By MICHAEL SHINN

The Literature and Materials of Music Department is pleased to honor cellist Fred Sherry with the William Schuman Scholars Chair for 2005-06. Every year, this award is given to an artist and educator on the faculty at Juilliard who has made significant contributions both to the intellectual and artistic life of the School's community. In conjunction with this award, Sherry will be presenting the second of two lecture/performances this month.

Fred Sherry's first Schuman Scholars lecture, on March 22 in Paul Hall, discussed how analysis can and should affect performance. (Photo by Michael Shinn)

Fred Sherry has been a powerful force in championing the music of modern times for more than three decades. He has premiered works by Milton Babbitt, Toru Takemitsu, Mario Davidovsky, and Steven Mackey, along with the cello concerto of Charles Wuorinen, Five. In the words of fellow faculty member Jerome Lowenthal, "Often when we speak with admiration of musicians, we compare them to artists in another medium: Stravinsky was the Picasso of composers; Perlman is the Raphael of violinists. But Fred Sherry's polyvalent gifts cannot be compared to anybody—he is the Fred Sherry of cellists."

Having been an artist member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center since 1984, Sherry was also its artistic director from 1988-92. He is a founding member of both Speculum Musicae and the innovative music ensemble Tashi. On the cello faculty of The Juilliard School, he has also been a strong influence in the development of numerous young musical artists.

Sherry's first lecture, on March 22 and titled "Theory and Practice," demonstrated how analysis can and should affect performance. He admits that, in his early years, music theory was rarely a concern for him as a performer: "There was no theory, just practice." However, Sherry learned early in his career about the importance of an analytical understanding of the score. He began approaching more recently composed works, which forced him to look at the music from a more theoretical perspective.

One of Sherry's starting points in looking at an unknown work is to understand how the counterpoint operates, or how different musical lines interact with one another. As he asserts, "I want to theorize in my own head how I'm going to approach the music before even beginning to play the piece with my cello." Sherry credits the theorist Allan Forte with influencing him to break music down into its most rudimentary elements—its "least common denominator," as he describes it—in order to arrive at the theoretical understanding necessary for a fully realized performance.

Fred Sherry: William Schuman Scholars Chair Lecture Paul Hall Wednesday, April 12, 11:30 a.m. Free; no tickets required.

The second lecture, on April 12, will include the ensemble Xtreme Trio, who will play a string trio by Wuorinen. In this lecture, titled "The Composers in My Life," Sherry will discuss the myriad collaborations he has had with today's greatest composers and the influence these relationships have had on him and his career.

The many esoteric styles of music Sherry has explored have led him to embrace a more multicultural perspective on art in general. He believes that an artist must investigate art from around the world, not just from the European-American perspective. As Sherry suggests, "The [composers] we treasure had an awareness of world music; it's part of who we are and the world in which we live."

Edward Bilous, chair of the L&M Department at Juilliard, describes Sherry as "the kind of musician who personifies the spirit of the L&M program. He is not only a brilliant performer but also a creative thinker and irrepressible advocate of new music." He goes on to add, "Fred's passion for performing grows out of a natural curiosity for the arts and a genuine love of learning."

The William Schuman Scholars Chair, endowed by Juilliard trustee Kenneth S. Davidson and his wife, Marya Martin, flutist and educator, was created in 1998 in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the founding of the L&M Department at Juilliard. In preparing for that anniversary by reviewing all the documents detailing the history of the department, Bilous discovered that in the early years of the program, the entire faculty consisted of composers and performers. "From its inception, the focus of L&M was to help students discover the connections between the analysis and performance of music," notes Bilous. He decided that the best way to honor the program was to establish an award for those musicians who have significantly contributed to music education at Juilliard. Sherry is the seventh recipient of the Schuman Scholars Chair since its inception. Previous recipients have included Jerome Lowenthal, the Juilliard String Quartet, Pia Gilbert, Milton Babbitt, Charles Neidich, and Seymour Lipkin.

Michael Shinn, who earned his B.M. and M.M. degrees in piano from Juilliard, is the coordinator of the L&M Department.