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This fall, the first Sher Distinguished Musician Scholarship winner will walk the halls of Imig Music Building.

Incoming freshman Kip Zimmerman is the first CU-Boulder student to receive the award, donated by John J. and Anna Sie to honor the work of former College of Music dean and current Professor Emeritus Daniel Sher and his wife, Boyce.

The Sie Foundation last year committed $2 million to create the scholarship fund, which will provide a full ride scholarship and living expenses for one incoming undergraduate or graduate music major per year, adding up to almost $50,000.

Zimmerman, an oboe performance major from Tucson, Ariz., says it’s an honor to receive the inaugural Sher scholarship. “I feel very fortunate, indeed, to have been selected from such a large pool of doubtlessly brilliant and hardworking musicians,” he says. “The scholarship is a gift, and I will do my best to use it fully and intelligently.”

Zimmerman comes to CU-Boulder with more than 10 years’ musical experience under his belt. He’s a member of the Tucson Philharmonia Youth Orchestra and the University of Arizona High School Honor Wind Quintet. Zimmerman will spend his summer touring China with the National Youth Orchestra.

He says it was an easy choice to come to Boulder. “It had an excellent oboe faculty. The city is beautiful, too. I fell in love with it when I visited in the summer of 2014.”

Zimmerman was also drawn to CU-Boulder by the strong engineering program and was considering a double major, but in the end decided to devote his energy to music.

Faculty from the six applied music area nominated one prospective student each for the award. Zimmerman was selected based on his musical and academic abilities—along with, according to Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies Jim Austin, his “ability to inspire” other music students.

Read more about the Daniel and Boyce Sher Distinguished Musician Scholarship.