Polisi has led the Julliard School, the nation's most prestigious music academy, for more than two decades.

Polisi caught the musical bug from his father who was a bassoonist in the New York Philharmonic. He studied bassoon from his father and even studied for a year at the Conservatoire de Paris with Maurice Allard for a year, but he seemed to be on a bit of a different track from his father, studying at UConn and receiving his M.A. from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts. Yet music trumped his budding interest in international relations, and Polisi earned a graduate degree and PhD from Yale in music. Directly after graduating from Yale he became an executive officer for the Yale School of Music. Eventually he left his alma mater to become a dean at the Manhattan School of Music and the University of Cincinnati's conservatory before coming to Julliard, where he's been ever since. One of his biggest projects has been the Julliard Residence Hall, and he's even put his international relations background to good use, writing a book The Artist as Citizen, which discusses classical music's relationship with society at large. And he hasn't forgotten his bassoon—once in a while he will perform with the Julliard Orchestra. [Image via Getty]