Northwestern University School of Music

By Bob Gariano

In 1971Thomas Miller became the fifth dean of Northwestern University’s School of Music, now called the Bienen School of Music. The school had built an enviable position in the world of music education since it first started providing instrument and vocal lessons to women in 1855 as the Northwestern Female College. The program rose to become one of the premier music schools in the world. But Miller had a problem. Every time the student orchestra wanted to assemble to practice or give a concert, they had to pack up their instruments and move to a local high school gymnasium. The acoustics were more suitable for basketball than Beethoven, but the gymnasium was the only local facility with sufficient space to accommodate such large groups and their instruments.

Miller realized that a new concert hall would be costly. More important, there was little space on the campus to construct a new building. But he also knew that the University was in the process of adding some 84 acres of useable property by reclaiming lake front land and expanding the campus footprint to the east. The innovative reclamation project was called the J. Roscoe Miller Campus after the benefactor who had helped pay for the expansion. Perhaps, Miller thought, he could lay claim to a piece of that new land for a concert hall. Still, the cost of a modern building was beyond the school’s budget, even if a piece of the new land could be secured. That is when a most remarkable benefactor came to the rescue.

Corinne Frada was born in 1898 in San Francisco. Early on her family recognized her talents as a piano prodigy. She was giving public concerts when she was in elementary school and was well enough known in the Bay Area to appear in Pickering Piano advertisements when she was five. By her early teens, she had performed with both the Seattle and San Francisco Symphony Orchestras. She came to Chicago in 1913 at age 15 for a concert with the American Symphony Orchestra. Miss Frada decided to stay in Chicago to continue her music studies at Northwestern.

While she was working and studying in Chicago, Miss Frada met Albert Pick, Jr. a young businessman who was involved with his family’s land and hotel businesses. Albert was a confident and ambitious young man who was working his way up through the business. The romantic attraction was immediate and after a formal courtship, Albert Pick proposed. The couple were married in 1917 at the Standard Club in the Loop.

Even with the difficulties of the great depression, Albert’s business acumen and energy became the foundation for one of the largest hospitality companies in the country. In the 1930’s, the family’s original Randolph Investment Company was renamed the Pick Hotels Corporation and Albert was named its president. Albert led the company through five decades of growth eventually owning and operating 41 hotels and motels in 36 cities. The Pick Hotels flag ship property was the Pick-Congress Hotel in downtown Chicago.

In addition to his role in his own company, Albert was active throughout the nation with various philanthropies volunteer boards and commissions. Meanwhile, Corinne never lost her love for music and the arts. She and Albert continued to support music education at all levels. In 1957 the couple established the Corinne Frada Pick Music Scholarships for piano students at Northwestern.

On December 27, 1967 Albert and Corinne celebrated their 50^th wedding anniversary in the Gold Room of the Pick-Congress Hotel. Albert had been planning a suitable gift for the occasion. He decided to join resources with his brother in law, Charles Staiger, to provide a leadership gift for her alma mater. The gift to Northwestern would provide the funds for a new concert hall. The building would honor Corinne’s accomplishments as a pianist and recognize her love of music.

On July 25, 1973 Albert and Corinne attended ground breaking ceremonies at Northwestern for the new building. The Pick-Staiger Concert Hall held its dedication concert on October 26, 1975. The soloist that evening was Ralph Votapek. Votapek was not only a prominent Northwestern alum and winner of the prestigious Van Cliburn competition, he had also been the first recipient of the Corinne Frada Pick Music Scholarship. Dean Miller stood tall that evening as he watched his students perform in their new world class concert hall.

The Pick-Staiger Concert Hall today stands as an architectural jewel on the Northwestern campus.  The design by Edward Dart carefully balances classical visual impact with the acoustical requirements of a fine concert hall. The acoustic design is contemporary and effective. Thirty sound cloud reflectors control the sound intensity and projection throughout the building. The 1003 people who can attend each performance walk through a lobby decorated with Chinese art work from Charles Staiger’s personal collection.

In 1989 Mrs. Pick died in her Highland Park home some 70 years after she married Albert. She was 90 years old. Albert had passed away in 1977. In sixty years of marriage, the couple had built one of the preeminent hotel companies in the world and had used their resources to generously support their love of music and the arts. The Pick-Steiger Concert Hall stands as a magnificent legacy to their support of Northwestern University and to musical performance and scholarship.