The Talent and Humanity of Baritone Rodney Gilfry

Thank you for “One Life, Two Worlds” (by James Ricci, Sept. 5), about baritone Rodney Gilfry. As one of his former professors at Cal State Fullerton, I could have predicted that he would be the kind of devoted parent and husband Ricci describes.

Gilfry’s enormous talent was obvious when he was a student in my piano classes. His steadfast determination as he struggled to get his long legs under the piano and his efforts to make his huge hands play gave me an early notion of his strong will to succeed.

The article correctly implied that those who achieve or retain a certain level of humanity have a better chance of succeeding in the fierce world of professional music.

Martha Baker-Jordan

Placentia