Frank Pascale Tirro, dean of the Yale School of Music from 1980 to 1989, passed away after a long illness on March 28. Tirro is remembered for his pathbreaking writings on music, education, and racism in America;

his landmark contributions to our understanding of the history of jazz; his studies of late medieval and renaissance music; and his considerable administrative accomplishments. He was also an ASCAP award-winning composer and a highly respected professional clarinetist and saxophone player.