Noted Musician, Professor Vosgerchian Dies

Former Naumburg Professor of Music Luise Vosgerchian passed away Monday night after a battle with cancer. She was 77.

Vosgerchian, a native of Watertown, Mass., first joined Harvard music department in 1959 and received tenure in 1971. While a professor and eventually as chair of the department, Vosgerchian taught Music 51, a course on music theory required of all music concentrators, and a core course. She took emerita status in 1990.

"It is painful to realize that this warm, passionate, outspokenly frank, and vibrant woman who encouraged and inspiring us when we most needed it is no longer among us," said Martha Babcock '72, who had Vosgerchian as a professor and who is currently assistant principal cellist for the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

Professor of Music Thomas F. Kelly, the chair of the department, noted her talent in teaching and in performance.

"She was a consummate musician," said Professor of Music Thomas F. Kelly, the department's chair. "[Her death] is a great loss to the department. She was a great friend to many in the department."

Those that knew her have fond memories of what they called an extraordinary woman.

"Never of an ordinary bent, her intellect was always finding fresh combinations and original perspectives," said John D. Stewart, senior preceptor in music, who knew Vosgerchian for over 30 years. "It was endlessly exciting and rewarding to have such a friend, a conversationalist of great artistry. I cannot possibly express how deeply I will miss that."

She taught methods that were valuable in their simplicity, according to Allison B. Charney '89, who is now an opera singer. Vosgerchian's lessons on music could even be well applied to life in general, she added.

Students said they felt Vosgerchian was always there for them on a personal level.

"[Vosgerchian] was almost like a surrogate mother," Babcock said. "She really cared about students. That, I think, was the secret of her impact and charisma: she loved music and she loved her students."

According to Babcock, this was very different than her experience with other professors at Harvard.

"She was very unusual for Harvard," Babcock said. "Her dealings with kids were so personal, not at arm length."

Charney said Vosgerchian made her "Harvard experience akin to some old Russian conservatory."

During her years at Harvard, Vosgerchian taught many musicians who went on to great fame. One of these was famous cellist Yo-Yo Ma '76, who credits her for his success.

"What I do today is precisely because of what Luise was able to give me in those years we worked together," Ma said in an interview with the Harvard Gazette.

Students remember Vosgerchian's personality as standing out from the crowd of Harvard professors.

Charney said that Vosgerchian once give a final exam in her Core class with only one question: "now connect," referring to the eclectic lectures she had given that year.

Vosgerchian also made an impact on music outside of Harvard. She played the piano for many years in the Boston Symphony Orchestra and served on the organization's board of overseers. She taught pre-concert lessons to audience members on how to listen to music.

Even after taking emerita status, Vosgerchian continued to remain active in the Harvard community, serving as a consultant to the music department, teaching House seminars and leading alumni tours.

Vosgerchian's devotion to her students also remained strong after giving up her teaching duties. According to Charney,

Vosgerchian was helping one of her former students with his dissertation up until two weeks ago and only stopped when the cancer had made for physically impossible for her to read it.

"If there were anybody who could have defeated death, it would have been her," Charney said.

A private memorial service will be held for Vosgerchian, who is survived by a husband, two sons, a daughter-in-law and two grandchildren. A public memorial service will be held at Harvard, although specific plans for this remembrance remain undecided.