A Very Personal Gift Creates New Home for MSU Oboists

Jeanne Maguire cuts the ribbon on the brand new Jeanne Maguire Oboe Reed Room made possible by a thoughtful wedding anniversary gift from her husband Joe.

For Joe and Jeanne Maguire, music has always been woven into the fabric of their lives. Now, a gift celebrating their wedding anniversary is helping shape the student experience for future generations of Michigan State University oboists.

Joe and Jeanne have over 40 years of giving history to MSU, including a major gift that supported the Billman Music Pavilion capital campaign, but their most recent gift was special. Joe decided to financially support the renovation of rooms 34 and 35 in the Music Practice Building, transforming the space into what is now officially known as the Jeanne Maguire Oboe Reed Room.

The gift honors Jeanne’s lifelong connection to the oboe by creating a dedicated space where students can make reeds, learn from one another and build community. The idea came to Joe a few years ago after he toured College of Music facilities during the pavilion project.

“As a contributor, I was given a tour of the entire project — including the basement of the original Music Building. I was struck by the inefficiency of having two small oboe reed rooms separated by a block wall. The rooms needed to be combined and brightened up,” said Joe, the president and CEO of Wolverine Development Corporation, a family-owned commercial real estate investment firm in operation in Michigan since 1924.

Students in one of two very small reed rooms demonstrate the cramped space they dealt with prior to the complete overhaul of the spaces into one larger room thanks to the gift from Joe and Jeanne Maguire.

Jeanne was an oboe and piano prodigy. She studied at the Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins University, and she has remained dedicated to supporting the performing arts programs and artists. Joe noted that given her background, Jeanne “has particular empathy for the demands on double-reed instrumentalists in making and shaping their own reeds.”

At its core, the renovation is about students. MSU Associate Professor of Oboe Nermis Mieses explained that students who come to East Lansing from other institutions have commented on the positive effects of having a dedicated reed-making space.

“The Maguire’s not only renovated the reed room but contributed to supplementing our equipment with additional gouging machines and shaper-tips,” she said. “This reed room is basically a lab space, and having a variety of these tools means that the students can engage in research and experiments for the benefit of their development in the oboe.”

Joe and Jeanne Maguire stand near a thank you sign presented by MSU oboe students in the new reed-making space they funded. The new space is named in honor of Jeanne, an accomplished oboist.

Mieses has already seen better collaboration among the students because of their newfound ability to work simultaneously unlike before when space was limited. Students frequently describe the room as their home base, spending hours there each day whether making reeds or simply connecting with classmates.

That sense of community was on display when Joe and Jeanne visited the oboe studio in September. To thank them for their generosity, the entire oboe studio performed, and the experience made an already meaningful gift from Joe even more personal.

“We’re starting to think outside the box for our anniversary gifts to each other, and Joe hit it out of the park with this one,” she said. “He knows that the oboe was a big part of my past.”

Years after stepping away from the instrument herself, Jeanne said the room has helped her maintain a connection to a cherished part of her life.

What was once two very small rooms is now one longer and brighter Jeanne Maguire Oboe Reed Room. With more shelves and supplies, it is a popular work and community space for MSU oboists.

“Gifting my reed supplies and passing my oboe on to another person, as I did several years ago, was a sad acknowledgement that those days are over for me. This gift was a touching way to allow me to still feel connected to my instrument,” Jeanne said. “And for Nermis to coordinate the students to serenade us as a thank you was the icing on the cake! I had never experienced a 15 person ‘oboe choir’ before. Having them all do this for us was really sweet.”

Jeanne also understands the unique challenges faced by double-reed musicians, who spend countless hours crafting and adjusting reeds in addition to practicing their instrument.

“Being a double reed major can be very isolating given the amount of time spent alone soaking cane, tying reeds and scraping them to perfection in a dorm room, combined with the necessary solitary practice time to keep the embouchure strong,” she said. “Having a place to hang with fellow students to do this, not to mention gain insight from the more advanced on how to perfect the process, would have been a godsend for me back in my college days. I’m so glad this now exists on the campus for the students.”

Students say the new space has already changed the way the studio works together.

“The new reed room has greatly strengthened our oboe studio by creating a shared workspace that facilitates collaboration and community building. Exchanging ideas and providing feedback is much easier to do in one room as opposed to two separate rooms,” said John DeBiase, a teaching assistant pursuing his DMA in Oboe Performance.

For Joe, the gift ultimately reflects a simple belief in the value of music and the opportunities it creates for others.

“Music and musical ensembles were a big part of our formative years, especially for Jeanne. We love doing our small part to help others make music,” he said.

What Joe and Jeanne Maguire have done feels more than a small part to the students. The impact of the support can already be felt inside the walls of the Jeanne Maguire Oboe Reed Room.

“The reed room is my favorite place to be at MSU,” said oboe master’s student Elli Ji. “Whether we’re laughing together or offering support to each other, the reed room has played an essential role in the close bond the studio has with each other.”