Leeman Lloyd Perkins

Leeman Lloyd Perkins died at home in Englewood, NJ on March 25, 2022, two days shy of his 90th birthday. He lived a full and vibrant life dedicated to family, faith, and scholarship. Leeman was born to Milton Lloyd Perkins and Ida Johnson in Salina, Utah on March 27, 1932. Like his parents before him, he showed both an affinity and a talent for music. He received his B.F.A. from the University of Utah in 1954 and graduated Phi Beta Kappa. During college, he played violin in the Utah Symphony under conductor Maurice Abravanel. He later played in the New Haven and Austin Symphony Orchestras. After completing his undergraduate studies, Leeman served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the France Mission. There he served in a number of leadership roles, including President of the Paris Branch and President of the Marseille District. In November 1956, Leeman married Marianne Contesse. Immediately thereafter, he began his service in the U.S. Army. He was posted in Germany, where he played in the Seventh Army Symphony Orchestra. He then embarked on what would become a highly regarded scholarly career. He received his Ph.D. in Music History from Yale University in 1965, having focused primarily on Western music of the 15th and 16th centuries. Over the course of his professional life, he held faculty positions at Yale, the University of Texas at Austin, and Columbia University. At the last, he served as Chairman of the Music Department from 1985 to 1990 and was named Professor Emeritus upon his retirement in 2003. He was the recipient of a number of awards, including the Otto Kinkeldey Award from the American Musicological Society for his work on The Mellon Chansonnier (1980) and La Medaille de la Ville de Tours (1997) for his scholarly work related to composer Johannes Ockeghem. He was awarded more than a dozen grants; published and presented dozens of scholarly papers; authored the richly detailed and comprehensive survey Music in the Age of the Renaissance (W.W. Norton & Co., 1999); and edited a number of volumes of early music. He served most recently as General Editor of the continuing series Masters and Monuments of the Renaissance, published by the Broude Trust. In 2018, he completed a critical edition of works by Antoine Busnoys. Leeman was a man of quiet but profound religious conviction. He spent countless hours throughout his life in service to his community, touching many with both his kindness and his thoughtful approach to matters of faith. He served in many different capacities, including Choir Director; Branch President; High Councilor; counselor to Bishops; Patriarch; and Sealer at the Manhattan LDS Temple. Leeman exhibited extraordinary devotion to Marianne and the four sons they raised together. He consistently showed his love in ways large and small, from making breakfasts to being among the best listeners one could ever hope to encounter. Leeman is survived by his wife, Marianne, his sister, Karen (George Sears), his sons Eric (Diana Stewart), Bruce (Karen), and Patrick (Luisa), 13 grandchildren, 8 great grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his son Marc. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Tutwiler Clinic. http://www.tutwilerclinic.org/how-to-help/

Leeman Lloyd Perkins

March 27, 1932 - March 25, 2022