John C. Worley (1919-1999) was a saxophonist, conductor, professor, and a composer of classical, as well as more contemporary music for

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...

. He was born in

Waltham, Massachusetts Waltham ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, and was an early center for the labor movement as well as a major contributor to the Technological and industrial history of the United States, American Industrial Revoluti ...

in 1919 and died on February 16, 1999. He served as conductor and director for many performing ensembles during his long teaching career, as well as a featured performer of saxophone and clarinet.

Conducting & performing career highlights

His early performances included a position as first clarinetist in the

Columbus Symphony Orchestra The Columbus Symphony Orchestra (CSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Columbus, Ohio. The oldest performing arts organization in the city, its home is the Ohio Theatre. The orchestra's current executive director is Denise Rehg. R ...

, as well as first clarinetist in the Connecticut Symphony. While teaching at State University College at Oneonta, NY (aka "Oneonta State", now SUNY Oneonta) Worley took charge of the community-based Oneonta Symphony (now th
Catskill Symphony Orchestra
in 1947. The ensemble had been dormant since

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

decimated its ranks, and by 1953 Worley had succeeded in rejuvenating it to the point where a full concert was possible. By 1954, under his direction it had swelled to 57 musicians and began presenting local concerts for 400 people. While at Oneonta State, Worley also conducted the campus vocal group, the Choraleers, and served as music director for stage productions. After his retirement from the Symphony, Worley returned to Oneonta to perform as clarinet soloist.
Article in the ''Oneonta Star'', 2/13/68 He performed with the Saxophone Sinfonia at

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 ...

in New York City; the Cape Cod Orchestra in Massachusetts; and was an active participant at several Saxophone Workshops held by friends

Sigurd Raschèr Sigurd Manfred Raschèr (15 May 190725 February 2001) was an American saxophonist born in Germany. He became an important figure in the development of the 20th century repertoire for the classical saxophone. Early life Sigurd Raschèr was born ...

and Lee Patrick. Worley organized the Williamsburg Saxophone Quartet and was the group's soprano saxophonist.

Education

He graduated from

Oberlin Conservatory The Oberlin Conservatory of Music is a private music conservatory of Oberlin College, a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio. It was founded in 1865 and is the second oldest conservatory and oldest continually operating conservatory in ...

where he studied clarinet with George Wain, and received his Masters from the Columbia Teachers College. He studied composition with Sir

Lennox Berkeley Sir Lennox Randal Francis Berkeley CBE (12 May 190326 December 1989) was an English composer. Biography Berkeley was born on 12 May 1903 in Oxford, England, the younger child and only son of Aline Carla (1863–1935), daughter of Sir James ...

at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is one of the oldest music schools in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the firs ...

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and conducting with

Pierre Monteux Pierre Benjamin Monteux (; 4 April 18751 July 1964) was a French (later American) conductor. After violin and viola studies, and a decade as an orchestral player and occasional conductor, he began to receive regular conducting engagements in 1 ...

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

Teaching positions

Worley taught at the

University of Bridgeport The University of Bridgeport (UB or UBPT) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin Unive ...

, the

State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY ) is a system of Public education, public colleges and universities in the New York (state), State of New York. It is one of the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, larges ...

at Oneonta and the

University of Maine The University of Maine (UMaine) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Orono, Maine, United States. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the Flagship universitie ...

in Orono in Orono before moving to

Williamsburg, Virginia Williamsburg is an Independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia, United States. It had a population of 15,425 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on the Virginia Peninsula, Williamsburg is in the northern par ...

in 1996.

Compositions

After he retired from teaching, Worley focused on composing and arranging. His original compositions include: *''Claremont Concerto'' for alto saxophone and orchestra (1962) *''Penobscot Suite'' *''Owl's Head Sonatina'' *''Concerto for Saxophone'' *''Quintet for Saxophones'' *''Sonatina for Baritone Saxophone'' *''Sonata for Tenor Saxophone and Piano'' *''Sea Pines Concerto'' for trumpet and orchestra Transcriptions include: *Edvard Grieg's "Holberg Suite", arranged for large saxophone ensemble *Etienne Ozi's "Adagio et Rondo," arranged for tenor saxophone and piano *John Dowland "Dance Suite," arranged for saxophone sextet

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Worley, John 1919 births 1999 deaths University of Bridgeport faculty American classical saxophonists American male saxophonists 20th-century American classical composers American male classical composers 20th-century American saxophonists Teachers College, Columbia University alumni 20th-century American male musicians Composers for saxophone