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 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 ...

. 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 American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, ...

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. Ross ...

, as well as first clarinetist in the Connecticut Symphony. While teaching at State University College at Oneonta, NY (aka "Oneonta State", now

SUNY Oneonta The State University of New York College at Oneonta, also known as SUNY Oneonta, is a public college in Oneonta, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. History SUNY Oneonta was established in 1889 as the Oneon ...

) 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, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

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 milli ...

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 (pronounced 'Rah-sher') (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 ...

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

soprano saxophonist The soprano saxophone is a higher-register variety of the saxophone, a woodwind instrument invented in the 1840s. The soprano is the third-smallest member of the saxophone family, which consists (from smallest to largest) of the soprillo saxop ...

Education

He graduated from

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

where he studied clarinet with George Wain, and received his Masters from the

Columbia Teachers College Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), is the graduate school of education, health, and psychology of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, it has served as one of the official faculties and ...

. He studied composition with Sir

Lennox Berkeley Sir Lennox Randal Francis Berkeley (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 Char ...

at the Royal Academy of Music in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and conducting with Pierre Monteux in

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...

Teaching positions

Worley taught at the

University of Bridgeport The University of Bridgeport (UB) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin University; it retain its own ...

, the State University of New York at Oneonta and the

University of Maine The University of Maine (UMaine or UMO) is a public land-grant research university in Orono, Maine. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the flagship university of the University of Maine System. It is classifie ...

in Orono in Orono before moving to

Williamsburg, Virginia Williamsburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 15,425. Located on the Virginia Peninsula, Williamsburg is in the northern part of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. It is ...

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 classical composers American male classical composers American classical composers 20th-century American saxophonists Teachers College, Columbia University alumni 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians