Walter Gray

I just now happened on this obituary, hope it is not too late to post some memories. Professor Gray (as I knew him) was my music appreciation teacher at the UW in the mid 60s. I was majoring in engineering, a very regimented curriculum, and a music appreciation course added some wonderful breadth to my college experience; I liked his first course so much I signed up for a second. Professor Gray was, in a way, the most influential teacher I ever had. I never pursued a career in engineering but I still spend much time listening to, enjoying and appreciating classical music. When doing so I often hear the voice of Walter Gray. The second course was entitled Opera. I had never been a fan but he won me over and my love of opera has recently had a very nice side effect - about four years ago I attended a four-day program at the Sarasota Opera and during that time fell in love with a fellow opera-lover named Marilyn; we remain in a long-distance relationship. I am writing this on New Years Eve, 2022, while visiting Marilyn in New Jersey. A tradition here, occurring on classical radio station WQXR, is an annual countdown of the listeners' favorite classical pieces as determined by an online ballot. Professor Gray was a Mozart fanatic. (I joke that we spent so much time in the first course, Symphony, that we barely got past Beethoven.) On this year's WQXR countdown, Mozart's Symphony #40 was ranked 67, Symphony #41 was ranked 41; both works we studied at length. Ranked number #23 on the countdown is Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro; in opera class we were informed, in no uncertain terms, that this is the greatest opera ever written. Hearing these familiar works certainly brings back memories. I am writing this while listening to the WQXR countdown, as these memories occur I was prompted to search for Walter Gray online and found this obituary. In the obit I learn that Professor Gray moved from the UW (retired I assume) to become Dean of the North Carolina School of Arts. By coincidence, I live thirty miles from the NCSA; how wonderful it would have been to say hello to him there and express my appreciation for how much he enriched my life. Rest in peace Professor Gray. Joe Gruendler Greensboro, North Carolina