Guide to the Leo Sowerby papers, 1911-1995
- IdentificationSowerby
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Title
- Guide to the Leo Sowerby papers
- Sowerby Leo papers
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Date
- 1911-1995
- 1911-1967
- OriginationSowerby, Leo, 1895-1968
- Physical Description52.00
- RepositoryMusic Library Deering Library 1970 Campus Drive Evanston, IL, URL: http://www.library.northwestern.edu/music Email: musiclibrary@northwestern.edu Phone: 847-491-3434
- AbstractChiefly music manuscripts of original compositions by the American composer and church musician Leo Sowerby (1895-1968).
Leo Sowerby (born May 1, 1895, Grand Rapids, MI, died July 7, 1968, Port Clinton, OH was an American composer and church musician. His family moved to Chicago in 1909 where he studied piano and organ. During World War I he served in the army and was a bandmaster. In 1918 he received a Masters from the American Conservatory of Chicago where he would later teach (1925-1962). He was also organist and choirmaster at the Episcopal Cathedral of St James (1927-1962) and was the founding director of the College of Church Musicians at the National Cathedral, Washington D.C. (1962-1968).
The first mark of recognition for Sowerby as a composer came in 1913 when the Chicago Symphony Orchestra played his Violin Concerto. Many of his works, particularly the numerous organ pieces, are based on the passacaglia, chaconne, canon, or fugue. In 1946 Sowerby received a Pulitzer Prize for his cantata Canticle of the Sun.
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Names
- American Conservatory of Music (Chicago, Ill.)
- Saint James Episcopal Cathedral (Chicago, Ill.)
Donated by Ronald Stalford and the Leo Sowerby Foundation beginning in 1993.
Leo Sowerby Papers, Northwestern University Music Library.
Chiefly music manuscripts of original compositions.
Chiefly music manuscripts of original compositions.