Gift supports School of Music students’ travel to competitions, conferences and performances
By Britni Bateman
CARBONDALE, Ill. — What began with a passion for music on a Southern Illinois farm has come full circle for alumnus Dr. Russell C. Riepe. With a $25,000 gift, he established the Dr. Russell C. Riepe School of Music Student Travel Endowment Fund at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, giving students opportunities to perform and present their work beyond campus.
“SIU provided the foundation for a poor farm boy. I never forgot that,” Riepe said. “I told myself that if I was ever able, I would do something in return. Helping students travel is the best way I can give back.”
Riepe, who earned a bachelor’s degree in music from SIU before completing a doctorate at the Eastman School of Music, designed the fund with a clear purpose: remove the financial barriers that often keep talented students from performing and presenting beyond campus. The endowment prioritizes travel support and requires recipients to maintain a 3.5 GPA.
“Getting on a stage in front of an unfamiliar audience makes you stronger,” he said. “The repetition of success is the key. Travel gives students those chances to step up, learn and grow.”
From a cattle farm to concert halls
Riepe grew up on a cattle farm near Vienna, Illinois. His father tuned pianos when the cattle market dipped, and that side job brought a six-foot grand piano into the family home.
“I was rough and tumble on the farm,” Riepe said. “I started late at the piano, so I practiced 11 hours a day on weekends just to catch up.”
At SIU, Riepe studied with Robert Mueller and Steven Barwick, performing frequently in Shryock Auditorium, including as a high school senior. He won a statewide student competition in Chicago and shared the stage with the SIU Orchestra for Carnival of the Animals. During his senior year, he earned a prestigious Woodrow Wilson Fellowship, which strengthened his applications to top graduate programs, before ultimately pursuing advanced study at Eastman, where he won the Howard Hanson Prize for his composition Symphonic Fantasy.
A career of teaching, composing and raising standards
Riepe launched his academic career at what is now Texas State University, teaching theory, composition and performance. He rose quickly to full professor and later served as Professor and Coordinator of Music Composition Programs, Founder and Director of the Texas Mysterium for Modern Music, and Director of Graduate Music Studies.
“I liked the students and they liked me, but I was tough,” he said. “I had high standards and didn’t believe in grade inflation. I wanted their success.”
Many of his students went on to perform with renowned artists or lead music programs nationwide. Among them, James Polk, one of Riepe’s graduate students, toured the world as pianist and Hammond B3 organist for Ray Charles. Others became university professors, directors of jazz programs, and even a university president.
Music without borders
Riepe’s own career spanned the globe. He studied under the legendary pedagogue Nadia Boulanger in France and later performed or presented his compositions in more than a dozen countries, including Scotland, Poland, Japan, China, Russia, Brazil, and Switzerland. His works were performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Greenwich Village, CalArts, UC Santa Cruz and countless universities across the United States.
He was a frequent guest lecturer, consultant and composer abroad, premiering Lacrimosa for Clarinet and Piano in London with longtime collaborator David Pino, contributing to the development of the Hong Kong Electronic/Computer Music Centre, and helping expand the electronic music program at the Moscow State Conservatory, where he performed in Rachmaninoff Hall.
“Project work, getting on your feet and performing, that’s what develops musicians,” he said. “Travel opens ears and minds. It also recruits the next generation.”
Pride in SIU’s rising profile
Riepe also takes pride in SIU’s elite standing in the Carnegie Classification, which recognizes the university for very high research activity and for expanding access and social mobility.
“SIU is a rural university with a serious mission,” he said. “The R1 designation signals a culture of purpose. My professors at SIU were excellent — every bit as good as the teachers I had at Eastman. They pushed you, and they did it the right way.”
A farmer’s roots, a musician’s promise
Although music carried Riepe around the world, his attachment to Southern Illinois never faded. He maintains his family farm near Vienna and credits the land — and SIU — for shaping his character.
“I love every blade of grass on this place,” he said. “SIU gave me the seriousness of purpose I needed. Now I want students to have the experiences that launched me.”
The Dr. Russell C. Riepe School of Music Student Travel Endowment Fund will support School of Music students as they compete, perform and present research beyond campus, building the skills and confidence that come only from taking the stage.
“I hope this fund helps students show the world what SIU can do,” Riepe said. “Give them the ticket, and they’ll take it from there.”
Where Research and Opportunity Take the Stage
SIU holds a rare distinction as one of only 21 universities nationwide — out of nearly 4,000 — recognized by the Carnegie Classification for both Research 1 status, the highest level of research activity, and as an Opportunity College and University, which honors institutions that expand access and foster social mobility. This dual recognition reflects SIU’s commitment to advancing knowledge while opening doors for students from all backgrounds.
Riepe’s gift to the School of Music embodies that mission, enriching hands-on learning and inspiring future musicians to create, innovate and share their art with the world.
This contribution also supports the Imagine SIU 2030 fundraising campaign. To date, the campaign has raised more than $422 million toward its $500 million goal, making it the fifth-largest fundraising effort in Illinois higher education. In the most recent fiscal year, the SIU Foundation awarded more than $5.6 million in scholarships to 2,111 students, representing 17 percent of the student body.
Gifts like Riepe’s ensure that SIU continues to grow as a place where research, opportunity and access come together to change lives for generations to come.
To support the SIU School of Music, learn more at: https://music.siu.edu/alumni/give.php