Some of the musicians we lost in 2018
By Peter Alexander Dec. 31 at 4:45 p.m.
May the memories of these great musicians, who have enriched so many lives as performers, teachers and leaders, be a blessing to us all.
Robert Mann
Jan. 1: Robert Mann, founding first violinist of the Juilliard String Quartet, whose robust style helped them achieve international renown, 97
Jan. 7: Maurice Peress, conductor who worked with both Leonard Bernstein and Duke Ellington, and an ardent advocate for the influence of Dvořák on American music, 87
Hugh Masakela
Jan. 23: Hugh Masekela, South African trumpeter, singer and anti-apartheid activist, 78
March 2: Harvey Schmidt, composer of the long-running (42 years) off-Broadway sensation The Fantasticks, and also 110 in the Shade, 88
March 2: Jesús López Cobos, Spanish conductor, former music director of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Cincinnati Symphony, and other orchestras, 78
March 12: Ivan Davis, internationally known American pianist, a protégé of Vladimir Horowitz, 86
March 16: Buell Neidlinger, versatile bassist who played free jazz as well as John Cage and Igor Stravinsky premieres, and recorded with Dolly Parton and the Eagles, 82
José Abreu
March 24: José Abreu,founder of El Sistema, the Venezuelan free-music program aimed at impoverished children that produced the conductor Gustavo Dudamel and remarkable youth orchestras, 78
Mach 31: Michael Tree, founding member of the Guarneri Quartet and the Marlboro Trio, as well as a much loved teacher at the Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, and other institutions, 83
April 5: Cecil Taylor, classically-trained jazz pianist, band leader, and sometimes poet, 89
April 10: Yvonne Staples, the baritone voice of the soul group Staples Singers, 80
Jean-Claude Malgoire
April 14: Jean-Claude Malgoire, energetic French conductor and champion of his nation’s early music repertoire, 77
May 1: Wanda Wilkomirska, a Polish violinist who performed world wide and was also known for her stand in support of the Solidarity movement, 89
Clarence Fountain
June 3: Clarence Fountain, the last living co-founder of the iconic gospel singing group Blind Boys of Alabama, 88
June 12: Bonaldo Giaiotti, operatic bass who was discovered singing in celebration of his soccer’s team victory in a bar in northern Italy and went on to become a fixture of the Metropolitan Opera, 85
June 16: Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Russian conductor known for performing the works of Alfred Schnittke, Sofia Gubaidulina and other contemporary composers, and for the emotional intensity of his performances, 87
Liliane Montevecchi
June 29: Liliane Montevecchi, Tony-Award winning actress, dancer and singer who performed with the Folies Bergère in Las Vegas and Paris, in addition to Broadway and film roles, 85
June 29: Franz Beyer, a German violist and musicologist who prepared a revised edition of Mozart’s unfinished Requiem in the early 1970s, 96
July 3: Bill Watrous, a widely respected and acclaimed trombonist, bandleader and teacher, known for studio work with artists including Quincy Jones and Frank Sinatra, 79
July 9: Oliver Knussen, British composer and conductor best known for his opera Where the Wild Things Are based on the beloved children’s book by Maurice Sendak, 66
Aretha Franklin
Aug. 16: Aretha Franklin, “The Queen of Soul” and one of the most widely loved and revered singers in America with a 100 singles in the Billboard charts and 20 No. 1 R&B hits, 76
Aug. 23: George Walker, Pulitzer Prize-winning American composer and teacher at Rutgers and other institutions, whose Lyric for Strings was performed during the 2018 Colorado Music Festival, 96
Inge Borkh
Aug. 26: Inge Borkh (born Ingeborg Simon), German/Swiss soprano known for her intense performances as Salome, Elektra, and other daunting roles, 97
Aug. 29: Ellie Mannette, a Trinidadian musician who, as a builder, tuner and teacher of steel drums, help create one of the most recognizable and joyful musical sounds, 90
Sept. 6: Claudio Scimone, Italian conductor and founder of I Solisti Veneti, with which he toured internationally and made many recordings, 83
Tito Capobianco
Sept. 8: Tito Capobianco, operatic stage director at the New York City Opera, the Metropolitan Opera and San Diego Opera, and general director of Pittsburgh Opera for 17 years, later a faculty member at Indiana University, 87
Sept. 18: David DiChiera, founder and director of Michigan Opera Theatre in 1971, who helped bring culture into downtown Detroit and stimulate the downtown revival, 83
Sept. 21: Katherine Hoover, flutist and composer who wrote for her own instrument and for strings, woodwinds, full orchestra, and other media, 80
Oct. 1: Charles Aznavour, celebrated French popular singer, song writer and film star who sold more than 100 millions records, and who was also known for his political support of the Armenian people, 94
Montserrat Caballé
Oct. 6: Montserrat Caballé, Spanish prima-donna soprano known for the purity of her voice as well as the adulation of her fans, 85
Oct. 31: Wolfgang Zuckerman, developer of the “Z-Box,” the first build-it-yourself harpsichord kit, 96
Nov. 15: Roy Clark, guitar, banjo, mandolin and fiddle virtuoso and country singer who was much more than this TV personality on “Hee-Haw,” a Country Music Hall of Fame inductee in 2009, 85
Dec. 6: Andrew Frierson, groundbreaking African-American bass-baritone who sang at the New York City Opera and other opera stages around the world and at the 1963 March on Washington, was a voice professor at Oberlin and other schools, and co-founded the Independent Black Opera Singers, 94
Dec. 17: Galt MacDermot, Grammy-award winning composer of Hair and Two Gentlemen of Verona, 89 and 364 days
Dec. 29: Aldo Parisot, legendary Brazilian-born cellist and teacher who was the longest-serving faculty member ever at Yale University, 100
Sharps & Flatirons 
I know that Jesús López Cobos didn’t have a large footprint here in Colorado (although he did a beautiful Mahler 3 with the Colorado Symphony a few years ago), he was a major influence on me, and Yumi Hwang Williams. When I was the conducting assistant with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Pops, and May Festival, Jesús worked with me every day on the music being performed that week. And when I got my first professional engagement, he went over every score page with me to help me prepare for my first professional rehearsals. He was a great mentor. He was especially awesome in the huge German repertoire, both symphonic and opera. I felt that working with him helped me produce a sense of “journey” in all of the music that I perform. I wish there were more programs for young conductors to work with truly top-notch music directors, but I was deeply fortunate to have that opportunity. He was a maestro.