Welcoming Tad Gray: A Letter from Our New Board President

We are very excited to announce the election of Tad Gray as president of Fifth House Ensemble’s board of directors!

Tad received a music degree from the University of Colorado and enjoyed further musical studies at Aspen, Banff, and Yale. After earning an MBA from the Wharton School, he served in leadership and business development roles in corporate banking, derivatives, and capital markets with Bank of America and Wells Fargo. Tad is a Wealth Advisor with Buckingham Strategic Wealth and a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional. Tad is also a certified coach with training in ontological coaching from the Newfield Network. Tad lives in Wilmette with his wife, Brigitte, a violinist and teacher, and they have three children.

Here’s a letter from Tad about the vision and expertise he brings to this new role and what we look forward to accomplishing together: 

To all the fans of 5HE,

Music has always been my first love. Now, I’m honored to bring this passion, as well as my experience and energy, to serve an amazing group of people who have inspired me over the years by impacting underserved populations in our community through music and arts education.  

I was first attracted to Fifth House Ensemble because I saw them redefining what it means to be a musician in today’s world. They were talking about things I hadn’t been aware of when I was a young musician (and as a parent of two additional young adult musicians, I was very curious about what this fresh perceptive might mean for them). 

Salon concert: Tad, right, performs with his wife Brigitte, left, alongside members of Fifth House Ensemble

As I’ve come to know everyone in the ensemble and see them in action, I see a much deeper redefining going on by asking the question: what does it mean to be an artist of social impact? Look around and we see distractedness and disconnection to the point of suffering and despair. People don’t feel heard and our listening muscles have atrophied. Music opens the possibility of focus, deep listening, connection, and healing. Music invites us to hear and to listen in ways that strengthen our ability to have meaningful and crucial conversations.   

“Music opens the possibility of focus, deep listening, connection, and healing.”

To me, the role of the president and the board is to support the ambitious vision of the ensemble. My diverse background provides a unique perspective from which to listen and ask questions. I hope to be the sounding board Melissa, Dan, and the rest of the team needs to realize the impact they want to achieve.

Tad gives a professional development lecture at Fifth House Ensemble’s Fresh Inc Festival

I’m fortunate to bring experiences which are relevant to the next chapter of Fifth House’s growth. These include business and leadership roles complemented by training and practice as a leadership coach. As a classically trained musician, I’m deeply curious about the practical role of music in society. In my professional work as a wealth manager, I help people think about their charitable giving and helping the causes they care deeply about. Through music-making and education, the artists of Fifth House Ensemble strive to help people cultivate better versions of themselves. It gives me great satisfaction when I can do the same for them through conversations about business development, team building, finance, and leadership.

I’m grateful to former president Bill Bein for his continued leadership as vice president, the entire board for their insight and guidance, and as always, our supporters and collaborators. Without each of you, none of what we do would be possible! Every audience member and student opens our ears, hearts, and minds, adding their voices to make this joyful noise. 

 “Through music-making and education, the artists of Fifth House Ensemble strive to help people cultivate better versions of themselves. It gives me great satisfaction when I can do the same for them through conversations about business development, team building, finance, and leadership.”

I’m truly inspired to watch the members of Fifth House Ensemble design and present artistic and educational programming which seeks to fulfill the highest calling of music and art. It’s a delight to support the incredible musicians and teaching artists, and the talented and dedicated staff – each one an inspiring and visionary leader. 

Thank you again, and I look forward to seeing you all this season!

Tad Gray

As we welcome Tad into this new leadership role, please join us in thanking Bill Bein, who is transitioning from his role as board president to vice president. We would also like to thank Ken Robinson, who is transitioning off the board this month, after having served as both president and vice president in previous seasons. 

We’re looking forward to sharing this next step of our journey with you – stay tuned to learn about this season’s projects and partners, as we prepare to launch our new website this month!