Cherry L. Emerson; arts patron cofounded an engineering firm

He had a passion for music. But his future lay elsewhere, a young Cherry L. Emerson was advised by his piano teacher. And the teacher was right, Mr. Emerson, a first-rate raconteur, would later delight in telling his friends.

The teenager turned to engineering and eventually held patents for such diverse items as the first system for air-roasting peanuts and state-of-the-art equipment for processing human blood. He co founded a chemical engineering firm in the Bay State that grew to 700 workers and became a global manufacturer of many products, including materials for the heat shields that protected the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Apollo capsules.

In retirement, Mr. Emerson returned to his early passion for music, and through millions of dollars in donations and long hours in consulting and organizing, helped ensure that generations of players had futures in music.

Mr. Emerson, cofounder of Emerson & Cuming and a leading benefactor for the fine arts and engineering departments of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Emory University in Atlanta, died at his home in Atlanta on April 29 . Mr. Emerson, who also had a home in Duxbury, was 90.

"This man was truly a gift to humanity," said Ellen T. Harris , a professor of music at MIT who worked closely with Mr. Emerson when the university renovated and expanded its music library. "He was able to motivate people in so many different ways."

Born in Charlotte, N.C., and raised in Atlanta, Cherry Logan Emerson Jr. was a product of a marriage of the arts and sciences. He was the grandson of William Henry Emerson , founder of Georgia Tech's chemistry department, and the son of Cherry Logan Emerson Sr., dean of Georgia Tech's School of Engineering. His mother, Sina White Emerson, was a talented pianist.

He knew his multiplication tables before spending a day in school. He could do calculus before he entered high school.

When he was 11, he borrowed $3 from his mother to buy bottles of Coca-Cola, which he iced and resold at a profit to construction workers in his neighborhood. From that initial investment, he amassed $685.02 after three summers of selling soda -- enough to buy a used Steinway grand piano.

He studied piano for four years with the noted maestro Alfredo Barili , a concert pianist who as a child had played for Brahms and Liszt.

In a 1998 interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Mr. Emerson recounted Barili's unvarnished verdict on his playing abilities: "He advised me not to consider a career in music because I wasn't good enough. And he was absolutely right."

Mr. Emerson earned bachelor's and master's degrees from Emory and then came to MIT, where his mentor was Warren K. Lewis , a professor and a leader in the emerging field of chemical engineering. In addition to advising the graduate student, Lewis opened his home as a place to stay.

Much of Mr. Emerson's free time was spent in a masterpiece melding of high art and high science: Symphony Hall.

"It is, to this day, the best music hall in this world. And I've heard hundreds of them," he told an MIT publication in 1999, describing the venue's acoustics as designed by Harvard physicist Wallace Clement Sabine .

But Symphony Hall held a special place in his heart for another reason.

His first date with his future wife, Mary Lewis, the professor's daughter, took place in the second balcony, where they listened to Beethoven's Second Piano Concerto, he said.

After receiving a master's in chemical engineering from MIT in 1941, Mr. Emerson worked for Monsanto Chemical in Everett.

In 1948, Mr. Emerson and a colleague, William Cuming , formed a consulting firm, Emerson & Cuming, which became one of the first to establish an essential niche in the emerging electronics industry: using epoxy resins, solvents, and coatings to protect components and make them more efficient. The firm also began developing applications for microwave technologies.

The company expanded to Canton and Billerica and then overseas to Belgium, England, and Japan.

In 1978, the partners sold it to W.R. Grace & Co . Mr. Emerson, who had lived in Newton and Duxbury, retired in 1985 and returned to Georgia. The family kept the Duxbury home for summer visits.

In a reprise of his earlier ambition, he turned to music, but rather than playing himself, he worked to help others.

Recipients of his largesse recalled his generosity of not only money, but also his gifts of time, expertise, and friendship.

"He was one of the most gracious of Southern gentlemen, always with the warmest possible smile, always wanting to know how others were doing," said David Deveau , a concert pianist and senior lecturer at MIT.

Mr. Emerson worked with Deveau as a leading benefactor of the Rockport Chamber Music Festival , an annual series of concerts in June. He was a driving force in the festival's efforts to raise funds for a new concert hall and steered organizers toward engaging the talents of world-renowned acoustic architect R. Lawrence Kirkegaard , said Deveau, artistic director of the festival.

Organizers hope to start construction on the hall in January.

Once MIT had completed its new music library in 1996, officials suggested it be named after Mr. Emerson; however, he insisted they call it the Rosalind Denny Lewis Library , after his mother-in-law.

"What he remembered was how much music meant to her and how music was such an important part of their conversations," said Harris, a noted soprano and author.

Among his other contributions to MIT, Mr. Emerson endowed a fellowship that provides private lessons from leading chamber musicians for select students.

At Emory, he funded numerous sports, music, and engineering programs and spearheaded development of a concert hall in the performing arts center. The Cherry Logan Emerson Concert Hall opened in 2003.

His belief in the importance of integrity went hand in hand with his love of a good laugh and story, friends say.

"Without question, he was one of the best raconteurs that I've ever known," Deveau said. "He could tell you the same story five, six, or seven times, and each time he'd find some detail or details to keep you interested, keep you fascinated."

His last days were spent with his family and listening to his beloved music, said his daughter, Laura Emerson Dunn of Oakland, Calif.

"Mozart played on the Bose during his final hours," she wrote in an e-mail

In addition to his wife and daughter, Mr. Emerson leaves two other daughters, Mary Emerson-Smith of Atlantic Beach, Fla., and Katharine of Atlanta; three sons, William of Holden, Warren of Arlington, Va., and Ned of Holliston; 11 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held May 26 in Atlanta.