$1 Million Gift to BUTI Launches the Tanglewood Institute Young Artists Fund
Chester and Joy Douglass’ pledge, the largest in the program’s 54-year history, strengthens bond with BSO to train young musicians
March 1, 2021 Boston University Tanglewood Institute (BUTI), a program of Boston University College of Fine Arts, announces that longtime supporter and current Chair of the BUTI Advisory Council, Chester “Chet” W. Douglass and his wife, Joy, have pledged $1,000,000 to launch the Tanglewood Institute Young Artists Fund.
“Dr. Douglass has been an invaluable leader for BUTI for the past six years,” says Hilary Respass, Executive Director of Boston University Tanglewood Institute. “With his generous consultation and support we have built the program and its community of supporters, celebrating a 50
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If the Douglass family was a piece of music, Tanglewood would be a central motif. Now the Douglasses are adding a
fortissimo climax.
Chair of the Boston University Tanglewood Institute Advisory Council, Chester “Chet” W. Douglass and his wife, Joy, have pledged $1 million to launch the Tanglewood Institute Young Artists Fund, the largest gift in the 54-year history of the Boston University Tanglewood Institute (BUTI).
BUTI is a summer training program for promising musicians, singers, and composers 14 to 20 years old, on its own 64-acre campus in Lenox, Mass. The new fund, created to strengthen the more than five-decade partnership between the Institute and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, marks a significant investment in the training of young artists through a continuum of music education connecting BUTI and Tanglewood, the BSO’s summer home, just down the street.
BU Mourns the Passing of Wilbur Fullbright
Boston University College of Fine Arts and Boston University Tanglewood Institute (BUTI) are saddened to learn of the passing of Wilbur D. Fullbright (GRS’60). Fullbright’s leadership and vision shaped Music at Boston University. He was a professor emeritus of music and long-serving School of Music director, in addition to being a founder of BUTI. Dr. Fullbright passed away on November 22, 2020.
Born January 19, 1926, near Spearman, Texas, Wilbur grew up on a farm, graduating from Spearman High School in 1942. He served in the United States Navy during World War II. He graduated from Oklahoma State University in 1950 with a B.A. in Music and received a Master of Fine Arts degree from Bob Jones University in 1953, where he remained as a faculty member until 1956, when he moved to Boston, Massachusetts. He completed his doctoral degree in music at Boston University, where he remained until his retirement in 1993, serving in various capa