$5,000 for a violin? No problem

The Dr. B. Woodfin Cobbs Jr. Music Endowment was created recently to fund the purchase of fine musical instruments for Emory’s Department of Music. Fine musicians not included (but will certainly be appreciative).

“The lifeblood of the music department’s burgeoning instrumental music program is the instruments themselves,” said Stephen Crist, associate professor of music history and chair of the Department of Music. That’s understandable, but you just can’t walk down to the store and buy a piano. Actually you can—as long as you carry a nice roll of hundreds.
           
The point is that musical instruments cost money, often a lot of money (like in the case of a piano, the cost of which runs several thousand dollars). And those costs can burden even the most fortunate of music departments. However, because of an Emory cardiologist’s longtime love of classical music, current and future generations of Emory music students may not have to worry about their instruments for years to come.
           
When Woody Cobbs, a respected cardiologist and professor at the Emory Clinic for more than 40 years, passed away in fall 2006, his wife, Honor, decided to memorialize her husband with a gift inspired by his appreciation of music and art. She created the “Dr. B. Woodfin Cobbs, Jr. Music Endowment,” which will generate funds to purchase fine musical instruments to be used by students in the music department.
           
Together, Honor Cobbs and her husband had spent many years enjoying classical music performances at Emory, as well as collecting hand-tooled furniture and carvings, especially work created by medieval artisans. The endowment was their opportunity to give back to the institution that had provided them so much joy over the years.
           
Crist said the endowment is “both a forward-looking and an exceedingly practical memorial.” For example, not every oboist will necessarily own an English horn (the tenor member of the oboe family). Nor is it always feasible for students who play large instruments such as the double bass (let alone the piano) to ship them to Atlanta during the school year. So the music department must purchase these instruments on an ongoing basis to furnish student musicians every instrument they need.
           
Will Ransom, Mary Emerson Professor of Piano, believes that Cobbs’ generosity will have a profound effect on music making at Emory for many years. “This extraordinarily creative gift is a most beautiful way to leave a permanent legacy of the Cobbs’ love of music and support for Music at Emory,” he said. “Our students, faculty, and audiences will all benefit in perpetuity, and we are all incredibly moved and grateful for this wonderful bequest.”
           
Funds from the endowment will be used to purchase fine instruments beginning this fall. For more information about the Cobbs endowment, contact Jeff Prince, senior director of development for Emory College at 404.727.4494 or jprince@emory.edu.—Eric Rangus