The composer Dominick Argento has created a charitable remainder trust endowing a professorship at the University of Rochester’s Eastman School of Music at $1.5 million. Argento, who turns 85 on October 27, received his Ph.D. in composition from Eastman in 1958, and the endowed position will bear his name. Argento is best known for his operas, among them Postcards from Morocco, The Dream of Valentino, and The Aspern Papers, the latter of which is being performed in a new production at Dallas Opera in spring 2013. His symphonic works include Variations for Orchestra (“The Mast of Night”), commissioned by the Civic Orchestra of Minneapolis (1965) and Royal Invitation, commissioned by the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra (1964). Douglas Lowry, dean of the Eastman School of Music, said the gift “will support and enhance the work of our outstanding faculty in presenting new musical ideas, as well as adventuresome ventures in music teaching and performance.”
Posted October 11, 2012
