Henry Conrad Doskey Jr.

1942 - 2025

Henry Conrad Doskey, Jr. GREENVILLE - Henry Conrad Doskey, Jr., 82, passed away on Sunday, May 11, 2025. Services will be private. A native of New Orleans, Henry began his music studies with pianist/composer William Gillock in the mid-1950's. He saw and played many Gillock works as they appeared in pre-published manuscripts. Their teacher-pupil relationship lasted over thirty-five years. Shortly before his death in 1993, Gillock designated Doskey "the authoritative interpreter and judge of authenticity of stylistic treatment" in his music. Henry holds B. M. and M. M. Degrees in Piano Performance from Southern Methodist University where he studied with Louise Bianchi, and a D. M. in Piano Performance from Indiana University where he was a student of and Special Assistant to Menahem Pressler, famed pianist, master teacher, and founder of the Beaux Arts Trio. His Doctoral Document, "The Piano Music of Albert Roussel" (1981), is considered the most thorough treatment of the subject in English. In 2010, Dr. Doskey retired as Chair of the Keyboard Faculty of the East Carolina University School of Music. A member of the faulty since 1976, he taught piano, chamber music, and piano literature, and devised a "Keyboard Skills for Piano Majors" course. His students have gone on to undergraduate and graduate programs at such prestigious schools as Oklahoma and Indiana universities, the Julliard School, and the Curtis Institute of Music. They have also received piano performance awards in competitions sponsored by the Tar River Orchestra Association, the Raleigh Symphony, the North Carolina Symphony, the North Carolina Music Teachers Associates and MTNA. One of his students recently won the High School Composition Competition sponsored by MTNA; two others were national finalists in the Baldwin Competition. Dr. Doskey's awards include the 1964 Sorantin Award (Texas Symphony Orchestra); the Musical Arts Award (Society of American Musicians, Chicago) for which he appeared on the Allied Arts Piano Series in Orchestra Hall; and the ECU Alumni Association's 1998 Robert and Lina Mays award for Teaching Excellence. He made his New York debut in 1978 and has performed as a soloist, accompanist and pianist in ensemble music of all genres since then. In 1999, Dr. Doskey was invited to perform a solo recital at the People's Republic of China's major school of music, the Central Conservatory of Beijing, where he also conducted a masterclass. The demand for masterclasses and workshops on the music of William Gillock has steadily increased and his catalog has become an important part of Dr. Doskey's repertoire, as he presents more and more concerts and workshops of Gillock works. Notable among these all-Gillock performances are: the 1995 Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) National Convention in Albuquerque, NM, and a lecture recital at the 2004 MTNA National Conference in Kansas City. On the invitation of the Piano Teachers Music Guild, he has twice visited Tokyo to present a series of Gillock-related events, including a lecture recital, and a series of masterclasses and private lessons. Dr. Doskey is also known for his special performances of the music of Chopin, Debussy, Rachmaninoff, Prokofiev, Beethoven, Scriabin, and others. Arrangements by Wilkerson Funeral Home & Crematory. Online condolences at www.wilkersonfuneralhome.com.