Richard Storrs Willis (February 10, 1819 – May 10, 1900) was an American composer, mainly of

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn ...

music. His best known melody is probably the one called, simply, '' Carol''. This is the standard tune, in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

, though not in

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, of the much-loved hymn "

It Came Upon the Midnight Clear "It Came Upon the Midnight Clear", sometimes rendered as "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear", is an 1849 poem and Christmas carol written by Edmund Sears, pastor of the Unitarian Church in Wayland, Massachusetts. In 1850, Sears' lyrics were set ...

" (1850), with lyrics by

Edmund Sears Edmund Hamilton Sears (April 6, 1810 – January 14, 1876) was an American Unitarian parish minister and author who wrote a number of theological works influencing 19th-century liberal Protestants. Today, Sears is primarily known as the man w ...

. He was also a music critic and journal editor.

Biography

Willis, whose siblings included

Nathaniel Parker Willis Nathaniel Parker Willis (January 20, 1806 – January 20, 1867), also known as N. P. Willis,Baker, 3 was an American author, poet and editor who worked with several notable American writers including Edgar Allan Poe and Henry Wadsworth Longfello ...

and Fanny Fern, was born on February 10, 1819, in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...

, Massachusetts. He attended Chauncey Hall, the Boston Latin School, and

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

where he was a member of

Skull and Bones Skull and Bones, also known as The Order, Order 322 or The Brotherhood of Death, is an undergraduate senior secret student society at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. The oldest senior class society at the university, Skull and Bone ...

in 1841. Willis then went to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

, where he studied six years under Xavier Schnyder and Moritz Hauptmann. After returning to America, Willis served as music critic for the ''

New York Tribune The ''New-York Tribune'' was an American newspaper founded in 1841 by editor Horace Greeley. It bore the moniker ''New-York Daily Tribune'' from 1842 to 1866 before returning to its original name. From the 1840s through the 1860s it was the domi ...

'', ''The Albion'', and ''The Musical Times'', for which he served as editor for a time. He joined the New-York American-Music Association, an organization which promoted the work native of naturalized American composers. He reviewed the organization's first concert for their second season, held December 30, 1856, in the ''Musical World'', as a "creditable affair, all things considered". Willis began his own journal, ''Once a Month: A Paper of Society, Belles-Lettres and Art'', and published its first issue in January 1862.Lawrence, Vera Brodsky. ''Strong on Music: The New York Music Scene in the Days of George Templeton Strong''. The University of Chicago Press, 1999. vol. III, p. 463. Willis died on May 7, 1900. He is buried at Woodlawn Cemetery, in Detroit.

Works

His works and music compilations include: *''Church Chorals and Choir Studies'' (1850) *''Our Church Music'' (1856) *''Waif of Song'' (1876) *''Pen and Lute'' (1883)

References

External links

* *
Richard Storrs Willis
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Willis, Richard Yale College alumni American male composers 1819 births 1900 deaths Musicians from Boston 19th-century American composers Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Detroit) 19th-century American male musicians Boston Latin School alumni

Biography

Works

References

Further reading

External links