Dr. Frances R. Poe of Atlanta, GA, passed away peacefully on January 6, 2022, at WellStar Tranquility/Kennesaw Mountain, following a lengthy illness. Renowned for her expertise in the area of Renaissance music, Dr. Poe was a beloved professor of Music History and Music Education at Westminster Choir College (WCC) in Princeton, NJ for almost thirty years. Following her retirement in 2000, she relocated to the Atlanta area where she continued to be involved in the arts.
Born in LaGrange, GA on May 12, 1937, to Reginald and Frances Castleberry Poe, she spent her childhood years in Fitzgerald, GA. Called Sistie by her family, she was known as the life of any party and a comedienne in family gatherings, a trait she carried over into her teaching career as she continuously kept her students interested in the various aspects of music history and music education with a touch of humor added to each of her lessons. Following her graduation from the University of Georgia in 1960, where she majored in Music Education and Music History, she served as the Director of Choral Activities at Bradford High School in Starke, FL. She then enrolled at Indiana University, Jacobs School of Music, where she earned her Master of Music degree in 1963 before becoming an Assistant Professor of Music at Bemidji State University (Bemidji, MN) followed by serving as Assistant Professor of Music at the University of Rhode Island (Kingston, RI) until 1971 when she returned to Indiana University to begin her studies in the doctoral program.
In 1972, Dr. Poe relocated to Princeton, NJ to join the faculty of Westminster Choir College as an Associate Professor of Music Education where she inspired future music educators and opened the minds and hearts of her students to the history of music dating as far back as the early Renaissance era. While at WCC, Dr. Poe earned her Ph.D. from Indiana University in 1978 majoring in Music Education, Music History and Instrumental Conducting. Her dissertation was entitled The development of instructional materials for teaching and performing Renaissance choral music upon which her acclaimed 1994 publication “Teaching and Performing Renaissance Choral Music: A Guide for Conductors and Performers” is based. In 1995, she was promoted to full Professor status and recognized for her many accomplishments and hard work while at WCC. Dr. Poe not only created and conducted the Collegium Musicum, a choral and instrumental ensemble focused on performing music from the Renaissance and early Baroque eras, but also served as Director of Music throughout her career in numerous churches located in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Georgia.
A recipient of numerous awards and recognitions throughout her distinguished career, Dr. Poe also served as department chair for the Music Education department at WCC for several years, conducted various seminars pertaining to choral repertoire for junior and high school choirs and American music, and also served as a music consultant at Educational Testing Service (Princeton, NJ) for Advanced Placement tests in Listening and Literature as well as Music Theory.
Survived by several cousins and their extended families, she is preceded in death by her parents and her brother, John Edward Poe. It would also be appropriate to note that Dr. Poe is survived by the thousands of WCC students on whose lives she had such a tremendous impact and who continue to hold her in high esteem ensuring that her legacy continues. A private memorial service will be held at a later date.