Joseph B. Henry

The strains of music that made life worth living have given way to the strains of the body that made living hard, and Joseph Henry has passed from this world. The Music Director Emeritus of the Missoula Symphony Orchestra and its conductor for nearly a quarter century died peacefully at Providence St. Patrick Hospital in Missoula, Mont., on June 1, 2014.

Born in Toledo, Ohio on October 10, 1930, Joseph showed an early talent on that most difficult orchestral instrument, the French horn. Soon he set sights on conducting. While still in high school, he founded the Toledo Youth Orchestra, which still flourishes today as a program of the Toledo Symphony Orchestra.

He attended the prestigious Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY, where he eventually earned his Doctor of Musical Arts and Performer's Certificate in Conducting. He continued his education internationally with the Netherlands Radio Orchestra Conductor's Course, followed by two years of study as a Fulbright Fellow in Vienna and Salzburg. Especially important to his development were the four summers he spent at L'Ecole Monteux in Hancock, Maine, founded by the legendary conductor Pierre Monteux.

Early in his career, Joseph taught at the State University of New York at Oswego, Ohio University, and Eastern New Mexico State University. In 1984, he was hired as a professor of music at the University of Montana. At the time, the position also included the duties of conducting the Missoula Symphony Orchestra.

Joseph thrived in Missoula, and the orchestra thrived with him. Musicians began to receive pay for their services; the number of annual performances doubled; concerts were broadcast on Montana Public Radio; a Young Artist Competition was established; and in 1999, the position of Music Director became a full-time job, independent of UM.

Joseph's influence extended across the state through affiliations with the Red Lodge Summer Festival and the Montana Summer Symphony in Helena. Recognizing Joseph's contributions, Governor Brian Schweitzer awarded Joseph with the Montana Citizen's Distinguished Achievement Award in 2011.

Despite this success, Joseph wanted no-one to call him maestro — much less Dr. Henry — preferring the elegant simplicity of his given name. As a conductor, Joseph strove to make music worthy not of reverence, but of profound human connection. When he spoke about the music he loved, he could make you feel it without humming a note. Such was the loyalty of MSO musicians in his era that many of the players in next year's 60th season will have played with the orchestra for three, four, even five decades.

A born leader and easy friend, Joseph nevertheless preferred his back to big crowds. Bespectacled and thin, reserved and gentlemanly, he was never entirely comfortable speaking to audiences in words, preferring to let his baton do the talking.

That baton led Missoula audiences through quite an odyssey of music over the years. His first concert with the Missoula Civic Symphony on November 10, 1985 included an 18th century Haydn symphony and a brand new composition by Missoula's Donald Johnston. His last MSO subscription concert in 2006 featured a new work by Joan Tower, Mozart's Symphony No. 39, and the famous Beethoven "Triple Concerto" (Mayor John Engen proclaimed the occasion "Joseph Henry Day in Missoula"). A couple of months later, Joseph went out with a bang conducting Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture" for an audience of five thousand during Symphony in the Park, the free open-air concert in Caras Park he helped create.

Joseph did not shy from challenges. In 1993, for the 100th anniversary of the University of Montana, he mustered the musical forces necessary to perform Gustav Mahler's Eighth Symphony, known as the "Symphony of a Thousand" for the massive forces necessary to perform it. Later, he tackled Benjamin Britten's extraordinarily difficult "War Requiem," Bela Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra, and, for the MSO's 50th anniversary, Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.

When not at work in Missoula, he guest conducted orchestras in the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Mexico. Shortly following an overseas conducting engagement in 2007, Joseph suffered a severe stroke that ended his podium career.

Thereafter, he remained a fixture at Missoula Symphony Orchestra concerts, where musicians and old friends treated him as a celebrity. The last concert he attended was, fittingly, the MSO's spring performance of the Richard Strauss Horn Concerto #1 and music from Richard Wagner's "Ring des Niebelungen," with its mass of eight French horns. In the end, his frail voice cried out over and over, "Bravo! Bravo!"

Joseph deeply appreciated the Missoula Symphony Association and its board, staff, volunteers, donors and loyal audience. His gratitude also extended to the University of Montana and the support of the President's Office.

When he wasn't immersed in music, Joseph enjoyed watching Griz football games and professional golf. He raised a small flock of sheep and enjoyed babying the lambs, as well as his favorite llama "Charlie". A member of Holy Spirit Episcopal Church, he was also fascinated with the teachings of the spiritual philosopher George Gurdjieff.

Joseph is preceded in death by his parents, Thomas and Kathleen Henry; and his daughter, Madeline. He is survived by Evelyn, his wife of 19 years, and her son, Jericho (Mari) Hipona; his sister, Kathleen Clarke, of Baltimore, Md.; his son, Michael, of Missoula; and his nephews George Clarke of Denver and Thomas Clarke of Maryland.

A memorial service will be held in the Music Recital Hall, located inside the University of Montana Music Building, on Sunday, June 8 at 1:00pm.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Riverside Health Care Center, Missoula, Village Health Care Center, Missoula, or to the Missoula Symphony Association.


Read Joseph Henry's Obituary and Guestbook on www.missoulafuneralhomes.com.