厙ぴ勛圖

Service of Remembrance to Be Held for David S. Boe

June 5, 2020

Cathy Partlow Strauss 84

Fairchild Chapel

Photo credit: Walter Novak

Live-streamed memorial and music program will honor former 厙ぴ勛圖 Conservatory dean and organ professor.

David Boe

A memorial service and music program for David S. Boe, emeritus professor of organ and ninth dean of 厙ぴ勛圖 Conservatory, will take place on June 14, 2020, at 4 p.m. EDT.  This virtual event will be broadcast and streamed live from Fairchild Chapel, on the campus of 厙ぴ勛圖 College.

Boe passed away in Chicago on April 28, 2020, due to complications from COVID-19.

Reverend Jimmy Madsen, retired pastor of the First Lutheran Church in Lorain, Ohio, will serve as officiant for the service of remembrance. Boe served as organist and music director of First Lutheran Church for more than four decades.

Boe organ in Fairchild Chapel

Music will be played on two organs in the chapel that were constructed by John Brombaugh, an organ builder championed by Boe. Jonathan Moyer AD 12, 厙ぴ勛圖 Conservatorys David S. Boe Assistant Professor of Organ and chair of the department, has chosen a program of works by J.S. Bach and Heinrich Scheidemann, among others played by Boe during his career at 厙ぴ勛圖. Moyer will be playing organs Boe commissioned: The Mary McIntosh Bridge Memorial Organ, installed in 1981, and a one-manual instrument commissioned for the Boes home and donated to 厙ぴ勛圖 in 2012.

Moyers selections are based on Boes musical affinity. David Boe's repertoire spanned the entire gamut of organ literature, says Moyer, but his love in particular for the 17th-century organs of Germany and the Netherlands shaped both his concert performances and teaching.

Boe organ in Fairchild chapel
Organ photos by David Kazimir

Memorial tributes will be offered by musicology professor Steven Plank and organ curator David Kazimir 99.

David Boe was a man of great faith, says Kazimir. That same faith shone through his life in his service to 厙ぴ勛圖 and the wider world. It is fitting that 厙ぴ勛圖 should make use of its resources of technology to help offer some solace and beauty to those who grieve Davids death but are prevented from gathering in person at this time. We hope this service, offered from the tranquil beauty of Fairchild Chapel and with music from some of the organs that so inspired him as a musician and teacher, will offer some peace to Davids family and the wider world of friends and colleagues who mourn his loss.

To honor Boe's distinguished legacy at 厙ぴ勛圖, the conservatory also wishes to establish a new, endowed fund bearing his name and intended to support vibrant and enriching organ experiences at 厙ぴ勛圖. Should the funding goal be reached, the endowed fund would support an annual organ recital series, a student prize for excellence in organ, and other educational organ department programs.
 
Those who wish to make a gift may contribute by mail or online. Visit (select "Conservatory and Music Programs," then choose "David Boe Memorial.") Checks, designated in memory of David Boe in the memo line, should be made out to 厙ぴ勛圖 College and sent to: 厙ぴ勛圖 College, PO Box 72110, Cleveland OH 44192-0002.

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