Ronald Jack Nelson (born December 14, 1929) is an American composer of both classical and

popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Funk ...

and a retired music educator.

Biography

Ron Nelson was born December 14, 1929, in Joliet,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

. He studied composition at the

Eastman School of Music The Eastman School of Music is the music school of the University of Rochester, a private research university in Rochester, New York. It was established in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman. It offers Bachelor of Music ...

at the

University of Rochester The University of Rochester (U of R, UR, or U of Rochester) is a private university, private research university in Rochester, New York. The university grants Undergraduate education, undergraduate and graduate degrees, including Doctorate, do ...

, earning a bachelor's degree in 1952, a master's degree in 1953, and a doctorate in composition in 1957. His teachers at Eastman included Louis Mennini, Bernard Rogers and

Howard Hanson Howard Harold Hanson (October 28, 1896 – February 26, 1981)''The New York Times'' – Obituaries. Harold C. Schonberg. February 28, 1981 p. 1011/ref> was an American composer, conductor, educator, music theorist, and champion of American cla ...

. In 1954–1955 he studied with Tony Aubin in France at the Ecole Normale de Musique and at the

Paris Conservatory The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

under a Fulbright Grant. In 1956, Dr. Nelson joined the faculty of Brown University in Providence,

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but i ...

, where he served as chairman of the music department from 1963 to 1973, retiring as Professor Emeritus in 1993. In 1991, Dr. Nelson was awarded the Acuff Chair of Excellence in the Creative Arts, the first musician to hold the chair. His ''Passacaglia (Homage on B-A-C-H)'' was the first piece to win all three major wind band composition prizes during one period — the National Band Association Prize, the

American Bandmasters Association The American Bandmasters Association (ABA) was formed in 1929 by Edwin Franko Goldman to promote concert band music.Raoul F. Camus. "American Bandmasters Association." In Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online, http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/sub ...

Ostwald Award, and the Sudler International Prize. He was awarded the Medal of Honor by the John Philip Sousa Foundation in 1994. In 2006, he was awarded an honorary doctorate from

Oklahoma City University Oklahoma City University (OCU) is a private university historically affiliated with the United Methodist Church and located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The university offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, graduate master's degrees and doctor ...

. Nelson has received numerous commissions, including those from the

National Symphony Orchestra The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1930, its principal performing venue is the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. It also performs for the annual National Me ...

, the

Rochester Philharmonic The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is an American orchestra based in the city of Rochester, New York. Its primary concert venue is the Eastman Theatre at the Eastman School of Music. History George Eastman, founder of Eastman Kodak Compa ...

, the USAF Band and Chorus, Musashino Wind Ensemble,

Aspen Music Festival The Aspen Music Festival and School (AMFS) is a classical music festival held annually in Aspen, Colorado. It is noted both for its concert programming and the musical training it offers to mostly young-adult music students. Founded in 1949, th ...

and numerous colleges and universities. He has also received grants and awards from The

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The second-oldest major philanthropic institution in America, after the Ca ...

, the Howard Foundation,

ASCAP The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadca ...

, and several from the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federa ...

. Conductor Leonard Slatkin may have described Ron Nelson best: "Nelson is the quintessential American composer. He has the ability to move between conservative and newer styles with ease. The fact that he's a little hard to categorize is what makes him interesting." (''Los Angeles Daily News'', February 19, 1996) Ron Nelson resides with his wife, Michele, in Scottsdale,

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States. It is the list of U.S. states and territories by area, 6th largest and the list of U.S. states and territories by population, 14 ...

Selected works

Orchestral works

* 1952 ''Savannah River Holiday'' * 1958 ''Sarabande for Katharine in April'' * 1960 ''This Is The Orchestra'' * 1960 ''Jubilee'' * 1961 ''Toccata for Orchestra'' * 1969 ''Trilogy: JFK-MLK-RFK'' * 1969 ''Rocky Point Holiday'' * 1976 ''Five Pieces after Paintings by Andrew Wyeth'' * 1996 ''Panels (Epiphanies 11)'' * 1997 ''Resonances 11''

Works for wind ensemble

* 1958 ''Mayflower Overture'' * 1969 ''

Rocky Point Holiday ''Rocky Point Holiday'' is a composition for wind ensemble by Ron Nelson. It was written in 1966Concert Program of CBDNA 14th National Conference at University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan in February 1967. on a summer vacation in Rocky Point ...

'' * 1973 ''Savannah River Holiday'' * 1982 ''Fanfare for a Celebration'' * 1982 ''Medieval Suite'' * 1983 ''Pebble Beach Sojourn'' for organ, brass and percussion * 1984 ''Aspen Jubilee'' * 1985 ''Danza Capriccio'' for solo alto

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

and wind ensemble * 1988 ''Te Deum Laudamus'' for SATB chorus and wind ensemble * 1989 ''Morning Alleluias'' * 1989 ''Fanfare For The Hour of Sunrise'' * 1990 ''Resonances 1'' * 1991 ''Lauds'' (Praise High Day) * 1992 ''To The Airborne'' * 1992 ''Passacaglia (Homage on B-A-C-H)'' * 1994 ''Epiphanies – Fanfares and Chorales'' * 1994 ''Chaconne (In Memoriam...)'' * 1994 ''Sonoran Desert Holiday'' * 1995 ''Epiphanies (Fanfares and Chorales)'' * 1995 ''Nightsong (Homage Howard Hanson)'' * 1995 ''Fanfare For The Kennedy Center'' * 1995 ''Courtly Airs and Dances'' * 1999 ''Fanfare for the new Millennium'' for symphonic band and two antiphonal brass choirs * 2006 ''Pastorale: Autumn Rune'' * 2019 ''Homage to Landini''

Stage works

* 1954 ''Dance in Ruins'' Ballet * 1955–1956 ''The Birthday of the Infanta'' Opera for Chamber Orchestra * 1981 ''Hamaguchi'' Opera for Chamber Ensemble

Chamber music

* 1982 ''Kristen's Song'' for Violin, Flute, and Organ * 1983 ''And the Moon Rose Golden'' for Cello and Piano

Choral music

* 1958 ''Three Mountain Ballads'' for women's chorus or SATB * 1958 ''Choral Fanfare for Easter'' for mixed chorus and narrator * 1960 ''Fanfare for a Festival'' for mixed chorus, brass and timpani * 1961 ''Behold Man'' for men's chorus * 1962 ''Three Ancient Prayers'' for SATB and organ * 1963 ''Triumphal Te Deum'' for double chorus, brass, organ, and percussion * 1964 ''Oratorio: What is Man?'' in three movements, for narrator, soprano solo and baritone solo, mixed chorus, and orchestra] *1968 ''Autumn Night'' (women’s chorus and piano; text by

Alice Streatch Alice Mills Palmer Streatch (January 3, 1909 - December 2, 1999) was an American composer who wrote both the words and the music for most of her songs. Streatch was born in Rhode Island to Edith Markland Mills and Burrows Spalding Palmer. She marr ...

) * 1969 ''Alleluia, July 20, 1969'' for mixed chorus * 1972 ''Prayer of

Emperor of China ''Huangdi'' (), translated into English as Emperor, was the superlative title held by monarchs of China who ruled various imperial regimes in Chinese history. In traditional Chinese political theory, the emperor was considered the Son of Heave ...

on the Altar of Heaven, December 21, 1539'' for mixed chorus and ensemble * 1977 ''Four Pieces After The Seasons'' for mixed chorus * 1981 ''Mass of Saint LaSalle'' for mixed chorus, organ, mallet instruments, pianos, and percussion * 1982 ''Three Nocturnal Pieces'' for mixed chorus, solo viola, piano and percussion * 1983 ''Three Settings of the Moon'' for women's chorus (SA), piano, marimba, and glockenspiel * 1989 ''Three Pieces After Tennyson'' for mixed chorus or TTBB * 2002 ''Proclaim this Day for Music'' for mixed chorus, brass, and percussion * 2005 ''Let Us Find A Meadow''

References

External links

Official Website

December 19, 1997 {{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Ron 1929 births 20th-century classical composers American male classical composers American classical composers Brown University faculty Eastman School of Music alumni Living people Musicians from Joliet, Illinois École Normale de Musique de Paris alumni Writers from Joliet, Illinois 20th-century American composers Classical musicians from Illinois 20th-century American male musicians