Williametta Spencer (born August 15, 1927) is a composer, musicologist, and teacher who plays harpsichord, organ, and piano. She is best known for her award-winning choral work ''At the Round Earth’s Imagined Corners''.

Life and career

Spencer was born in

Marion, Illinois Marion is a city in Williamson and Johnson Counties, Illinois, United States, and is the county seat of Williamson County. The population was 16,855 at the 2020 census. It is part of a dispersed urban area that developed out of the early 20th ...

, to Viva Jewell and Samuel Joseph Spencer. The family moved to Paducah, Kentucky, where her father was a minister of music at several different Baptist churches during her childhood. Spencer earned a B.A. at

Whittier College Whittier College (Whittier Academy (1887–1901)) is a private liberal arts college in Whittier, California. It is a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and, as of fall 2022, had approximately 1,300 (undergraduate and graduate) students. It was ...

and a M.Mus. and Ph.D. at the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

. Her dissertation was entitled ''The Influence and Stylistic Heritage of André Caple''t. In 1953, she received a Fulbright scholarship to study in Paris. Her teachers included Pauline Alderman,

Tony Aubin Tony Louis Alexandre Aubin (8 December 1907 – 21 September 1981) was a French composer. Career Aubin was born in Paris. From 1925 to 1930, he studied at the Paris Conservatory under Samuel Rousseau (music theory), Noel Gallon (counterpoint) ...

, Alfred Cortot,

Ingolf Dahl Ingolf Dahl (June 9, 1912 – August 6, 1970) was a German-born American composer, pianist, conductor, and educator. Biography Dahl was born Walter Ingolf Marcus in Hamburg, Germany, to a German Jewish father, attorney Paul Marcus, and his Swed ...

, Ernst Kanitz, and

Halsey Stevens Halsey Stevens (December 3, 1908 – January 20, 1989) was a music professor, biographer, and composer of American music. Life Halsey Stevens was born in Scott, New York and educated at Syracuse University and the University of California, Ber ...

. Spencer has won several awards, including the Southern California Vocal Association National Composition Award for ''At the Round Earth’s Imagined Corners''; Alumni Achievement Awards from Whittier College in 1995 and 2008; and the Amy Beach Award for her orchestral overture. I Cantori commissioned and premiered her choral work, ''And the White Rose is a Dove''. She is a member of

Mu Phi Epsilon Mu Phi Epsilon () is a co-ed international professional fraternity, professional music fraternity. It has over 75,000 members in 227 collegiate chapters and 113 Alumnus/a, alumni chapters in the US and abroad. History Mu Phi Epsilon was founde ...

and the

International Alliance for Women in Music The International Alliance for Women in Music (IAWM) is an international membership organization of women and men dedicated to fostering and encouraging the activities of women in music, particularly in the areas of musical activity, such as compos ...

. Spencer’s works have been published by Associated Music Publishers Inc., Mark Foster Music Co., Orpheus Publications,

Shawnee Press Shawnee Press, Inc., was an independent print and recorded music publisher and for a time, the largest educational music publisher in the world. The Company published several music types including choral, vocal, instrumental, and classroom in a ...

, and Western International Music Co. Her publications include:

Article

*''The Relationship Between André Caplet and Claude Debussy'' (

The Musical Quarterly ''The Musical Quarterly'' is the oldest academic journal on music in America. Originally established in 1915 by Oscar Sonneck, the journal was edited by Sonneck until his death in 1928. Sonneck was succeeded by a number of editors, including Ca ...

, Volume LXVI, Issue 1, January 1980, Pages 112–131)

Chamber

*''Adagio and Rondo'' (oboe and piano) *''Sonata for Clarinet and Piano'' *''Sonata for Trombone and Piano'' *''String Quartet'' *''Suite'' (flute and piano) *''Trio for Brass Instruments''

Orchestra

*Overture *Passacaglia and Double Fugue (string orchestra)

Organ

*''Improvisation and Meditation on “Gott sei gelobet”''

Vocal

*''And the White Rose is a Dove'' (choir) *''As I Rode Out This Enders NIght'' (a cappella choir) *''As I Sat Under a Sycamore Tree'' (a cappella choir) *''At the Round Earth’s Imagined Corners'' (choir; text by John Donne) *''Bright Cap and Streamers'' (choir) *Cantate Domino *''Four Madrigals'' (text by

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...

) *“Give Me the Splendid Silent Sun” (text by

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among ...

) *Make We Joy: A Cantata for Christmastide in a Medieval Atmosphere *Missa Brevis *''Nova, Nova, Ave Fit Ex Eva'' (a cappella choir) *''Three Songs'' (text by

William 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 ...

; flute, oboe, 2 clarinets, bassoon, and voice) *''Two Christmas Madrigals'' (a cappella choir)

External links

*
Williametta Spencer

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spencer, Williametta American women classical composers American classical composers Living people 1927 births String quartet composers University of Southern California alumni American women musicologists 20th-century American composers 20th-century American women musicians 20th-century American musicologists 21st-century American composers 21st-century American women musicians 21st-century American musicologists People from Marion, Illinois Classical musicians from Illinois People from Paducah, Kentucky Classical musicians from Kentucky 20th-century classical composers 21st-century classical composers Fulbright alumni