Joseph Polisi, president emeritus of The Juilliard School, will recount the history of Lincoln Center at Friday’s meeting of the New Canaan Men’s Club, with remarks focusing on the performing arts complex’s role in New York cultural life and Juilliard’s standing as an incubator of talent across the disciplines.
The Men’s Club will meet at 10 a.m. in Morrill Hall at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 111 Oenoke Ridge. Dr. Polisi’s presentation will begin around 10:40 a.m., following the business portion of the meeting. He will share perspectives drawn from his leadership of Juilliard and from his work examining Lincoln Center’s origins and development.
President Emeritus Joseph W. Polisi led The Juilliard School for thirty-four years, from 1984 to 2018, the longest presidential term in the school’s history. Upon stepping down in June 2018, he became Juilliard’s Chief China Officer, supervising the development of The Tianjin Juilliard School, a new campus in Tianjin, China. The Tianjin school offers selective, audition-based programs at the pre-college and graduate levels. The graduate program is taught in English and confers a U.S.-accredited master’s degree from The Juilliard School in New York. The campus also includes public programs for adult learning and instrumental training, along with Juilliard Imagination, an interactive exhibition environment curated for adults and children.
Dr. Polisi is the author of “Beacon to the World: A History of Lincoln Center,” which describes how the project was conceived in the belief that “Americans would benefit from bringing together a diverse array of performing organizations.” The book notes that John D. Rockefeller 3rd marshalled support from leaders representing political and civic interests, major financial institutions, and the performing arts. Rockefeller viewed the creation of Lincoln Center “as part of his responsibilities as a citizen of New York,” recognizing the arts’ role in the lives of New Yorkers. Today, the book argues, Lincoln Center stands on Manhattan’s West Side as a cultural anchor underpinning the “quest for excellence in the demanding profession of the performing arts.”
Born in New York City, Dr. Polisi is also an accomplished bassoonist who has performed as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player throughout the United States and in major New York City venues. He has written scholarly and educational articles for professional journals, produced sound recordings with an emphasis on contemporary American music, and recorded a solo album of twentieth-century bassoon works for Crystal Records.
He is the author of two additional books published by Amadeus Press: “The Artist as Citizen” (2005), a collection of speeches and articles on the role of performing artists as leaders and communicators of human values, and “American Muse: The Life and Times of William Schuman” (2008), a full-length biography of the composer and arts administrator. A revised edition of “The Artist as Citizen” was published in 2016, and Beijing Normal University Press released a Chinese-language edition, titled “The Artist as Leader,” in China.
Before coming to Juilliard, Dr. Polisi served as dean of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, dean of faculty at the Manhattan School of Music, and executive officer of the Yale University School of Music. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Yale University, a degree in political science from the University of Connecticut, and a degree in international relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.
Aside from hosting guest speakers on a variety of topics, Men’s Club members participate in regularly scheduled activities including hiking, yoga, and squash, and join discussions through its book and cinema clubs. Many members are also involved in New Canaan civic activities. The Men’s Club has openings for new members, men age 55 and above. For information about joining, email ncmens@ncmens.org
