1920s
Emily
Putnam '26,
a graduate in piano and organ, celebrated her 97th birthday in
August 2001, and most reluctantly missed the September dedication
of the new Fisk organ at Finney Chapel. Although she no longer
plays the piano, she continued to teach it well into her 80s in
Tarboro, N.C., where she was also a church musician for many years.
(Emily only recently retired from teaching the church children's
choir.) She lives in a retirement community in Tarboro and continues
to keep in touch with Oberlin through its publications.
1930s
Thomas
Williams '30
studied voice at Oberlin when Frank Shaw was Dean of the Conservatory.
Thomas was also captain of the baseball team, and he recalls that
at his senior recital, his teammates donned tuxedoes and sat in
the front row. After four years as Dean and Instructor of Voice
and Theory at Dakota Wesleyan University (Mitchell, S.D.), Thomas
enrolled at the University of Michigan where he earned a Master
of Music. He also pursued further graduate study at the School
of Sacred Music at Union Theological Seminary. Knox College (Galesburg,
Ill.) was Thomas' next stop, where he was Professor of Voice and
Choral Music, chairing the department for 25 years and doubling
as Director of Admissions. After his retirement in 1970 he was
Music Director at the Congregational Summer Assembly (CSA) in
Frankfort, Mich. He received a Citation for Distinguished Service
from CSA in 1994. Dakota Wesleyan in 1998 awarded him an Honorary
Doctor of Fine Arts.
Now in his 32nd year of retirement, Thomas says he enjoys each
day, dividing his time between Portland, Ore., and Frankfort,
Mich., and continuing engagements as guest conductor at Welsh
music festivals.
1940s
Edwin
E. Heilakka '48, a Trustee of the Theodore Presser Foundation
since 1973 and a member of the board of directors of the Theodore
Presser Co., was a trumpet major. He remembers his class in Dalcroze
Eurhythmics: "We eurhythmicized in our stocking feet in the
Rice Hall basement room. Tiny splinters were often class interrupters.
I trust the class now has a good hardwood floor."
Ed became director in the Division of Music Education in the Philadelphia
School District and served on the board of directors of the Musical
Fund Society of Philadelphia, Philadelphia Musical Academy, Young
Audiences, Inc., and Settlement Music School. After retiring in
1980, the director of the Curtis Institute of Music invited him
to be librarian of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra and the pit Opera
Orchestra. The offer's piece de resistance: Ed was also to be
curator of the just-acquired Leopold Stokowski Collection, then
housed at Curtis. For 16 years world-renowned "Stokyites"
visited the collection while Ed edited transcriptions and prepared
copies for recording and performance in the US and abroad.
In retirement, Ed orchestrates works for friends, occasionally
conducts community bands, and, he adds, "I always do my wife's
bidding." Mary Jean (Mapes) Heilakka graduated from
the College with a degree in education in 1946.
Dorothy
A. Williams '48 was Head-mistress at the Bishop's School in
La Jolla, Calif., from 1975 to 1983 and served Bishop for a total
of 20 years. In October 2000, she was honored at Bishop's Eighth
Annual Founders Day for enriching the school, its community, and
her own profession through her contributions and by exemplifying
the values of the founders. A Conservatory graduate in piano (Dorothy's
aunt, Marian Williams, taught music education at the Conservatory
from 1928 until 1956), Dorothy began her career at Bishop's when
she was named Direc-tor of Residence in 1962, after earning a
Master's of Education at Columbia University. When she retired
in 1982, the students offered a special spring concert of music
and dance in her honor, recognizing her special love of music.
Dorothy remains a familiar and beloved figure on the Bishop campus.
"She was one of my inspirations to come to Oberlin!"
says Sarah Coade Mandell '87 of Los Angeles, who studied
double bass at the Conservatory after graduating in 1983 from
Bishop's School.
1950s
Richard
Mendes '59 sang at Carnegie Hall on June 10, 2001, with the
Manhattan Philharmonic, conducted by Peter Tiboris, along with
two other Oberlinians, Liz McDonald '58 and Richard's daughter,
Rica Mendes-Barry '96, from the Westchester Oratorio Society.
The singers presented Beethoven's Ninth Symphony along with choral
groups from Calif., New York City, Newark, N.J., and from the
New York State University at Buffalo. Says Richard, "It sounded
awesome!" During rehearsals, Rica, a soprano, sat next to
her dad in order to hear how he sounded as a tenor. "I guess
I passed," he says. For his part, "I almost jumped the
first time she sang out. Strong voice!" Richard, an economics
major at Oberlin, sang in the Glee Club, lettered in fencing,
and is now a self-employed business consultant.
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