Today’s Beautiful Music is deeply personal. When I was a student in The University of Connecticut’s music department, one of my most inspiring teachers was a brilliant and talented conductor, Larry Rachleff. He was young and energetic, a dynamic presence in the department, and a generous teacher and mentor, and my classmates and I revered him. Most of all, Larry was a mensch, with a great sense of humor. He moved on from UConn after two years, and continued his career as a conductor, teacher, and mentor, eventually joining the faculty at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, and conducting orchestras all over the world. Through it all, he remained a mensch. Larry Rachleff died a few days ago, leaving behind a heartbroken family, and countless sad and stunned colleagues, students, and fans. Today’s Beautiful Music features a 2018 concert performance by Larry Rachleff leading the Stony Brook Symphony Orchestra at the Staller Center for the Arts. They’re performing one of my personal favorites: the BEATRICE AND BENEDICT Overture by Hector Berlioz. There’s also a link to Larry’s obituary below so you can learn more about this incomparable human being who is gone too soon.