Marian Leighton Levy ’70 wandered the country in pursuit of the heart and soul of Americana music, a never-intended-to-make-a-living seat-of-the-pants operation that led to big 2009 Grammy wins for her independent record label.

Marian Leighton Levy ’70 and her very well behaved Dandie Dinmont terrier, Hairry, greeted me on the portico of their Newburyport, Mass., Georgian-period home. In the excitement of learning more about her dog (Hairry was named after Harry Potter and his breed after a character in Sir Walter Scott’s novel “Guy Mannering”), gawking at her beautifully restored 1777 house, and getting a quick tour of her Kindle, Amazon’s new wireless reading device, I completely forgot to congratulate her.