Letters: Thank You to Bill and Judy Scheide for a Wonderful Community Celebration

Thanks for Sharing a Very Special Birthday

Dear  Editor:

Princeton’s beloved couple, Judith and Bill Scheide, invited the community to Princeton University’s Richardson Auditorium to celebrate Bill’s 98th birthday on Jan. 27.

Fittingly, Friday was also Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s 256th birthday and the Wiener KammerOrchester (Vienna Chamber Orchestra), under the expert and innovative direction of Mark Laycock, former director of the Princeton Symphony, opened the evening with the ever-popular “Overture to The Marriage of Figaro.”

A highlight of the evening was the first concert performance of Brahms’ newly rediscovered one-page composition, “Albumblatt in A Minor” by pianist Andrew Sun whose youth, talent and deft interpretation elicited “bravos”and enthusiastic applause.

Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92” showcased the WienerKammer Orchester’s virtuosity.  Of particular note was the dynamic performance of the engaging Concert Master, Lily Francis, who hopefully will offer a solo performance in the future. From my years living in Vienna, I observed that in contrast to many traditional Austrian orchestras, the Wiener KammerOrchester has many female and young members.

Maestro Laycock’s introduction to the Special Birthday Version of Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture” delighted the audience and his grand finale arrangement of the masterpiece for the Wiener KammerOrchester rocked the hall and added frosting to Bill’s birthday cake.

On behalf of the entire Princeton community, I would like to thank Judith and Bill for their kindness and generosity and for letting us share in this very special Birthday.

Linda Sipprelle

Institute Should Be Allowed to Build as Promised

Dear Editor,

I support the plan to build houses for Institute faculty members at the site that was promised for this purpose in 1971 when the IAS donated land that now constitutes a big portion of the battlefield.

If you take the time to have a look at the site map and walk along the battlefield, you will notice that these houses will be further from the battlefield than other houses in the area.

The men honored in this battlefield died trying to build a better government, one that keeps their promises! The institute is an integral part of Princeton and has greatly contributed to its history. In fact Princeton is most well-known as the location of Einstein’s home, thanks the the Institute. It is the site of the first programable computer, etc. Hopefully, the houses built there will help to attract the best researchers and scholars who will make it an even more historically significant place.

I have been a faculty member at the IAS for the last ten years and I live close the Institute; this convenience helps to facilitate important interactions with my fellow scientists and I hope that the Institute can continue to offer it to the new faculty that will come in the future.

Juan Maldacena