Joseph Wilson Baber Jr. (September 11, 1937 – March 19, 2022) was an American composer,

violist ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...

, and composition teacher living in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

Life

Baber was born in 1937 in

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

, and died in Lexington, Kentucky. He was a Professor of Theory and Composition at the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentu ...

from 1971 to 2021, and the longtime principal violist of

Lexington Philharmonic Orchestra The Lexington Philharmonic Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Lexington, Kentucky. The orchestra performs concerts principally at the Singletary Center for the Arts. History In 1961, the orchestra was formed from the Central Kentucky ...

Selected works

Information from and. * Op. 1: Duos for Violin and Viola * Op. 2a:

Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include "Paul Revere's Ride", ''The Song of Hiawatha'', and ''Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely transl ...

Songs ** "It Is Not Always May" ** "The Aftermath" ** "Serenade" ** "The Rainy Day" ** "The Tide Rises, the Tide Falls" ** "Snow-flakes" * Op. 2b:

Emersonian Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803April 27, 1882), who went by his middle name Waldo, was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, abolitionism, abolitionist, and poet who led the Transcendentalism, transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th ...

Hymns ** "The Informing Spirit" ** "Compensation" ** "Thine Eyes Still Shined" ** "Thought" ** "Terminus" ** "To Ellen" ** "Nature" * Op. 3: Miscellaneous Instrumental (1960) * Op. 4: ''Wise Men And Shepherds'', Christmas cantata (1951) * Op. 5: Instrumental Works for Winds ** Sonnet for Solo Oboe, Flute and String Orchestra ** Meditation for Solo Bassoon ** Sketches for Flute and Piano * Op. 6: Cavalier Lyrics (1960) ** "Song (Sedley)" ** "Why So Pale and Wan" ( Sir John Suckling) ** "Take, O Take Those Lips Away" (

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

) ** "The Constant Lover" (Sir John Suckling) ** "To a Lady Asking Him How Long He Would Love Her" ( Sir George Etherege) ** "Of the Last Verses in the Book" ** "To Blossoms" ( Robert Herrick) * Op. 7: Serenade for String Orchestra * Op. 8: Serenade for String Trio (1975) * Op. 9: Shakespearean Madrigals ** "Fie on Sinful Fantasy" ** "Tell Me Where" ** "I Am Gone, Sir" ** "Who Is Sylvia?" ** "When Icicles Hang By the Wall" ** "Weep No More, Ladies" ** " Mistress Mine" ** "It Was a Lover and His Lass" ** "Under the Greenwood Tree" * Op. 10: Overture to ''As You Like It'' * Op. 11: Kingdom of the Heart's Content for Piano (Seasonal Sketches) * Op. 12: American Songs (1957) ** "Words" (John Hay) ** "The Dying Lover" (

Richard Henry Stoddard Richard Henry Stoddard (July 2, 1825May 12, 1903) was an American critic and poet. Biography Richard Henry Stoddard was born on July 2, 1825, in Hingham, Massachusetts. His father, a sea-captain, was wrecked and lost on one of his voyages while R ...

) ** "The Dark Hills" (

Edwin Arlington Robinson Edwin Arlington Robinson (December 22, 1869 – April 6, 1935) was an American poet and playwright. Robinson won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry on three occasions and was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature four times. Early life Robins ...

) ** "Nancibel" (

Bliss Carman William Bliss Carman (April 15, 1861 – June 8, 1929) was a Canadian poet who lived most of his life in the United States, where he achieved international fame. He was acclaimed as Canada's poet laureate during his later years. In Canada, Car ...

) ** "To a Golden Haired Girl in a Louisiana Town" ( Vachel Lindsey) ** "(Mysteries)" ( Emily Dickenson) ** "Terminus" (Emerson) ** "Evening Song" ( Sydney Lanier) ** "The Runner in the Skies" (

James Oppenheim James Oppenheim (24 May 1882 – 4 August 1932) was an American poet, novelist, and editor. A lay analyst and early follower of Carl Jung, Oppenheim was also a founder and editor of ''The Seven Arts''. Life and work Oppenheim was born in St. ...

) ** "Force" (

Edward Rowland Sill Edward Rowland Sill (April 29, 1841February 27, 1887) was an American poet and educator. Biography Born in Windsor, Connecticut, he graduated from Yale in 1861, where he was Class Poet and a member of Skull and Bones. He engaged in business in ...

) * Op. 13: Bagatelle-Preludes (for piano) * Op. 14: Incidental Music (Michigan) ** Music for the play ''Tiger at the Gates'' (

Jean Anouilh Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (; 23 June 1910 – 3 October 1987) was a French dramatist whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1944 play ''Antigone'', an ad ...

) ** Music for the play ''Our Town'' (

Thornton Wilder Thornton Niven Wilder (April 17, 1897 – December 7, 1975) was an American playwright and novelist. He won three Pulitzer Prizes — for the novel ''The Bridge of San Luis Rey'' and for the plays ''Our Town'' and ''The Skin of Our Teeth'' — a ...

) ** Honor's Concert Prize piece, ''Music for String Orchestra'' **

Castelnuovo-Tedesco Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (3 April 1895 – 16 March 1968) was an Italian composer, pianist and writer. He was known as one of the foremost guitar composers in the twentieth century with almost one hundred compositions for that instrument. In ...

Variations for Piano ** Sketchbooks: impressions in shorts score of mid-western scenes ** Preludes for Piano, written for Virginia Bodman (1959–1962) * Op. 15: Two Sonatas for Viola and Piano * Op. 16: Twelve American Pastorals for SSA and Cello Ensemble (Harmonium) ** ''Afternoon on a Hill (

Edna St Vincent Millay Edna St. Vincent Millay (February 22, 1892 – October 19, 1950) was an American lyrical poet and playwright. Millay was a renowned social figure and noted feminist in New York City during the Roaring Twenties and beyond. She wrote much of he ...

)'' ** ''On a Dayward Height'' ** ''Valley Song (

Carl Sandberg Carl August Sandburg (January 6, 1878 – July 22, 1967) was an American poet, biographer, journalist, and editor. He won three Pulitzer Prizes: two for his poetry and one for his biography of Abraham Lincoln. During his lifetime, Sandburg ...

)'' ** ''(Indian Summer) (Emily Dickenson)'' ** ''Wind in the Sunlit Trees (

Conrad Aiken Conrad Potter Aiken (August 5, 1889 – August 17, 1973) was an American writer and poet, honored with a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award, and was United States Poet Laureate from 1950 to 1952. His published works include poetry, short st ...

)'' ** ''Former Barn Lot (

Mark Van Doren Mark Van Doren (June 13, 1894 – December 10, 1972) was an American poet, writer and critic. He was a scholar and a professor of English at Columbia University for nearly 40 years, where he inspired a generation of influential writers and thin ...

)'' ** ''Wild Peaches (

Elinor Wylie Elinor Morton Wylie (September 7, 1885 – December 16, 1928) was an American poet and novelist popular in the 1920s and 1930s. "She was famous during her life almost as much for her ethereal beauty and personality as for her melodious, sensu ...

)'' ** ''A Winter Piece (

William Cullen Bryant William Cullen Bryant (November 3, 1794 – June 12, 1878) was an American romantic poet, journalist, and long-time editor of the ''New York Evening Post''. Born in Massachusetts, he started his career as a lawyer but showed an interest in poetry ...

)'' ** ''Daisies (Bliss Carman)'' ** ''The Road (

John Gould Fletcher John Gould Fletcher (January 3, 1886 – May 10, 1950) was an Imagist poet (the first Southern poet to win the Pulitzer Prize), author and authority on modern painting. He was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, to a socially prominent family. After a ...

)'' ** ''Meadowlarks (

Sara Teasdale Sara Teasdale (August 8, 1884January 29, 1933) was an American lyric poet. She was born Sarah Trevor Teasdale in St. Louis, Missouri, and used the name Sara Teasdale Filsinger after her marriage in 1914. In 1918 she won a Pulitzer Prize for her ...

)'' ** ''The Spice Tree (Vachel Lindsey)'' * Op. 16a: Five Pastorals for Soprano and lower strings * Op. 17: The Klausli Service (Music for Richard Klausli and the Plymouth Congregationalist Church) * Op. 18: Songbook: Miscellaneous Uncollected Songs ** ''Eldorado (

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wide ...

)'' ** ''The Traveller (Vachel Lindsey)'' ** ''"A Boy's Will" (Longfellow: Stanzas 1 & 2 of My Lost Youth)'' ** ''I Will Build a House'' ** ''In the Train (Teasdale)'' ** ''A Vagabond Song (Bliss Carman)'' ** ''The First Snow-fall (Lowell)'' ** ''Wood Song (Teasdale)'' ** ''Afternoon on a Hill (Millay)'' ** ''A Winter Piece (Bryant)'' ** ''Meadowlarks (Teasdale)'' * Op. 19: Shakespearean Songs for high voice and piano ** ''Full Fathom Five'' ** ''Willow Song'' ** ''Take, O Take Those Lips Away'' ** ''Under the Greenwood Tree'' ** ''Tell Me Where Is Fancy Bred'' ** ''The Master, The Swabber, The Boatswain'' ** ''Take, O Take Those Lips Away (second version)'' ** ''It Was a Lover and His Lass'' ** ''Blow, Blow, Thy Winter Wind'' * Op. 20: Organ Preludes on Protestant Hymn Tunes * Op. 21: Trio for Violin, Viola and Violoncello * Op. 22: Rhapsody for Viola and Orchestra * Op. 23: Sonata for Violin and Piano * Op. 24: Overture: The New Land * Op. 25: Trio for Oboe, Viola and Piano * Op. 26: Concerto No. 1 for Viola and String Orchestra * Op. 27: Psalms for Chorus SATB * Op. 28: Concerto No. 2 for Viola and Orchestra * Op. 29: Songs of Love and Loss ** ''Pity Me Not (Edna St Vincent Millay)'' ** ''The Net (Sara Teasdale)'' ** ''Men Loved Wholly Beyond Wisdom (

Louise Bogan Louise Bogan (August 11, 1897 – February 4, 1970) was an American poet. She was appointed the fourth Poet Laureate to the Library of Congress in 1945, and was the first woman to hold this title. Throughout her life she wrote poetry, fiction, ...

)'' ** ''This Quiet Dust (Emily Dickenson)'' ** ''Where No Thoughts Are (

Anna Hempstead Branch Anna Hempstead Branch (March 18, 1875 – September 8, 1937) was an American poet. She was regarded as a major poet during her life, labeled by William Thomas Stead "the Robert Browning, Browning of American poetry". Early life Branch was born ...

)'' * Op. 30: String Quartet * Op. 31: Incidental Music (Illinois) ** ''Keyboard Toccatas (for Dwight Peltzer) (1969)'' ** ''Scherzo for Viola and Piano (1969)'' * Op. 32: Divertimentos * Op. 33: Songbook: Miscellaneous Uncollected Songs ** ''Go and Catch a Falling Star (

John Donne John Donne ( ; 22 January 1572 – 31 March 1631) was an English poet, scholar, soldier and secretary born into a recusant family, who later became a clergy, cleric in the Church of England. Under royal patronage, he was made Dean of St Paul's ...

)'' ** ''In Time of 'The Breaking of Nations' (

Thomas Hardy Thomas Hardy (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry of William Word ...

)'' ** ''The Widow's Song (Pinkney)'' ** ''Up-Hill (Rossetti)'' ** ''Mnemosyne (

Trumbull Stickney Joseph Trumbull Stickney (June 20, 1874 – October 11, 1904) was an American classical scholar and poet. Biography He was born in Geneva and spent much of his early life in Europe. He attended Harvard University from 1891, when he became editor ...

)'' ** ''Cradle Song of the Infant Jesus for Soprano, Viola and Organ (Old French Noel)'' (2012) * Op. 34: Works for Unaccompanied String * Op. 35: Music from the Kansas College Co-operative Composers Project ** ''Prelude for Band (1970–1971)'' ** ''Scherzo for Chamber Orchestra (1970)'' ** ''Carol (SATB)'' ** ''Alleluias (SATB)'' ** ''To Everything There Is a Season (SATB)'' ** ''I Beseech You, Therefore, Brethren (SATB) (1971)'' * Op. 36: Three Madrigals on Lyrics by

Thomas Campion Thomas Campion (sometimes spelled Campian; 12 February 1567 – 1 March 1620) was an English composer, poet, and physician. He was born in London, educated at Cambridge, studied law in Gray's inn. He wrote over a hundred lute songs, masques for ...

for Solo Voices ** ''"I Care Not for These Ladies"'' ** ''"Rose-cheek'd Laura, come"'' ** ''"Now winter nights"'' * Op. 37: Mephisto Rhapsody for Violin and Piano (1971) * Op. 38: Partita for Keyboard (1975–2008) * Op. 39: "Fox and Bear" – A Children's Guide to the Orchestra for Narrator and Orchestra * Op. 40: ''Frankenstein'': Opera in 4 Acts (with John Gardner) (1969–1980) * Op. 41: Five Fantasias on Finnish Folk Songs for SATB and Piano 4-hands ** ''Kalliole Kukkulalle'' ** ''Minun Kultani'' ** ''Lapsuuden Ystavalle'' ** ''Ranalle-Istaja Neito'' ** ''Rukkaset'' * Op. 42: ''Rumpelstiltskin'': Opera in 2 Acts (with John Gardner) * Op. 43: Landscapes for Soprano and Nine 'Cellos (

T.S. Eliot Thomas Stearns Eliot (26 September 18884 January 1965) was a poet, essayist, publisher, playwright, literary critic and editor.Bush, Ronald. "T. S. Eliot's Life and Career", in John A Garraty and Mark C. Carnes (eds), ''American National B ...

) * Op. 44: Missa Brevis for Women's Chorus SSA and Organ * Op. 45: Rhapsody for Two 'Cellos and Orchestra * Op. 46: Symphony No. 1 in E minor (1979) * Op. 47: Six Sinfonias for Piano * Op. 48: Music for St. Michaels (Church of St Michael the Archangel, Lexington) * Op. 49: Three Fantasias for String Quartet * Op. 50: Ere We Be Young Again (

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...

) ** ''Good and Bad Children'' ** ''Looking Forward'' ** ''Whole Duty of Children'' ** ''At the Seaside'' ** ''Singing'' ** ''Rain'' ** ''Where Go the Boats'' ** ''The Swing'' ** ''My Bed Is a Boat'' ** ''Envoy'' * Op. 51: Two Marches in the American Style for Orchestra (1981–1991) * Op. 52: ''Samson and the Witch'', Opera in 1 Act (with John Gardner) (1995) * Op. 53: Songs from Shakespeare ** ''When Daisies Pied'' ** ''How Should I Your True Love Know'' ** ''Where the Bee Sucks'' ** ''Come unto These Yellow Sands'' ** ''You Spotted Snakes'' ** ''Orpheus with His Lute'' ** ''Who Is Sylvia'' * Op. 54: Requiescat for Violin and Orchestra (1983) – in memoriam of John Gardner * Op. 55: 'The Wild Swans at Coole' and other songs on poems of

William Butler Yeats William Butler Yeats (13 June 186528 January 1939) was an Irish poet, dramatist, writer and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the Irish Literary Revival and became a pillar of the Irish liter ...

(1986) ** ''The Wild Swans at Coole'' ** ''Brown Penny'' ** ''Made Quiet'' ** ''First Love'' ** ''Remorse for Intermperate Speech'' ** ''Tom O'Roughley'' ** ''To a Child Dancing in the Wind'' ** ''Two Years Later'' ** ''When You Are Old'' ** ''The Lake Isle of Innesfree'' * Op. 56: Songs for School Children (c. 1984) ** ''Some One (

Walter de la Mare Walter John de la Mare (; 25 April 1873 – 22 June 1956) was an English poet, short story writer, and novelist. He is probably best remembered for his works for children, for his poem "The Listeners", and for a highly acclaimed selection of ...

)'' ** ''How Doth the Lowly Crocodile (

Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequel ...

)'' ** ''Ariel's Song (William Shakespeare)'' ** ''Who Has Seen the Wind (Christina Rossetti)'' * Op. 57: Songbook: Miscellaneous Uncollected Songs ** ''A Lover Pleads with His Friends for Old Friends (Yeats)'' ** ''Beloved Rivers (Marjorie England) (1987–1989)'' ** ''And That Is Life (

Paul Laurence Dunbar Paul Laurence Dunbar (June 27, 1872 – February 9, 1906) was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in Dayton, Ohio, to parents who had been enslaved in Kentucky before the American C ...

) (1990)'' ** ''Full Moon (Sara Teasdale)'' ** ''The Philosopher (Millay)'' ** ''Home-Coming (

Leonie Adams Leonie or Léonie is a Latin-origin feminine given name meaning "lioness", from the masculine personal name ''Leon'' (meaning "lion"). Leonie evolved to Léonie in France. It is rare as a surname. People People with the name or its variants inclu ...

)'' * Op. 58: 'Dark of the Moon' for mezzo-soprano (Sara Teasdale) ** ''Winter'' ** ''September Night'' ** ''Wisdom'' ** ''Low Tide'' ** ''"She Who Could Bind You"'' ** ''Foreknown'' ** ''At Tintagil'' ** ''The Fountain'' ** ''Epitaph'' * Op. 59: Symphony No. 2 in D (1987–1991) * Op. 60: Shiloh, for tenor, horn, and piano ** ''The Portent'' ** ''Misgivings'' ** ''Malvern Hill'' ** ''Shiloh'' * Op. 61: The Shepherd's Calendar, suite for solo English Horn * Op. 63: Heartland: A Runaway Summer Overture for Orchestra (1990) * Op. 64: Steel Town, Capriccio for Chamber Orchestra (1990) * Op. 65: Summer Music: Trio for Flute, Bassoon and Piano * Op. 66: The Kentucky Suite for Orchestra * Op. 67: St Louis Suite for Clarinet and Piano * Op. 68: Fantasia for String Quartet * Op. 69: Organ Preludes (1995) * Op. 70: Songs for Our Children * Op. 71: "Echo" and "The First Spring Day" for Soprano, Flute, Clarinet and String Orchestra * Op. 72: Two Songs for a Christening for Soprano and Organ or Strings * Op. 73: Heartland: September Towns * Op. 74: Madrigals from Shakespeare (1997) ** ''Under the Greenwood Tree'' ** ''How Should I Your True Love Know'' ** ''It Was a Lover and His Lass'' ** ''Willow Song'' ** ''Take, O Take Those Lips Away'' ** ''O Mistress Mine'' * Op. 75: Songbook: Miscellaneous Uncollected Songs * Op. 80: An American Requiem (1999–2003) * Op. 81: Introduction and Allegro for Six Cellos * Op. 89: Two Movements Concertante for Oboe and Small Orchestra (2003) * Op. 90: Sonata for Three Cellos and Piano (2006) * Op. 91: Album of American Ghosts (2006) * Op. 94: ''Suite Concertante'' for flute and string orchestra * Op. 99: River of Time: An Opera in 2 Acts (with Jim Rodgers) (2009)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baber, Joseph 1937 births 2022 deaths 20th-century American composers 20th-century classical composers 21st-century American composers 21st-century classical composers American classical composers American male classical composers American opera composers American classical violists Male opera composers Musicians from Lexington, Kentucky Musicians from Richmond, Virginia University of Kentucky faculty Classical musicians from Virginia 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians 20th-century violists 21st-century violists