Institute for Music Leadership

The Institute for Music Leadership (IML) was created to engage musicians in new ways and challenge them to think more broadly about music, its role, and their role in society. It serves as a center for the creation and implementation of new ideas related to music leadership, for Eastman students, alumni, and practicing musicians at all stages of their careers. The goals of the IML reflect the expansion of Eastman's role as an innovator and a standard bearer in professional development. The IML consists of five areas: M.A. in Music Leadership, Careers and Professional Development, Catherine Filene Shouse Arts Leadership Program (ALP), Center for Music Innovation and Engagement (CMIE), The Orchestra Musician Forum (OMF) and its website Polyphonic.org. It also offers online courses.

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control 1921 establishments in New York (state) Education in Rochester, New York Educational institutions established in 1921 Music of Rochester, New York Music schools in New York (state) Tourist attractions in Rochester, New York Universities and colleges in Monroe County, New York