Philip Fath, principal clarinet of the San Francisco Opera and Symphony, beloved family man, and treasured community musician of Mill Valley, California, passed away peacefully on July 5, 2024 at the age of 95. He had been a member of Local 802 since 1948.

Phil, an extraordinarily skilled musician, will be remembered for his remarkable career in music, commitment to friends, family and community, his infectious laugh and generous nature, unique fashion sense, and his really corny jokes.

Phil’s classical musical career was vast and long. Born to Jewish Russian immigrants Louis and Rose Fet, Phil grew up in Brooklyn, New York with his two brothers and a sister. His father was a shoe factory worker and a dedicated leftwing union organizer whose union held many big band and jazz performances, introducing his children to music and political activism at an early age. Music was a big part of family life. Phil’s extraordinary musical ability was recognized early and would ultimately steer him out of the tough Brooklyn immigrant experience of his childhood into a life of art, music and literature.

In 1943, in the midst of World War II, Phil was accepted to the High School of Music and Art, a transformative experience that advanced his world view and personal perspectives. Pursuing a professional career, he attended the Manhattan School of Music, where he received the First Prize Instrumental Award. In 1949 he was hired to tour the United States with the American Ballet Theatre Orchestra. While in New York, he performed for the Jewish Radio Station WEVD.

In 1951, Phil was drafted to serve in the Korean War. With his clarinet under his arm, he headed to basic training in Massachusetts. During his induction interview, Phil, true to his political beliefs, insisted he would “not go to Korea and kill Koreans!” Phil served his tour of duty as an Army musician stationed at Governor’s Island, near the Statue of Liberty. While the war raged, Phil amazed audiences at Carnegie Hall. Not without guilt at this strange twist of fate, Phil honored his good fortune and did not squander his opportunity to grow as an artist. He became the first clarinetist in New York history to give a solo performance at Carnegie Recital Hall. The next day the New York Times described Phil as “a musician of great promise.”

After a private audition with the great conductor George Szell, Phil was invited to join the legendary Cleveland Orchestra as Assistant Principal Clarinet in 1953, an almost unthinkable honor for such a young musician.

In 1954 Phil and his sweetheart, Iris Yarkin, a school teacher from Jamaica, Queens, married in a lovely synagogue on Morningside Drive on the Upper West Side and moved to Cleveland. While with the Cleveland Orchestra Phil was invited to play for conductor Enrique Jordá of the San Francisco Symphony who offered him the position of Principal Clarinet of the Symphony (1956-1980) and San Francisco Opera Orchestra (1957-2001). With no small measure of enthusiasm, Iris and Phil left for San Francisco.

“Phil was a very humble and profound musician,” said his friend, Principal Violist of the Marin Symphony Jenny Douglas. “I would call him a musician’s musician. He embodied a lot of qualities that musicians would say are old school, very true to the score. He had no ego when he played. Every note he played was in service to the music and the composer and to sharing the music. And that’s a lovely quality. He was a masterful clarinetist. He had great technique and sound.”

Phil’s musical expertise earned him faculty positions in the music departments of Stanford University, University of California at Berkeley, San Francisco State University, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and Dominican College.

His teaching technique was somewhat untraditional. It was less about talk and more about playing. Vicky Ehrlich, San Francisco Opera cellist, describes it this way: “The thing about playing with Phil is, he doesn’t want to sit there and talk like conductors and tell you all about the music and discuss the fine points. He would play and you would hear what needed to be done. He was not dominating, he was inspiring by his beautiful playing, that’s what you use. You heard that and you’re like, oh, yeah, this is the way we’re going to do it. That’s the way it’s going to be. It’s going to be great.”

After living in the Marina district of San Francisco, Phil and Iris moved to the bucolic town of Mill Valley in Marin County in 1962. They found their place in Mill Valley, raising their family there. Forever in awe of the area’s natural beauty, they also relished living in a highly cultured community. Phil’s friends included fellow musicians with whom he commuted into the city, but at the end of the day home is where he wanted to be. Implementing his own brand of diplomacy, Phil had a way of cutting tension and moving things along, even in difficult situations. Vicky Ehrlich tells of the time when a certain conductor kept the orchestra far too long: “The guy wastes our time for three hours. Opera rehearsals are long. Three hours, three and a half hours. That’s longer than symphony rehearsals… So we’re tired, we’re bored, we’re sick of this guy, and the conductor, instead of letting us go, says, ‘Now is there anything anybody wants to go over?’ And Phil says, ‘the Golden Gate Bridge!’”

Principal Bassoon of the San Francisco Opera and Ballet Rufus Olivier sat next to Phil for decades. “Phil was never arrogant, but I think he believed in justice. He was definitely a man of the people. And on injustice, he would say something, you know? He had a way of talking to the conductors and people. And if he wanted to help you do something he would suggest things, ‘Oh, you might want to try and just put it out there.’ It was never like, ‘I’m your mentor and you do what I say.’ It was just little suggestions here and there, but you were always his equal.”

“Dad expected people to do the right thing,” said Phil’s daughters — Mara, an artist and rare book dealer, and Josepha, a professional violinist. “He had faith in his own perceptions. When it came to work, he knew what was best. Sometimes he broke rules within the confines of classical music, but he was always striving to make it better, and he had absolute confidence in his ability.” About his outlook on life, they said “Dad was the ultimate optimist.”

After Phil retired from the San Francisco Opera Orchestra in 2001, he turned his attention to performances with Josepha, with the creation of their first chamber music ensemble, “Josepha Fath, Dad, and Friends.” In 1998 Phil and Josepha were awarded Mill Valley’s Milley Award for Creative Achievement in Musical Arts. The group, later renamed the Fath Chamber Players, performed with local musical luminaries.

Phil’s good humor and joke telling became a prominent fixture in his live performances. He would often explode into laughter in anticipation of the punch line, well before his delivery. This odd collision of traditional classical music melded with comedy warmed the audience and invited intimacy.

Jenny Douglas recalled, “Phil loved the Book Depot. He loved the Mill Valley Market and the Throckmorton Theatre. That was his second home, for sure.”

Theatre owner Lucy Mercer described Phil’s influence as extraordinary. “Phil brought enormous talent and beauty to the enjoyment of his audiences. His humor and joy made him instant friends with many who crossed his path.”

In his 2019 oral history, conducted by the Mill Valley Historical Society, Phil reflected on the contentment of having fulfilled his life’s ambitions, but added that he wasn’t done. “I had an artistic career that was so fulfilling. I can’t believe it myself. Now that’s behind me. I’m happy, proud, I feel good about it, and now it’s another time, and my goal is to be as good as I can be to my two children, and to everybody… I’m trying to be a mensch.”

Phil fully succeeded in his efforts. May he rest in peace, knowing his was a life well lived.

Phil was preceded in death by Iris Fath, his beloved wife of 62 years. He is survived by his devoted daughters Josepha Fath and husband William Harvey, and Mara Fath and partner Steven Hill.

In lieu of flowers or gifts, the family requests those who wish to honor Phil’s legacy to please send donations to 142 Throckmorton Theatre.

Obituary submitted by Philip Fath’s daughters, Josepha and Mara Fath.