Sheldon "Shelly" Morgenstern

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND — Sheldon "Shelly" Morgenstern, celebrated orchestral conductor and author, died Monday, December 17, 2007, of complications from stomach cancer in Geneva, Switzerland. He was 69 years old.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, January 20, in Dana Auditorium on the Guilford College Campus.

Mr. Morgenstern was a graduate of Northwestern University and the New England Conservatory. In 1962, he founded the Eastern Music Festival at Guilford College in Greensboro, N.C. The program's focus was the students, not the professionals who taught them. Among the many celebrated professionals who taught at EMF were Lillian Fuchs, Josef Gingold, Franco Gulli, Gerard Poulet, and Leonard Rose. Morgenstern insisted that guests spend a week on campus to allow ample opportunity for interaction with the students. In 1986, Morgenstern spearheaded the International Scholars Program, which brought students to EMF from, among other countries, Austria, Italy, Poland, Spain, and Yugoslavia. Among EMF's celebrated alumni are Jason, and Wynton Marsalis, Chauncey Patterson, and Geraldine Walther. Mr. Morgenstern retired from EMF in 1997.

For over 40 years, Morgenstern taught musicians and conducted orchestras in Europe, South America and North America. He was a conductor emeritus for numerous symphony orchestras in North America and Europe; a principal guest conductor of orchestras in Budapest, Geneva, Paris, Seville, and Warsaw; and has conducted performances for the BBC, NPR, PBS, the Canadian Broadcasting Company, and radio networks throughout Europe. In 2005, he was appointed to the advisory council of the Kent/Blossom Music Festival.

Outside of the concert hall, Morgenstern was a member of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Leadership Council, a consultant evaluator to the National Endowment for the Arts, and a senior advisor to the Wolf Trap Festival for organization and program content. He served on the Board of Directors of the Avery Fisher Artist Program, the Istanbul International Festival, the National Company for Televised Theatre, and on the Artistic Advisory Board of the Virginia International Arts Festival. Morgenstern was the recipient of two ASCAP programming awards, and was given the National Alumni Merit Award from Northwestern University, the Long Leaf Pine Award from the state of North Carolina, an O'Henry award, and several honorary degrees.

In 2001, he wrote No Vivaldi in the Garage: A Requiem for Classical Music in North America, published by Northeastern University Press. Morgenstern was also listed in Who's Who of American Music, Who's Who in America, and Who's Who in the World. A devoted Cleveland Indians and North Carolina Tar Heels fan, he wrote: "There is no sweeter sound than the swish of basketball going through the net - with the possible exception of Ella Fitzgerald singing 'Mack the Knife'."

Sheldon Morgenstern is survived by his widow, Patricia Bradshaw Morgenstern; brother, Morton 'Morty' Morgenstern; sister, Judith Morgenstern Greene; daughter, Sali Morgenstern Hagan; stepchildren, Nathalie, Christian, Brad, and Sam Gray; nephews, Travis, Cole, and Nolan Morgenstern, and Edward Greene; niece, Susan Greene Estes; and grandchildren, Lacey and Whit Hagan; Sammy, Emma, Jacob, and Christian Gray.

Donations may be made to the Southern Poverty Law Center or the Grant Roth Memorial Endowment Fund of the Jewish Community Federation of Cleveland.

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