Dr. Randolph "Randy" Foy

For 15 years (1998-2013), Dr. Randolph “Randy” Foy was the reserved yet determined force who led the town-and-gown orchestras of NC State University to new heights. He died on May 23, 2018 after battling a neurological illness for several years. As noted in the program to honor his retirement in 2013, Randy was committed to “programming contemporary music, presenting concerts in a thematic context and connecting orchestral repertoire to larger ideas in creative ways.”
Dr. Foy was a teaching professor of music and conductor of the orchestras of NC State, the Raleigh Civic Symphony and the Raleigh Civic Chamber Orchestra. He held degrees from Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the University of Iowa in organ and keyboards, and a doctorate in conducting from Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University. His successor, Dr. Peter Askim, reflects on Fay’s impact at NC State: “Randy Fay’s legacy of innovative programming, his passion for education and his deep dedication to musicians and audiences alike made him dearly beloved by all. His joy in music making and discovery lives on in the wonderful orchestras he nurtured.”

Among his extensive list of teaching achievements, Dr. Foy was a founding faculty member of the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, and for 29 summers, he taught and conducted at the North Carolina Governor’s School in Winston-Salem, a summer program for gifted high school students.