Irene Cozad (July 4, 1888 – August 2, 1970), later known as Irene Cozad-Sherer, was an American pianist, piano teacher, and composer of

ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that had its peak from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its Syncopation, syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers ...

music.

Early life

Irene Bazelle Cozad was born in

Lineville, Iowa Lineville is a city in Wayne County, Iowa, Wayne County, Iowa, United States. The population was 195 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of ...

, one of the nine children of Joseph Addison Cozad and Olive Jane Vanderbeck Cozad. Her father was a school teacher and worked at a newspaper.

Career

Cozad played and taught piano in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

. Compositions by Cozad included "Affinity Rag" (1910), "Eatin' Time Rag" (1913), "That Sunday Wedding Day" (1914, words by Gwen Meredith), "The Minute Circle Whirl" (1916), "Because", and "Kansas City Town" (1920). The last, "Kansas City Town", was written for a contest marking the year that the city's population reached one million. Her compositions are considered an example of the Kansas City Folk Rag genre.

Personal life

Irene Cozad married Joseph Whitman Sherer, a medical doctor, in 1912. They had a daughter, Jeanne, and a son, Joseph Jr. Her husband died in a car accident in 1940; she died in Kansas City in 1970, aged 82 years. Her compositions are sometimes featured in recordings and performances of ragtime works by women, including the collections ''Pickles and Peppers'' (1987) and ''Fluffy Ruffle Girls: Women in Ragtime'' (1999), both by Virginia Eskin.Eskin, Virginia.
Fluffy Ruffle Girls: Women in Ragtime
' (Koch International Classics 1999).

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cozad, Irene 1888 births 1970 deaths People from Wayne County, Iowa American composers Ragtime composers American pianists