List of Sinfonians

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search
 This article needs additional citations for verification.
Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2008)

This is a list of members of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity who have achieved recognition in their respective fields, including (but not limited to) education, film, industry, literature, music, philanthropy, public service, radio, science, and television. While many of these names are easily recognizable, other names that have faded from common knowledge are included to reflect the diversity of Sinfonia's membership, the breadth of its history, and the far-reaching influence of its membership on the American musical experience.

In determining the classification for each Sinfonian listed here, an attempt was made to classify the individual based on what he is most known for. In some cases, a person such as Aaron Copland may be known equally as a conductor and a composer. In other cases, an individual such as Branford Marsalis may be known equally as a jazz musician and a television personality.

If known, the name of the initiating chapter and the year of initiation is included. Please note that in the case of some early honorary members (particularly those elected to honorary membership by the Alpha Chapter at the New England Conservatory in 1917) were simply elected to honorary membership and were not required to participate in the initiation process that has evolved in the fraternity since that time. Alpha Alpha is the chapter designation for National Honorary members of the Fraternity, some of whom may also be members of other chapters.

This list also makes note of Sinfonians who have received special honors at the national and international levels, further demonstrating their contributions to music in America, and to the world. As of 2008, only Bo Diddley also held membership in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Among Sinfonia's notable members are two honorary Knights of the British Empire, Pulitzer Prize winners, and a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. Information is also included on distinguished members who have received special honors from the Fraternity itself.

Contents

[edit] Architects

  • Turpin Bannister, 1904–1982 (Nu 1923; American architect & architectural historian

[edit] "Big Band" Leaders

  • Les Brown, 1912–2001 (Founder of "Les Brown and the Band of Renown")
  • Buddy Morrow, 1919–present (Rho Tau Honorary 1968; Conductor of the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra)

[edit] Businessmen & Philanthropists

Henry Lee Higginson, Alpha Honorary 1916, portrait by John Singer Sargent, 1903, original hangs at Barker Center, Harvard U. and a copy by Sargent's students hangs in Symphony Hall, Boston
Andrew Carnegie, c. 1913; Alpha Honorary 1917.
A 1954 U.S. stamp featuring George Eastman.

[edit] Cellists

Statue of Pablo Casals at Montserrat, Spain. (Photo by Wikipedia user Mdd4696

[edit] Comedians

[edit] Composers

  • Samuel Adler, 1928–present (Gamma Theta Honorary 1960; German-born)
  • Leroy Anderson, 1908–1975* (Composer, noted for "Bugler's Holiday", "Syncopated Clock", and the holiday classic "Sleigh Ride")
  • Percy Lee Atherton, 1871–1944 (Alpha Honorary 1916)
Samuel Barber, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1944
  • Samuel Barber, 1910–1981 p (Known for compositions Adagio for Strings and Knoxville: Summer of 1915)
  • Warren Barker, 1923–2006 (Beta Psi 1942; Wrote theme songs for Bewitched, 77 Sunset Strip, That Girl, and the Donny and Marie Osmond Show)
  • Robert Russell Bennett, 1894–1981 (composer, arranger, orchestrator)
  • Warren F. Benson, 1924–2005 (Epsilon Honorary 1946; Composer)
  • Jean Berger, 1909–2002 (Theta Kappa Honorary 1970)
  • Felix Borowski, 1872–1956 (Alpha Honorary 1917, Alpha Alpha 1920; British/American composer and teacher)
  • Charles Wakefield Cadman, 1881–1946 (Alpha Alpha 1915; Composer)
  • John Alden Carpenter, 1876–1951 (Alpha Honorary 1917; noted for 1914 work Adventures in a Perambulator)
  • Roland Carter (composer, conductor, and pianist)
George W. Chadwick, Second honorary member of the Alpha Chapter at the New England Conservatory. Elected to national honorary membership at the 1909 national convention in Syracuse, New York
Percy Grainger, Alpha Honorary 1917, Beta Omicron Honorary 1939.
  • Percy A. Grainger, 1882–1961 (Alpha Honorary 1917, Beta Omicron Honorary 1939; Australian-born pianist, champion of the saxophone & concert band)
  • Donald Grantham, 1947–present (Rho Tau Honorary 1995)
  • Ferde Grofe, 1892–1972 (Beta Epsilon Honorary 1939, noted for "Grand Canyon Suite")
  • Dave Grusin, 1934–present l (Beta Chi 1956; composer and producer; known for composing theme songs of Maude, Good Times, Baretta, and St. Elsewhere)
  • Howard Hanson, 1896–1981 p l (Alpha Nu Honorary 1928, Alpha Alpha 1930; Director of the Eastman School of Music, 1924–1964; Recipient of the 1944 Pulitzer Prize for his Symphony No. 2; Known for the choral work Song of Democracy, based on Walt Whitman poem of the same name)
  • Roy Harris, 1898–1979 (Composer)
  • Ross Hastings, 1915–1991 (Alpha Alpha 1977; Known for setting of "Sinfonian Prayer" that first appeared in the 1972 edition of "Sinfonia Songs")
  • Victor Herbert, 1859–1924 (Alpha Alpha 1913, Tin Pan Alley composer; Co-founder & vice-president of ASCAP)
  • Edward Burlingame Hill, 1872–1960 (Composer; teacher of Leonard Bernstein and Walter Piston; Harvard music faculty, 1908–1940)
  • Moses Hogan, 1957–2003 (Arranger of African-American spirituals; Founder of Moses Hogan Chorale and Moses Hogan Singers)
  • Alan Hovhaness, 1911–2000 (composer)
  • David Holsinger, 1945–present (Beta Mu 1964)
Rupert Hughes, Alpha Honorary 1917
Horatio Parker, Alpha Honorary 1916.
  • Horatio Parker (Alpha Honorary 1916(?); Teacher, Member of "Boston Six")
  • Krzysztof Penderecki (Epsilon Iota Honorary 1975; Composer)
  • Vincent Persichetti, 1915–1987 (Delta Eta Honorary 1961; Composer)
  • Lloyd Pfautch (Director, Dallas Civic Chorale)
  • Daniel Pinkham, 1923–2006 (Alpha Honorary 1959; Composer)
  • William Presser, 1916–2004 (Rho Tau Honorary)
  • Arthur Pryor (Composer, Band Director, Soloist with the Sousa Band)
  • Buryl Red (Gamma Iota 1954; Executive Producer of Silver Burdett's educational music programs)
  • Alfred Reed, 1921–2005 (Gamma Iota 1954; Conductor, Baylor Symphony Orchestra; Developed repertoire material for schools; Director of the Music Industry Program at the University of Miami)
  • Nelson S. Riddle, Jr., 1921–1985 (Bandleader, Arranger, Orchestrator; Noted for the soundtrack of the 1960s Batman television series and movie)
  • George Rochberg, 1918–2005 (Alpha Alpha 1977)
David Rose (3rd from left) in AFRS Radio Show, c. 1946
Arnold Schoenberg, Alpha Epsilon Honorary 1935
  • Arnold Schoenberg, 1874–1951 (Alpha Epsilon Honorary 1935, developed the twelve-tone technique of composition)
  • Gunther Schuller, 1925–present p (Horn Player; President, New England Conservatory of Music, 1967–1977)
  • David Stanley Smith, 1877–1949 (Alpha Honorary 1917?; Conductor, New Haven Symphony Orchestra; Dean, Yale School of Music, 1920–1940)
John Philip Sousa, Alpha Xi Honorary 1925

[edit] Conductors

Cleofonte Campanini, Alpha Honorary 1917
Peter Nero.
Leopold Stokowski

[edit] Dramatists and Playwrights

  • Percy Jewett Burrell, 1877–1964 (Alpha 1899; Dramatist and Playwright; Sixth supreme president of the Fraternity, 1907–1914)

[edit] Educational administrators

Albert Ross Hill as President of the University of Missouri

[edit] Folk Singers

Burl Ives, well known for his vocal contributions to the role of Sam the Snowman.
  • Burl Ives, 1909–1995 (Portrayed Sam the Snowman in the Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer TV special and the narrator in the Star Wars film Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure)

Josh Goforth, 1981-present (Lambda Sigma ????, Bluegrass performer, known to easily sell out shows in the Appalachian region; youngest known person presently on the list)

[edit] Gospel Artists

[edit] Government Leaders

Thomas E. Dewey, who played a prominent role in the fraternity prior to his entry into public service
George B. Cortelyou, Alpha Alpha 1903
  • Oliver Ames, 1831–1895 1 (Alpha Posthumous Honorary 1917; Lieutenant Colonel in the Massachusetts Militia prior to the Civil War; Member of Massachusetts state senate; elected 1880; Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, 1883-87; Governor of Massachusetts, 1887–1890)
  • David L. Boren, 1941–present (Mu Honorary 2003; Governor of Oklahoma, 1975–1979; United States Senator, 1979–1994; Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, 1987–1995 President of the [University of Oklahoma], 1994–present)
  • George B. Cortelyou, 1862–1940 (Alpha Alpha 1903; First United States Secretary of Commerce and Labor, 1903–1904; United States Postmaster General, 1905–1907; United States Secretary of the Treasury, 1907–1909)
  • Thomas Dewey, 1902–1971 (Epsilon 1920; Governor of New York, 1943–1955; Republican nominee for President of the United States, 1944 and 1948; Author of Journey to the Far Pacific (1952) and Thomas E. Dewey on the Two Party System (1966))
Fiorello La Guardia, Beta Gamma 1941.
  • Fiorello La Guardia, 1882–1947 (Beta Gamma 1941; Congressman from New York, 1917–1919, 1923–1933; New York City Councilman, 1920–1921; Mayor of New York City, 1934–1945; Inspired the Broadway musical Fiorello!.)
  • James G. Martin, 1935–present (Gamma Kappa 1955; United States Congressman from North Carolina, 1973–1985; Governor of North Carolina, 1985–1993)
James G. Martin

[edit] Instrumentalists

Carlos Montoya

[edit] Jazz Artists

Duke Ellington
Count Basie, Mu Nu 1970.
  • Count Basie, 1904–1984 *‡ k (Mu Nu 1970; jazz musician & band leader)
  • Alvin Batiste, 1932–2007 (Mu Psi Jazz clarinetist)
  • Louie Bellson, 1924–2009 (American jazz drummer, Once married to American singer & actress Pearl Bailey, inventor of the double bass drum at 15)
  • Henry Butler, 1949–present ("Mu Psi 69"Jazz pianist)
  • Wilbur Campbell, 1926–1999 (Alpha Zeta Honorary 1957; Chicago area jazz drummer)
  • Duke Ellington, 1899–1974 *‡ f (Gamma Delta 1969; Alpha Alpha; jazz musician & band leader)
  • Bill Evans ‡ (Jazz Pianist)
  • Maynard Ferguson, 1928–2006 l (Xi Chi 1976; jazz trumpeter & band leader)
  • Donald Harrison Jr., (b. June 23, 1960, New Orleans, Louisiana) ("Mu Psi") is an American jazz saxophonist.
  • Stan Kenton, 1911–1979 (Jazz Pianist and Band Leader)
  • Chuck Mangione (Alpha Nu Honorary 1971; jazz musician & band leader)
  • Ellis Marsalis, Jr., 1934–present (jazz musician)
  • Branford Marsalis, 1960–present ("Mu Psi" jazz musician; Music Director of The Tonight Show band, 1992–1995; only Sinfonian known to perform at 1985 Live Aid concert)
  • Mike Metheny, 1949–present (Upsilon Phi 1974 Jazz trumpeter, best known for playing with the Pat Metheny Trio)
  • Buddy Rich, 1917-1987 (Jazz drummer, known as "The world's greatest drummer")
  • Carl "Doc" Severinsen, 1927–present (American pop and jazz trumpeter, best known for leading the NBC Orchestra in the Johnny Carson era)
Clark Terry performs with the Great Lakes Navy Band Jazz Ensemble
Whalum performing in a September, 2007 music festival in Nashville.

[edit] Music Critics and Editors

  • Richard Aldrich, 1863–1937 (Alpha Honorary 1917; Music critic for The New York Times, 1902–1923)
  • Olin Downes, 1886–1955 (Alpha Honorary 1917; Music Critic, Boston Post, 1906–1924, New York Times, 1924–1955; Host, Metropolitan Opera Quiz)
  • Henry Finck, 1854–1926 (Music Editor for New York Evening Post, 1881–1910)
  • Daniel E. Gawthrop, 1949–present (Composer, Music Critic for The Washington Post)
  • Scott Heisel (music editor of Alternative Press)
  • James Gibbons Huneker, 1860–1921 (Alpha 1917; Music Writer, Music Critic for the New York Sun)
  • Paul Hume, 1915–2001 (Alpha Alpha 1971; Musicologist; Music Editor, The Washington Post, 1946–1982)
  • Henry E. Krehbiel, 1854–1923 (Music Editor, New York Tribune; Musicologist)

[edit] Music Educators

Frank Heino Damrosch

[edit] Organists

  • E. Power Biggs, 1906–1977* (British-born concert organist)
  • Joseph Bonnet, 1884–1944 (Alpha Alpha Honorary 1917; French-born composer, Founded organ dept at Eastman Sch of Music, 1921)
  • Virgil Keel Fox, 1912–1980 (Concert Organist known for concerts with light shows)

[edit] Peace Activists

Tom Fox, a peace activist who was murdered during the Iraqi War.
  • Thomas W. Fox, 1951–2006 (kidnapped in November 2005 in Baghdad, leading to a widely publicized hostage crisis. His body was found in March 2006)

[edit] Percussionists

[edit] Pianists

Rudolph Ganz, elected to national honorary membership at the 1936 national convention in Chicago, claimed to be a descendant of Charlemagne
Harold Bauer
Józef Kazimierz Hofmann, Alpha Honorary 1917, as a young man at the keyboard.
  • Harold E. Bauer, 1873-1951 (Pianist)
  • Coenraad van Bos, 1875–1955 (Alpha Honorary 1917)
  • Van Cliburn, 1934–present ‡ f k l (Alpha Alpha 1958; pianist)
  • Carl Friedberg, 1872–1955 (Alpha 1917; German pianist and teacher)
  • Rudolph Ganz, 1877–1972 (New Zeta 1924, Alpha Alpha 1936; Swiss-born, claimed descendant of Charlamagne, President, Chicago Musical College, 1934–1958, Conductor, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, 1921–1927))
  • Leopold Godowsky, 1870–1938 (Polish-American concert pianist)
  • Morton Gould, 1913–1996* p k (pianist)
  • Ernest Hutcheson, 1871–1951 (Australian pianist)
  • Józef Kazimierz Hofmann, 1876–1957 (Alpha 1917; Child prodigy, Polish-American virtuoso pianist and composer)
  • André Previn, KBE, 1930–present k (pianist & conductor; appointed an honorary Knight of the Order of British Empire in 1996)
  • Roger Williams, 1924–present (Alpha Beta 1943; Concert Pianist)

[edit] Publishers

Theodore Presser, Alpha 1917, (1848–1925)
  • Clarence C. Birchard, 1866–1946 (Known for quote "We are teaching music not to make musicians but to make Americans")
  • Hal G. Davis (Publisher)
  • Leonard Feist (Beta Gamma Honorary 1958; Music publisher, copyright expert, & advocate for the music publishing industry)
  • Donald G. Hinshaw, 1934–1996 (Gamma Kappa 1953; Founded Hinshaw Music in 1975, one of nation's largest religious music publishers)
  • Neil Kjos, Jr. (Beta Gamma 1958)
  • Neil Kjos, Sr. (Alpha ___ 1930, Co-founder MidWest Band & Orchestra Clinic)
  • Theodore Presser, 1848–1945 (Alpha Honorary 1917; Founder of The Etude magazine, namesake of the Presser Scholarships)
  • Rudolph E. Schirmer (Alpha Honorary 1917; Son of Gustav Schirmer; President of G. Schirmer Publishers, 1893-?)

Ed Wooten

[edit] Radio, Film, & Television Personalities

Andy Griffith, Alpha Rho 1946, receiving Presidential Medal of Freedom at the White House.

[edit] Rock and/or Pop Musicians

Rock & Roll pioneer Bo Diddley.

[edit] Scientists

[edit] Sports Personalities

  • Woody Durham, 1941–present (Alpha Rho 1961; the "Voice of the Tar Heels", Radio announcer for UNC-Chapel Hill sports, 1971–present; 12 time honoree, North Carolina Sportscaster of the Year)
  • Wayne Messmer (The "Voice of Wrigley Field")

[edit] Violinists

Mischa Elman, Alpha Honorary 1917
Eugène Ysaÿe, Alpha Honorary 1917
  • Mischa Elman, 1891–1967 (Alpha Honorary 1917; Ukrainian born violinist)
  • Sidney Harth (Alpha Alpha 1958)
  • Jascha Heifetz, 1901–1987*‡ (Alpha Honorary 1917; Lithuanian-born Violinist, elected to honorary membership at age 16)
  • Jan Kubelik, 1880–1940 (Alpha Honorary 1917; Czech-born Violinist)
  • Albert Spalding, 1888–1953 (Alpha Alpha 1916; Violinist)
  • Eugène Ysaÿe, 1858–1931 (Alpha Honorary 1917; Belgian violinist; Composer; Director, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, 1918–1922; Known as "King of the Violin")
  • Efrem Zimbalist, 1889–1985 (Alpha Honorary 1917; Russian-born violinist; Father of actor Efrem Zimbalist, Jr; Grandfather of actress Stephanie Zimbalist)

[edit] Vocalists

Baritone David Bispham, Elected to honorary membership at 1908 national convention in Philadelphia
  • Pasquale Amato, 1878–1942 (Italian-born baritone)
  • David Bispham, 1857–1921 (Alpha Alpha Honorary 1908, first American–born operatic baritone to win an international reputation)
  • Enrico Caruso, 1873–1921 ‡ (Alpha Honorary 1917; Italian-born tenor; important pioneer of recorded music)
Enrico Caruso, Alpha Honorary 1917
Antonio Scotti, Alpha Honorary 1917

[edit] Urban Legends Regarding Persons Believed to be Sinfonians

There are several people who have been believed to be members of the Fraternity, but for whom there is no evidence of their membership:

  • Leonard Bernstein (the legend was that Bernstein was initiated, but the paperwork was never sent in to the national headquarters)
  • John Cage the avant-garde composer attended Pomona College in California, which has never hosted a chapter of the Fraternity. Ironically, a John M. Cage was initiated at Iowa State University in 1930, the same year John Cage the composer enrolled in school at Pomona (before dropping out).
  • Schroeder the beloved pianist from the comic strip Peanuts. The Epsilon Iota Chapter of Florida State University voted him an honorary member and wrote to Charles M. Shultz, to invite him to be initiated. Graciously, Mr. Schultz wrote the chapter a note stating that Schroeder was honored to have been chosen for the distinction and gratefully accepted the membership on his behalf.[citation needed]
  • Prince (was listed on a chapter website list of famous Sinfonians)
  • Gene Simmons (was listed on a chapter website list of famous Sinfonians)

[edit] Notes

1. Ames was elected to honorary membership by the Alpha chapter at the New England Conservatory in 1917. As Ames had died in 1895 (and there is no record of one of his children being named Oliver), it appears that his membership was awarded posthumously.

2. The horse character Pokey (and the popular "pokey sticks" breadsticks of Gumby's Pizza fame) represents a play on words on the name "Clokey."

3. Muck is one of two Sinfonians with German roots believed to have been expelled for sympathizing with enemy forces during World War I. It is believed that Muck was elected to membership in 1915, for in the Spring 1939 edition of the Sinfonia Handbook, in the proceedings of the convention of that year it says "Honorary Members elected:...and another, later dropped." (p. 23).

A lower case "e" notes that the individual is no longer a member of the fraternity due to non-payment of dues.

The following are significant national and international awards and recognitions that have been received by more than one member of the Fraternity:

An asterisk (*) indicates recognition on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

An (‡) indicates recipients of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

A lower case f indicates recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

A lower case k indicates Kennedy Center honoree.

A lower case p indicates recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for Music.

The following are special honors and awards presented by the Fraternity to its membership:

A lower case l indicates recipients of the Charles E. Lutton Man Of Music Award. Named in honor of former national secretary Charles E. Lutton (1887–1950), this award was first presented in 1952 to Thor Johnson. Since 1964, it has been presented triennially at the fraternity's national convention.

A lower case s indicates "Signature Sinfonians" honorees.**

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Sinfonians"
Personal tools