Friends who knew Dr. Peter Bagley remember him as always dedicating his time to teaching and mentoring. 

"Whether it was at class time, or whether it was just interaction and talking about life,” Director of Music and Arts at Asylum Hill Congregational Church Jack Pott said. 

The way that Dr. Bagley led a choir is recounted as a well-oiled machine. 

“It was sort of a miracle seeing one person putting this all together,” UConn Head of the School of Fine Arts Music Department Eric Rice said. 

Dr. Bagley was nationally and internationally known for his talents but spent almost the entirety of his career at UConn. He was employed for about 30 years, 20 of which he served in the music department as a choral director and teacher. 

“He was my first choral conductor, he was the first black male teacher I ever had,” Director of Equity, Belonging and Student Life at Yale University School of Music Dr. Albert Lee said. 

As a conductor, Dr. Bagley was a trailblazer for black artists in the field. In the late 1980s, he was one of only a few choral directors of color in similar positions across the country. 

“Dr. Bagley was a man of the highest musical standard. He was rigorous in his defense of those standards, he was tactile in the way he required discipline of his students to reach those standards, but it was never in service of anything but the music,” Dr. Lee said. 

Dr. Albert Lee studied under Dr. Bagley in the mid 1990s and said Dr. Bagley always ran a tight ship, with the goal that there is always music to be made. 

“For me what it allowed me to do, is never allow any other circumstance to get in the way of my art,” Dr. Lee said. 

Dr. Bagley shared his passion and talents with hundreds of students through the decades both in Connecticut and out-of-state. 

“What impressed me most about his expertise, is there was so much knowledge at his fingertips in an instant,” Pott said. 

Pott was a graduate assistant to Dr. Bagley in the 1980s and saw first-hand the countless hours he put into making sure the choir was in sync. Pott describes Dr. Bagley as being a father figure to many. 

“He was there to talk, he was there to listen,” Pott said. 

Dr. Bagley continued listening for years after students graduated. 

“He would come to things and be there, and be that smile in the audience, and always very honest with you about what went well, and what didn’t go well. Always still that teacher,” Pott explained. 

Dr. Bagley passed away in January at 88-years-old. 

The UConn School of Fine Art said in a statement:

"At UConn he developed our choral program into the model of musical excellence that it remains today. Through his inspiring mentorship of numerous cohorts of young conductors and singers, many of whom have gone on to become prominent musical leaders in their own right, in Connecticut and beyond, he created a powerful legacy of exacting standards and musical vision."

"Those of us fortunate enough to have experienced the performances of Mozart's Requiem that he brought to fruition in just a few days after the attacks of 9/11, a time of paralyzed shock for so many, will remember the galvanizing effect of this life-affirming response to death and destruction: students, faculty, and staff rallied around a common purpose, and offered at least a glimmer of solace and hope to audiences across the state. It was a memorable testament not only to Dr. Bagley's sheer force of personality, but to the power of the art form and social vision to which he devoted his life. He will be sorely missed."

For many alumni, the news of Dr. Bagley’s passing was a moment to reflect on the fortune of once being in his presence. 

“While sadness is a part of this, my level of gratitude goes far beyond the sadness, I am eternally grateful to this man,” Dr. Lee said.