Michael White 1931-2022 | In Memoriam

Michael White (BS and MS ’57, composition; faculty 1978-2022) died peacefully on January 24 in New York City at 90. He had been diagnosed with a brain tumor in October but continued his life’s work of teaching, composing, and learning, his family said, “for as long as his body would allow.” They also wrote that his love for these pursuits—and for art, poetry, baseball, movies, and ice cream—fueled “the boyish spirit that shone bright in his genuine joy and laughter as well as his dedication to dispelling all forms of hate and standing up for creativity over commercialization.”

Born Hirsch Michael White to Gerald and Beatrice (Fisher) White in Chicago on March 6, 1931, he found warmth and intellectual connection with his grandfather and mentor, Harry M. Fisher, one of Chicago’s first Jewish Superior Court judges and the president of the Zionist Organization of Chicago. Defying his father’s wishes, White went to Juilliard, where he studied with Peter Mennin (faculty 1947-58; president 1962-83) and Vincent Persichetti (faculty 1947-87) and received the Marion Freschl Prize. A recipient of three Ford Foundation Fellowships, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and myriad grants and awards, White had four of his operas produced—The Dybbuk, The Metamorphosis, Through the Looking Glass, and Diary of a Madwoman—as well as many vocal and chamber works including his concerto for viola and orchestra that was premiered by Masumi Rostad (BM ’99, MM ’01, viola) and the Juilliard Orchestra under James DePreist (faculty 1988-2013). In recent years, White composed a series of chamber works inspired by traditional Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jewish music.

As dedicated to teaching as he was to composition, White was for many years the chairman of the Literature and Materials of Music (L&M) (now Music Theory) department, and he also taught for many years in what is now Juilliard Extension. According to his colleagues Samuel Zyman (MM ’84, DMA ’87, composition; faculty 1986-present) and Larry Alan Smith (faculty 1980-85), White “combined his profound and vast knowledge of the repertoire, of composers’ lives, and of the scholarly literature about music with his unparalleled love and passion for the music he taught.” White never stopped studying, reading about music, and analyzing works by many of the major composers of the Western canon, and his boundless love for Mozart, in particular, was a constant throughout his life. Starting in 2007, he also taught every summer at the Wintergreen Summer Music Festival in Virginia.

John-Morgan Bush, Juilliard’s director of lifelong learning, noted that White’s “was the first class at the onset of the pandemic to pivot to online instruction, and he was fearless in doing so.” He added, “his concern for our students, charity of heart, and the sense of community he created was a light for many. He was a colleague, teacher, and friend to so many of us and he leaves an indelible mark on Juilliard.”

White is survived by his former spouse, Barbara Vaughn White; his daughter, Jessie White; his son, Charlie (Stephanie) White; his grandchildren Zula and Ezra; and his cousin Danny (Daniele) Roberts. The family has indicated that memorial contributions can be made to the Juilliard Scholarship Fund.

>>Have a memory to share? Let us know at [email protected]. Join us via livestream on May 3, 2022, at 6pm, as we celebrate Michael White's life with a memorial concert. Click here to RSVP and to receive the link to attend the livestream.