“Allen Kofsky, a Cleveland Orchestra trombonist for 39 years … died Thursday, June 7 at age 92,” states an unsigned obituary in Saturday’s (6/9) Plain Dealer (Cleveland). “He played with the Cleveland Orchestra when he was still in high school, as part of the Cleveland Pops in Public Hall. During World War II he joined the Navy, hoping to play with the Navy Band.… But he scored so well in boot camp on the international Morse code, he was assigned to a minesweeper in the Pacific as a radio operator, seeing action at Guam and Okinawa. After the war he enrolled in the Cleveland Institute of Music on the GI Bill, then was hired as principal trombone for the Kansas City Philharmonic, where he played for seven years. He returned to Cleveland to help with his father’s family business … and continued musical pursuits part-time.… He also performed as a substitute trombonist for the Cleveland Orchestra.… When he retired in 2000, Kofsky said, ‘It’s one of the greatest orchestras of the world, and I’ve had a great run.’ But Kofsky, who also served as the orchestra’s assistant personnel manager for 20 seasons, wasn’t finished with music. He taught at the Baldwin-Wallace College Conservatory of Music.”
Posted June 11, 2018
