He dreamed of being a professional baseball player. He tried to blaze a trail in Tin Pan Alley. He ended up studying for a career as an educator. He willed himself into becoming a composer of serious music. MORE »
He made a cold call to president Constance Warren. He was offered a temporary job to cover all of the fine arts in a one-year course. Ten years later, he left as one of the most popular and famous professors of the college.
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He told the trustees that he didn't want the job. One trustee called the decision “either the greatest thing that has ever happened to the Juilliard School or the most colossal error of our collective lives.” The former proved to be true.
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His dynamism led to changes in the direction Lincoln Center was heading in its infancy and adolescence. Many heralded those changes. Many fought them. His legacy there is still felt today.
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He continued to find ways to use his administrative gifts. He continued to compose works of depth and breadth. And he paved the way for those administrators and composers who came after him. MORE »