Verdi Karns (April 30, 1882 – April 5, 1925), after 1908 Verdi Karns Sturgis'','' was an American composer of popular tunes.

Early life

Verdi Karns was born in

Bluffton, Indiana Bluffton is a city in Harrison and Lancaster townships, Wells County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 10,308 at the 2020 census and the estimated population is 10,390. The city is the county seat of Wells County. History Blufft ...

, the daughter of Lewis Henry Karns and Olive Covert Karns. She was named for the composer

Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

. Her father was a marble cutter. Her mother died in 1884, when Verdi Karns was a small child. She was raised by an aunt and uncle after her father remarried and moved to Kansas. Karns graduated from Bluffton High School in 1901. She attended a music conservatory in

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

; she played piano and violin.

Career

Karns began publishing her own compositions while she was still in high school. Works by Karns included "Giuseppe March" (1898), "Kentucky Rag" (1898), "Bluffton Carnival Rag" (1899), "Ragamuffin" (1899), "Blufftonian Waltzes" (1900), and "Yo' Got to Hab a License or Yo' Can't Get In" (1905, lyrics by Laverne Brown).

Personal life

Verdi Karns married her neighbor, lawyer Raymond R. Sturgis, in 1908. They had a daughter Olive Diana Sturgis, born in 1912. The couple moved to the American Southwest for health reasons, settling in

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

, and then in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

. Verdi Karns Sturgis died in Phoenix in 1925, aged 42 years, from

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

. Pianist Nora Hulse has included performances of Verdi Karns's music on several of her CDs, including ''Cake Walks, Two Steps and Rags by Women Composers'' (1999), ''Ragtime Refreshments'' (2002), and ''60 Years of Ragtime Piano.''

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Karns, Verdi 1882 births 1925 deaths American composers People from Bluffton, Indiana