University of Colorado at Colorado Springs voice professor Haleh Abghari died Aug. 7 in a fatal stabbing that police are investigating as a homicide.
Abghari, 54, taught voice, music ensembles, ethnomusicology, and collaborations with theater, according to local news reports. Tragically, she also provided support to students following the on-campus murder of music student Sam Knopp in February this year.
A native of Iran, Abghari joined the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs in 2015 as head of the voice program in the Department of Visual and Performing Arts. Earlier in her career, she performed with the New York New Music Ensemble at New York’s Merkin Hall, and at venues as varied as San Francisco MoMA, Montalvo Arts Center in Saratoga, Calif., and the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York. She was also awarded a Fulbright Scholar Grant to study the vocal music of György Kurtág in Budapest.
The official cause of Abghari’s death will be determined by the El Paso County Coroner’s Office. No suspects have yet been arrested, and the Colorado Springs Police Department asks that anyone with information related to the case contact them at (719) 444-7000.
