Back in Baltimore on a darkening autumn afternoon, Stuart recalls his students days at Peabody in the mid-1980s and some memories that still rankle - racial slurs or grades that seemed unfair.
But he had a sympathetic ear from Peabody's first African-American dean, Eileen Cline, who served from 1983 to 1995. (Another African-American woman, Mellasenah Morris, is the current dean of Peabody, where the student body is about 4 percent African-American.)
Now retired in Colorado, Cline recalls that she "ran a lot of interference in those years," trying to help some teachers and administrators relate more sensitively to minority students, black and Asian.
Stuart still cherishes the guidance he received from Cline in those days. "What we learned from her was that how one deals with [racial] issues is through character," Stuart says. "She somehow made you dig a little deeper into your own character, rather than bemoan the fact you were born black."
Cline's essential message - "If I have any philosophy it's: Think what it is that you believe in, what you can bring to the world by your involvement, and just do it," she says - continues to resonate with Stuart. The only thing that seems to throw him off balance is when he suspects that his validity as an artist, or the validity of other African-American musicians, is questioned.
"I have run into people who do double and triple takes when I walk onstage," the cellist says. "It's like, 'Who let you in the door?' It shocks me how some people can assume the least of you before they know you. I'm willing to take any repercussions for not being good enough, for not studying hard enough. But I will not take a [racially based] judgment before I even pick up my bow.
"At the end of the day, you still have to follow your passion," he says, slinging his cello case over his shoulder to head off for another round of teaching. "With music in your life, you really can make yourself happy. And I'm very happy."
if you go
The Ritz Chamber Players perform at 5:30 p.m. today at Shriver Hall, 3400 N. Charles St. Tickets are $17 and $33. Call 410-516-7164 or go to shriverconcerts.org.
'black music': new boundaries?
In the pop music world, black music is getting harder to define. See article in today's You & Arts & Entertainment section.
