musician
A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...
s as Rock and Roll Hall of Famers
The Everly Brothers
The Everly Brothers were an American rock duo, known for steel-string acoustic guitar playing and close harmony singing. Consisting of Isaac Donald "Don" Everly (February 1, 1937 – August 21, 2021) and Phillip "Phil" Everly (January 19, 1939 ...
(who had 3 #1 Top 100 hits, including "
All I Have to Do Is Dream
"All I Have to Do Is Dream" is a song made famous by the Everly Brothers, written by Boudleaux Bryant of the husband-and-wife songwriting team Felice and Boudleaux Bryant, and published in 1958. The song is ranked No. 141 on the ''Rolling Stone' ...
" in 1958),
Bix Beiderbecke
Leon Bismark "Bix" Beiderbecke (March 10, 1903 – August 6, 1931) was an American jazz cornetist, pianist and composer.
Beiderbecke was one of the most influential jazz soloists of the 1920s, a cornet player noted for an inventive lyrical app ...
,
Art Farmer
Arthur Stewart Farmer (August 21, 1928 – October 4, 1999) was an American jazz trumpeter and flugelhorn player. He also played flumpet, a trumpet–flugelhorn combination especially designed for him. He and his identical twin brother, double ...
,
Peggy Gilbert
Peggy Gilbert (January 17, 1905 – February 12, 2007), born Margaret Fern Knechtges, was an American jazz saxophonist and bandleader.
She was born in Sioux City, Iowa. When she was seven years old, she played piano and violin with her father's ...
,
Patty Waters
Patty Waters (born March 11, 1946) is a jazz vocalist best known for her free jazz recordings in the 1960s for the ESP-Disk label.
Career
Waters was born in Iowa and started singing semi-professionally in high school. After school, she sang for t ...
,
Mortimer Wilson
Mortimer Wilson (August 6, 1876 – January 27, 1932) was an American composer of classical music. He also scored several musical and dramatic films in the 1920s.
Wilson was born in Chariton, Iowa in Lucas County, Iowa, Lucas County, a rural ...
,
Thurlow Lieurance
Thurlow Weed Lieurance (March 21, 1878 – October 9, 1963) was an American composer, known primarily for his song "By the Waters of Minnetonka". He is frequently categorized with a number of his contemporaries, including Charles Wakefield Cadman, ...
,
Charlie Haden
Charles Edward Haden (August 6, 1937 – July 11, 2014) was an American jazz double bass player, bandleader, composer and educator whose career spanned more than 50 years. In the late 1950s, he was an original member of the ground-breaking ...
William Elliott Whitmore
William Elliott Whitmore (born May 11, 1978) is an American blues, country, folk singer and musician. He plays roots-folk music that is often inspired by his life on his family farm in the hills of southeastern Iowa.
Early life and education
W ...
,
Clarence Whitehill
Clarence Eugene Whitehill (November 5, 1871 - December 19, 1932) was a leading American bass-baritone who sang at the Metropolitan Opera from 1915 to 1932. He sang on both sides of the Atlantic and is remembered for his association with the mus ...
,
Andy Williams
Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...
,
Meredith Willson
Robert Reiniger Meredith Willson (May 18, 1902 – June 15, 1984) was an American flutist, composer, conductor, musical arranger, bandleader, playwright, and writer. He is perhaps best known for writing the book, music, and lyrics for the 195 ...
, composer of ''
The Music Man
''The Music Man'' is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and ...
'', and Alice Ettinger who was renowned enough to perform in Europe in the 1890s. Famed swing era musician and band leader
Glenn Miller
Alton Glen Miller (March 1, 1904 – December 15, 1944) was an American big band founder, owner, conductor, composer, arranger, trombone player and recording artist before and during World War II, when he was an officer in the United States Arm ...
was born in Clarinda. Rock and metal bands from Iowa include
For Today
For Today was an American Christian metalcore band from Sioux City, Iowa, formed in 2005. They released two EPs, ''Your Moment, Your Life, Your Time'' and ''Prevailer'', and six full-length albums: '' Ekklesia'' in, 2008, ''Portraits'' in 2009, ...
The Envy Corps
The Envy Corps is an American alternative rock band originally from Ames, Iowa. Members include Brandon Darner (guitar), Micah Natera (keyboards, guitar), Luke Pettipoole (vocals, bass, piano), and Scott Yoshimura (drums). Discovered on Myspace ...
Hawks
Hawks are birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are widely distributed and are found on all continents except Antarctica.
* The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks and others. This subfamily a ...
, Slipknot (who had 3 #1 Billboard 200 albums like ''
All Hope is Gone
''All Hope Is Gone'' is the fourth studio album by American heavy metal band Slipknot, released on August 26, 2008 by Roadrunner Records. The album was published in two versions: the standard album in a CD case and a special edition packaged ...
'' in 2008),
Stone Sour
Stone Sour is an American rock band formed in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1992. The band performed for five years before disbanding in 1997. They reunited in 2000 and since 2015, the group has consisted of Corey Taylor (lead vocals, guitar), Josh Rand ...
,
Radio Moscow
Radio Moscow ( rus, Pадио Москва, r=Radio Moskva), also known as Radio Moscow World Service, was the official international broadcasting station of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics until 1993. It was reorganized with a new name ...
,
Modern Life Is War
Modern Life Is War is an American hardcore punk band formed in Marshalltown, Iowa in 2002. During Modern Life Is War's six-year original run, the band released three full-length albums and one self-titled 7" EP. Despite a growing profile on the u ...
, and Unknown Component. The city of
Walnut
A walnut is the edible seed of a drupe of any tree of the genus ''Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''.
Although culinarily considered a "nut" and used as such, it is not a true ...
is home to the National Traditional Country Music Association (NTCMA), which produces programs for local radio and television in Iowa. NTCMA also operates the Walnut Country Opera House, which is a theatre and home to several halls of fame and museums. The town of Clear Lake is known as the place
the Big Bopper
Jiles Perry "J.P." Richardson Jr. (October 24, 1930 – February 3, 1959), known as The Big Bopper, was an American singer, songwriter and disc jockey. His best-known compositions include "Chantilly Lace" and " White Lightning", the latter of wh ...
,
Buddy Holly
Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known as Buddy Holly, was an American singer and songwriter who was a central and pioneering figure of mid-1950s rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texas ...
and
Ritchie Valens
Richard Steven Valenzuela (May 13, 1941 – February 3, 1959), known professionally as Ritchie Valens, was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. A rock and roll pioneer and a forefather of the Chicano rock movement, Valens was killed i ...
took off from on the day they died; their last performance was at the
Surf Ballroom
The Surf Ballroom (also called the Surf) is a Historic Rock and Roll Landmark at 460 North Shore Drive, Clear Lake, Iowa, United States. The Surf is closely associated with the event known colloquially as "The Day the Music Died" – early rock ...
. The Escorts (Do's & Don'ts) are one of the first bands to be inducted into the Iowa Rock N Roll Music Association's Hall of Fame. Sioux City brought to the National scene The Velaires, and rocker Tommy Bolin. Also from Iowa is Black Iowegian heavy blues artist John-Paul Jones Group.
Ames
Ames may refer to:
Places United States
* Ames, Arkansas, a place in Arkansas
* Ames, Colorado
* Ames, Illinois
* Ames, Indiana
* Ames, Iowa, the most populous city bearing this name
* Ames, Kansas
* Ames, Nebraska
* Ames, New York
* Ames, Oklah ...
. In July 2008, the inaugural
80/35 Music Festival
80/35 Music Festival is a multi-day music festival in Des Moines, Iowa. The name comes from two prominent interstates, I-80 and I-35, which intersect in Des Moines. The festival includes a stage for national touring bands and several smaller st ...
was held in Des Moines, drawing an estimated 30,000 music fans over 2 days. Iowa City's Mission Creek Festival showcases music and literature and is held every spring. In September 2011 Maximum Ames Music Festival had its first year in
Ames, Iowa
Ames () is a city in Story County, Iowa, United States, located approximately north of Des Moines in central Iowa. It is best known as the home of Iowa State University (ISU), with leading agriculture, design, engineering, and veterinary medici ...
. It has become an annual event drawing national headliners as well as over 100 regional bands each year.
Garner, Iowa
Garner is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Iowa, United States. The population was 3,065 in the 2020 census, an increase from 2,922 in 2000.
HistoryBash on the Farm Christian Music festival since 2002. The free concert features regional acts as well as national acts such as Stellar Kart, The Wedding, Keith Tkachuk and the Flying Mongooses, and 3sp.
Quad City Symphony Orchestra
The Quad City Symphony Orchestra (QCSO) is a United States symphony orchestra based in Davenport, Iowa, and representing the Quad Cities area. The current music director and conductor is Mark Russell Smith. Established in 1916, the orchestra has ...
,
Dubuque Symphony Orchestra
The Dubuque Symphony Orchestra is a non-union, fully professional orchestra located in Dubuque, Iowa. It serves the residents of Dubuque and its surrounding tri-state area which includes 12 counties in Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin. Under Music Dir ...
, Cedar Rapids Opera,
Orchestra Iowa
Orchestra Iowa is an American symphony orchestra based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The current music director and conductor is Timothy Hankewich. Established in 1923 as the Cedar Rapids Symphony Orchestra, the orchestra has a full season, performing ...
(Cedar Rapids),
Sioux City Symphony Orchestra The Sioux City Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Sioux City, Iowa. Its home is the Orpheum Theater.
History
The Sioux City Symphony Orchestra and The Sioux City Municipal Band were each formed in the early 1930s under the guida ...
, Waterloo/Cedar Falls Symphony Orchestra, Southeast Iowa Symphony Orchestra, and the Northwest Iowa Symphony Orchestra.
The three major university music institutions in Iowa include the
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the n ...
School of Music in
Ames
Ames may refer to:
Places United States
* Ames, Arkansas, a place in Arkansas
* Ames, Colorado
* Ames, Illinois
* Ames, Indiana
* Ames, Iowa, the most populous city bearing this name
* Ames, Kansas
* Ames, Nebraska
* Ames, New York
* Ames, Oklah ...
, University of Iowa School of Music in
Iowa City
Iowa City, offically the City of Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is the home of the University of Iowa and county seat of Johnson County, at the center of the Iowa City Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the time ...
, and The University of Northern Iowa School of Music in
Cedar Falls, Iowa
Cedar Falls is a city in Black Hawk County, Iowa, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 40,713. It is home to the University of Northern Iowa, a public university.
History
Cedar Falls was first settled in March 1845 by ...
. Other colleges with music programs include Wartburg, Luther, Cornell, Morningside, and Drake, among others. Also, there is the Celtic Music Association of Des Moines. Major venues include the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines.
The Nordic Choir at Luther College in Decorah has performed around the world, appearing in Norway, England, Germany, Russia, Poland, Hungary, Romania, the Baltic countries, Mexico and the Caribbean. The Nordic Choir has also appeared throughout the United States, performing in well-known concert halls as
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 millio ...
in New York and the
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...
in Washington, D.C. Additionally, Luther College has the largest collegiate choral program in the United States with almost 600 student singers.
Indigenous music
The first music of Iowa was that of
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...
living in the state prior to colonial interaction. The first settlers in Iowa were mostly of
Siouan
Siouan or Siouan–Catawban is a language family of North America that is located primarily in the Great Plains, Ohio and Mississippi valleys and southeastern North America with a few other languages in the east.
Name
Authors who call the entire ...
background. The
Meskwaki
The Meskwaki (sometimes spelled Mesquaki), also known by the European exonyms Fox Indians or the Fox, are a Native American people. They have been closely linked to the Sauk people of the same language family. In the Meskwaki language, the ...
and Sauk were moved into the Tama Settlement from their ancestral lands between Wisconsin and Illinois; there is also the
Sac and Fox Nation
The Sac and Fox Nation (Fox language, ''Mesquakie'' language: ''Othâkîwaki / Thakiwaki'' or ''Sa ki wa ki'') is the largest of three federally recognized tribes, federally recognized tribes of Sauk people, Sauk and Meskwaki, Meskwaki (Fox) Ame ...
Performing Yiddish and Israeli folks music, the Java Jews are a Jewish Klezmer group based in Des Moines. Performed at the 2003, 2004 Iowa State Fair. ee external link
Foot-Notes of Decorah began playing Scandinavian-American old time dance music in 1991 under the leadership of fiddler Beth Hoven Rotto. Foot-Notes maintains an oral tradition of tunes passed down by old time fiddlers in the "borderlands" around
Decorah, Iowa
Decorah is a city in and the county seat of Winneshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 7,587 at the time of the 2020 census. Decorah is located at the intersection of State Highway 9 and U.S. Route 52, and is the largest commun ...
and
Spring Grove, Minnesota
Spring Grove is a city in Houston County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 1,330 at the 2010 census. It is part of the La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
A post office has been in operation at Spring ...
, most prominent of these fiddlers being Bill Sherburne, a notable Norwegian-American fiddler who died at age 90 in 1991. Rotto apprenticed with Sherburne and learned his complete repertoire his passing. The band continues a tradition of playing for community dances in a rustic 1911 vintage two-room schoolhouse in Highlandville, Iowa, where such dances began in the mid-1970s with the music of Bill Sherburne and his band. Foot-Notes music has been featured on Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa public radio and Norwegian national radio programs. The group was selected to represent the State of Iowa at the
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
Festival of American Folklife in 1996 and the Festival of Iowa Folklife in
Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...
Iowa
Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...