Angelo Lamariana

PLATTSBURGH ” Dr. Angelo W. "Angie" LaMariana, who spent his life turning out beautiful music and fine musicians, died Sunday, Nov. 1, just two weeks before his 95th birthday. His family was by his bedside. He died of complications from a breakdown of his digestive system. Dr. LaMariana was born in Brooklyn Nov. 15, 1914, the son of Joseph and Leonarda (Piazza) LaMariana. He was raised in New York City and graduated from Newtown High School in Queens. As a teen-ager, he worked as a golf caddy on Long Island for a dime and, later, 25 cents a round. He once caddied for Babe Ruth until the slugger, frustrated that he'd driven several balls into a water hazard, deposited his bag of clubs emphatically into the same hazard and stalked off the course. Angie received an extra 50 cents for his trouble, which included fishing the clubs out of the lake. Golf may have helped get him started on the road to life, but it was music that became his passion. He graduated from New York University with bachelor's and master's degrees in music and earned a doctorate from Columbia University, whereupon he set out to teach students the extraordinary skills he'd mastered himself. He played with many prestigious organizations in the New York area, including the NBC Orchestra, and eventually taught at Richmond College, Springfield College, Catholic University and Western Michigan University. With the outbreak of World War II, he joined the Army and was assigned to the famed 82nd Airborne Division as a paratrooper, parachuting into battles throughout Italy, mainly. Between jumps, he would play violin with or conduct some of the finest orchestras in Europe. Jumping out of planes into blistering warfare one day, conducting famous symphony orchestras the next. In 1943, he married his second enduring obsession, Winifred "Winnie" Collins, and they eventually moved to Plattsburgh in 1955, where Dr. LaMariana was hired as assistant professor of music. He helped start the Music Department. A year later, he was promoted to associate professor and to full professor in April, 1960. In the classroom, he was known as an exacting instructor who demanded and usually got the best a student had to give. In 1956, he formed the College Community Orchestra, which he led for almost a quarter of a century, along with the Junior Symphony. He conducted his last concert April 24, 1980. In 1965, he was named the seventh Chamber of Commerce Irishman of the Year, the highest honor this community confers. He has been the oldest living recipient for some time. At each year's breakfast, he accompanied local singer Courtland Wood on the violin, delighting the audience with traditional Irish songs. In 1984, he retired from the faculty at Plattsburgh State, but he continued to be a fixture in the community until his death. Almost legendary for his kindness and sense of serving those in need, he delivered communion for shut-ins for decades and has been a staunch advocate for senior citizens who are "without kith or kin," as he frequently put it. He called on the community to make donations of gifts for nursing-home patients at holiday time and encouraged families to invite patients in for holiday dinners. A diminutive 5'2" and a slender 115 pounds, he was known for walking apace around town right up until very near the end of his life. He was proud of having walked 10 miles four years ago in a Plattsburgh walk for diabetes, a disease with which he'd been locked in a standoff for decades. He'd also stared down prostate cancer. An expert fisherman, he conducted classes on fly fishing into his 10th decade, navigating the rocky shores of the Saranac River in waders, as his younger students watched in amazement. He continued to give concerts in churches and at functions throughout the community and taught students, young and old, on a variety of instruments to the last. His elfin smile and robust laughter were familiar to and admired by people throughout Plattsburgh and beyond. Well into his 90s, he was still sharp and agile and a regular at the John XXIII Newman Center and the Plattsburgh Noon Rotary Club. Winnie died March 7, 1990 ” a profound loss for Angie, but one to which he characteristically adapted. Dr. LaMariana was also predeceased by a sister, Rose Clabby, and is survived by his daughter, Patrice A. LaMariana and her partner, Barbara Sossen of New York city; a grandson, Zachary Sossen LaMariana of New York; a brother, William LaMariana, believed to reside in New York; a niece, Theresa Daly of Fanwood, N.J.; two nephews, William LaMariana Jr. of Syracuse and Joseph Clabby of Long Island. At Dr. LaMariana's request, there are no calling hours or flowers. A memorial Mass and celebration of his life will be at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 14, at the Newman Center. Burial will be on Wednesday November 11 at 10:30 at Mt Carmel Cemetary. Arrangement are with the Brown Funeral Home, 29 Broad St., Plattsburgh. Online condolences and memorial candles may be offered at www.brownfuneralhomeinc.com.