Día de los Muertos altar at the SOMD

Oct. 31, 2013—First-term Assistant Professor of Ethnomusicology Juan Eduardo "Ed" Wolf has wasted no time in making his mark on the UO School of Music and Dance.

Fast on the heels of a popular Oct. 18 World Music Series concert by renowned sitarist Kartik Seshadri that Prof. Wolf organized, this week he has installed a Día de los Muertos altar in the southeastern corridor of the Frohnmayer Music Building.

The altar features photos of individuals near and dear to the hearts of our community—faculty members who have passed away in the past several years, including Anne Dhu McLucas, Steve Larson, and Charles Dowd. McLucas was also memorialized with a 2012 altar at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art.

This year, Prof. Wolf along with other faculty, students, and staff of the School of Music and Dance, have adorned the school's altar with photos of other musicians and music scholars who have been inspirational to them, including images of Billie Holiday, Tito Puente, and Ibrahim Ferrer.