The SLSO’s decision to make a major capital investment in its beloved Powell Hall fulfills a decades-long dream. Fortunately for the St. Louis community, philanthropist and arts leader Emily Rauh Pulitzer answered the call to guide the legacy project as Chair of the SLSO’s Powell Hall Task Force in 2016.
Since her arrival in St. Louis in 1964, Emily Rauh Pulitzer has been shaping the cultural landscape of the city. Her work in leading the Powell Hall project is a capstone of 60 years of dedication, service, and leadership.
Emily and her late husband, Joseph Pulitzer, Jr. have been deeply engaged in the life of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, continuing the Pulitzer family’s affiliation that spans more than a century. Joseph’s father served on the SLSO Board of Trustees from 1910 to 1940, and Joseph served for a total of 16 years. Emily has been a Trustee since 1994 and is the current secretary of the Board. Together, Emily and Joseph represent more than 45 years of service on the SLSO’s Board.
From the time Joseph returned to St. Louis after graduating college until his death, he was engaged with the SLSO and its leaders, musicians, and conductors. His love of music led him to attend concerts regularly until shortly before his death in 1993. Beyond Emily and Joseph’s shared passion and dedication to the SLSO, their leadership, service, and generosity have transformed the Saint Louis Art Museum and the Harvard Art Museums with remarkable gifts of art and endowments.
In 2001, the Pulitzer Arts Foundation opened its doors in St. Louis’ Grand Center neighborhood, just down the street from Powell Hall. Fulfilling Emily’s vision to create a unique environment to unite art, architecture, and the performing arts, architect Tadao Ando’s design and site-specific works by artists Richard Serra and Ellsworth Kelly have become a magical destination.
In 2023, the SLSO named the Music Director chair in honor of Joseph and Emily Rauh Pulitzer, in recognition of their extraordinary service, leadership, and generosity.
“I am humbled and honored to serve as The Joseph and Emily Rauh Pulitzer Music Director of the SLSO,” says Music Director Stéphane Denève. “It is such a delight to lead this wonderful orchestra, and especially gratifying to carry a title that embodies such a remarkable history of leadership and love for the SLSO.”