Note-worthy tribute to teacher

For 37 years, Isabella Perrotta Erickson taught Springfield students to sing. Erickson, who died in June 2015 at the age of 96, taught choral music at Springfield High School for decades and accompanied her singing students, as well as the Vermont Symphony Orchestra, on the piano.


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Note-worthy tribute to teacher Rutland Herald | January 19, 2017 By SUSAN SMALLHEER STAFF WRITER Erickson Erickson SPRINGFIELD — For 37 years, Isabella Perrotta Erickson taught Springfield students to sing. Erickson, who died in June 2015 at the age of 96, taught choral music at Springfield High School for decades and accompanied her singing students, as well as the Vermont Symphony Orchestra, on the piano. After she died, the Erickson Perrotta family had asked that any memorial donations be made to the music department at Springfield High School, And now Jim Chlebak, music director at the high school, wants to put that money — and more — toward a lasting tribute to Erickson. Chlebak said Wednesday the school system had purchased a marimba — a percussion instrument — from the Netherlands, and he was asking Erickson’s supporters and former students to offer stories and cash contributions in her memory. Chlebak said he never got to know Erickson, but, he said, the checks from the funeral home after her death were a nice surprise. He said he didn’t want to use the $450 in memorial gifts to buy something “expendable,” such as sheet music or reeds for woodwind instruments. “I wanted something lasting, and not in the hands of just one child, and we came up with the idea of a marimba,” Chlebak said. “It’s a little bit exotic,” he said. “It will put the music department a little bit ahead of where it is.” He said it fit, from what people and former students have told him about Erickson. “That’s what she did, every day, she pushed everybody,” he said. “She was a consummate musician. She Springfield High School music teacher Isabella Erickson, who died in June 2015 at age 96, will be honored with the presentation to the school of a marimba in her memory. PROVIDED PHOTO Springfield High School music teacher Isabella Erickson, who died in June 2015 at age 96, will be honored with the presentation to the school of a marimba in her memory. PROVIDED PHOTO had elegance, and she was not easy with praise. She expected a lot. I think a marimba is a fitting tribute.” The instrument cost $2,700, and Chlebak said it was a “workhorse” and not a delicate instrument that had to be kept in a climate-controlled room. Erickson was a singer and a pianist, leading the Springfield High School chorus and choirs, as well as the group that later became The Madrigals. She also was the accompanist, and she also was accompanist for the Vermont Symphony Orchestra. Erickson was a native of Bennington and a graduate of Bennington College. She later received her master’s degree in performance studies at Columbia University in New York. She started her career in Springfield, eventually marrying and settling into a career of teaching Springfield children how to sing. Karen Engdahl, of Springfield, a pianist and music teacher, said she succeeded Erickson as the accompanist for community groups. “She had really big shoes to fill,” Engdahl said. “She set a very high standard. She was very strong and very forthright. She kept me humble.” Chlebak said fundraising would be held from Jan 10, Erickson’s birthday, until June 10, the anniversary of her death, to help with the purchase of the 4.3-octave marimba. The marimba will be featured in the Springfield High School’s spring music concert May 18, he said. Erickson’s name, and the donors, will be included in a plaque on the instrument. Donations and stories can be sent to the SHS Erickson Music Fund, SpringfieldHighSchool, 303 South Street, Springfield, VT 05156.