Prof. Emeritus Thomas Fitzpatrick Passes Away

September 10, 2009, Greencastle, Ind. — Thomas D. Fitzpatrick, professor emeritus of voice and musical theatre at DePauw University, died last night at his Greencastle home. Professor Fitzpatrick, who taught at DePauw for 28 years, was 83 years old.

A memorial service with Mass will be held Saturday, September 19 at 10 a.m. at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church, 202 E. Washington, Greencastle. Inurnment services will follow at Forest Hill Cemetery.

Born May 1, 1926 in Reynolds, Illinois, Fitzpatrick earned an A.B. in music education from St. Ambrose College, a B.S. in music performance from the Juilliard School of Music, an Artist Diploma from the Teatro Lirico Sperimentale in Rome, and an M.Mus. from Indiana University. The tenor received performance scholarships from all of the institutions and made his operatic debut with the Rome Opera Company as lead tenor in Madama Butterfly while studying in Italy as a Fulbright Scholar.

After completion of his grant, Fitzpatrick remained in Europe for another 18 months.

Before joining the DePauw University School of Music faculty in 1963, Fitzpatrick taught at the Cosmopolitan School of Music, Chicago (1956-61); University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (1961-62); and Indiana University (1962-63).

Over the course ofhis career, Fitzpatrick also performed in concerts in London, Berlin, Freiburg, Vienna and London and with such orchestras as the Chicago Symphony. He also engaged in operatic work with theatre companies in Chicago, Denver, Dallas and at Indiana University, and he appeared on radio and television programs such as NBC's Artists Showcase and the Arthur Godfrey Show.

"Fitzpatrick has a tenor voice of beautiful quality and he sang the varied program with fine musicianship and sensitive interpretation," noted a review in Oklahoma's Tulsa Daily World. Another reviewer wrote in Opera News, "Thomas Fitzpatrick revealed a supple tenor of smooth range and warm timbre and acted the cocky hero with aplomb." The Indianapolis Times simply declared, "Thomas Fitzpatrick, a most excellent tenor."

Thomas Fitzpatrick was a member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing, the National Opera Association and Pi Kappa Lambda, serving as president of Omicron chapter.

At DePauw, Fitzpatrick taught voice and diction classes in four languages and served as director of admissions counseling for the School of Music as well as resident director of DePauw's Freiburg study abroad program. He retired in 1991.

The professor's legacy continues through the Fitzpatrick Opera Award. Income from an endowed fund provides an award which is presented annually to the graduating senior vocalist who has been deemed to have contributed the most to opera/musical theatre productions presented while at DePauw.

Send this story to a friend. Share