Former Cornell professor and concertmaster of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra
Sam Minasian ’50 died in Springfield, Mo., July 29,
2008 at the age of 79.
Minasian grew up on music, serving as concertmaster of his high school orchestra and winning musical contests throughout the Midwest. He came to Cornell to study with his high school violin teacher, Ruth Ray, before earning his master of music at the Eastman School of Music and entering the Army, where he won first place in the Army’s TV Talent Patrol show in New York City in 1954. After the Army, Minasian played in the Rochester (N.Y.) Philharmonic, and then moved to Iowa and taught at Simpson, Cornell, and, finally, Drury College.
As concertmaster of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra, he was credited with raising the quality of the orchestra during his 31 years, nearly half of the orchestra’s existence at the time.
He is survived by his wife Joyce, three children, four grandchildren, and two sisters-in-law.
