With profound sadness, Hamilton College has continued to mourn the untimely death of Professor Sam Pellman. Pellman, the James L. Ferguson Professor of Music, was killed this past Thursday in a car accident while cycling in Kirkland.

The College has held numerous events to memorialize Pellman, including an informal gathering on Nov. 9 and a formal memorial service on Nov. 15. The formal service took place in Wellin Hall of the Schambach Center, while the following reception was held in the Kennedy Center for Theatre and Studio Arts — a building whose design Pellman contributed to.

“He was a widely admired teacher, a groundbreaking scholar in the area of electroacoustic music and an indispensable part of the fabric of this community,” President David Wippman and Dean of Faculty Margaret Gentry wrote in an all-campus email, adding “he was a good and loyal friend to his colleagues, an exceptional advisor to students, and an exemplary representative of the College and its values. In so many ways,” the email concluded, “he will be irreplaceable.”

An Ohio native, Pellman received his Bachelor of Music Degree from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, while he received his MFA and DMA from Cornell University, in Ithaca, New York.

Professor Pellman had been at Hamilton for nearly 40 years, teaching music theory and composition; he was also the co-director of the Studio for Transmedia Arts and Related Studies. Additionally, he served as Associate Dean of the Faculty, Posse mentor, and leader of the arts development. In April 2015, Pellman received the Alumni Association’s Distinguished Service Award.

“He was my advisor for two years,” said Adam Stern ’18, adding, “even after that, he was still there to guide me through the initial ropes of music production, and he never missed an opportunity to listen to my music projects.”

“I used to spend countless hours just having casual conversations with him, just because, more so than a professor, he was a friend to me.”

Professor Pellman’s colleagues in the Music Department reflected the warmth and reverence expressed by Stern.

“Trying to summarize Sam’s presence in the Music Department in a sentence or two is exceedingly difficult,” Heather Buchman, chair of the department, told

The Spectator

, continuing, “I will try, because it’s important to at least attempt to communicate what he meant to the department.”

“Sam’s presence in the Music Department was equally treasured by colleagues and students alike,” she said, adding, “He had several running jokes (or Leitmotifs) that formed a unique microculture in List — his love of sheep, sly use of musical quotations, his fusing music technology with unabashed goofiness and nerdiness, his love of all things digital, his tremendous influence in seeing the Wellin Museum and KTSA projects to fruition. He was the person so many people turned to for advice.”

Concluding her remarks, Buchman put it simply.

“The love and respect that have been expressed in just the last few days has been overwhelming, matched only by the overwhelming loss we all feel here, and gratitude for the time that we had with him.”

Pellman was not only active on the Hill, but in the local community as well. He was the organist and director of instrumental music at the Clinton United Methodist Church, tour accompanist for the Oneida Area Civic Chorale, secretary of the Kirkland Town Democrats, and a board member of the Syracuse Society for New Music.

Katherine Collett, chair of the Kirkland Town Democrats, told

The Spectator

, “The Kirkland Democrats will miss Sam terribly, for his insightfulness, his compassion, his wisdom, the music he could provide at the drop of a(n Uncle Sam) hat, and his gentle humor,” adding, “each of us is heartsick about his tragic death.”

Oneida County deputies, as reported by the

Utica Observer-Dispatch

, said that Pelman, while riding his bike on Kirkland Avenue, was struck from behind by a Hyundai Sonata operated by an 86-year old Clinton resident. The accident is still under investigation and has been given to the Oneida County Sheriff’s Criminal Investigation Unit.

Pellman is survived by his wife of 42 years Colleen and their children, John and Emily.

The Spectator

extends our deepest sympathies to Professor Pellman’s family and loved ones, and we encourage members of our community to support one another through this difficult time.