The Department of Music is deeply saddened at the passing of W.R. Kenan Jr. Professor Emeritus of Music James Haar (July 4, 1929 – September 15, 2018). Dr. Haar was born in St. Louis, MO and received his Bachelor of Arts from Harvard in 1950, his Master of Arts from UNC Chapel Hill in 1954, and his Ph.D. from Harvard in 1961. His doctoral dissertation was titled, Musica mundana: Variations on a Pythagorean Theme, and explored the ancient belief in musica universalis and its effect on musical thought in the Middle Ages and early Renaissance.
James went on to teach at Harvard from 1960–1967, the University of Pennsylvania from 1967 to 1969, New York University from 1969 to 1977 (serving as chair of the department from 1971 to 1977), and Carolina from 1978 until his retirement in 1997. Alongside his distinguished teaching career, Dr. Haar was also heavily involved in the the most prestigious musicology journals and societies. He served as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of the American Musicological Society from 1966 to 1969 and was President of the American Musicological Society from 1976 to 1978. He was elected into membership of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1987.
Beloved by his colleagues, here at UNC and across the country, all of Volume 12, No. 3, “Aspects of Musical Language and Culture in the Renaissance. A Birthday Tribute to James Haar” (Summer 1994) of the Journal of Musicology was devoted to him as a Festschrift in honor of his 65th birthday. This poem began the volume.
We have included the article that fellow faculty member, Dr. Jon W. Finson (Professor Emeritus), wrote for this same volume in honor of James.
