Cicero, Illinois
Cicero (originally known as Hawthorne) is a suburb of Chicago and an incorporated town in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 85,268. making it the 11th largest municipality in Illinois. The town of Cic ...
Hawthorne Works
The Hawthorne Works was a large factory complex of the Western Electric Company in Cicero, Illinois. Named after the original name of the town, Hawthorne, it opened in 1905 and operated until 1983. At its peak of operations, Hawthorne employed 4 ...
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
(BSM 1954, GBSM 1955, Music Education/Composition) and the United States Navy School of Music (1956) where he would refine his composition and arranging skills while fulfilling his military service obligations. In 1971, Tyra earned his
Ph.D
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
in Music Education from the
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
under the auspices of Allen Britton, Emil Holz, and long-time
Director of Bands
A Director of Bands is the head figure of a marching or concert form of bands, a person who leads a musical ensemble. The Director, by history and tradition, must know all the concepts of music and must be able to teach all different kinds of instr ...
,
William Revelli
William D. Revelli (February 12, 1902 – July 16, 1994) was an American music educator and conductor best known for his association with the University of Michigan, where he directed the university's bands including the Michigan Marching Ba ...
.
Bandmaster, music educator and mentor
Following graduation from Northwestern in 1955, Tyra began his career as a high school band director 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, ...
. The following year, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was ordered to Washington, DC, where he fulfilled his military service obligations as a staff arranger and rehearsal conductor at the Navy School of Music. Upon his honorable discharge in late 1957 - followed by a brief teaching assignment at Morton College in his hometown of Cicero - Tyra joined the
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...
faculty in the Fall of 1958, serving as an assistant to the
Director of Bands
A Director of Bands is the head figure of a marching or concert form of bands, a person who leads a musical ensemble. The Director, by history and tradition, must know all the concepts of music and must be able to teach all different kinds of instr ...
L. Bruce Jones. In 1959, LSU elevated Tyra to the position of 14th Bandmaster of the Tiger Marching Band, making him - at age 26 - the nation's youngest director of a major university marching band.
That same year Tyra created the ''LSU Ballet Corps'' dance line, launching what would in 1965, become the LSU Golden Girls. Satisfying the constant demand for new musical content on the LSU gridiron was a small cadre of aspiring student composers and arrangers which included
Bill Conti
William Conti (born April 13, 1942) is an American composer and conductor, best known for his film scores, including ''Rocky'' (and four of its sequels), ''The Karate Kid'' (and all of its sequels), '' For Your Eyes Only'', ''Dynasty'' (and its ...
. Conti would later gain fame by penning ''
Gonna Fly Now
"Gonna Fly Now", also known as "Theme from ''Rocky''", is the theme song from the movie ''Rocky'', composed by Bill Conti with lyrics by Carol Connors and Ayn Robbins, and performed by DeEtta West and Nelson Pigford. Released in 1976 with ''Rocky ...
'', the theme song popularized by the 1976 hit film ''
Rocky
''Rocky'' is a 1976 American sports drama film directed by John G. Avildsen and written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. It is the first installment in the ''Rocky'' franchise and stars Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, and Burge ...
''. During his tenure, Tyra introduced '' Hey, Fightin' Tigers'', an adaptation of '' Hey, Look Me Over'' from the 1960 musical '' Wildcat!'' by Cy Coleman and Carolyn Leigh. This team spirit song - later adopted by the LSU Golden Girls as their introductory theme - continues to be used at LSU athletic events today.
In 1964, Tyra was appointed Director of Bands at
Eastern Michigan University
Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...
. In 1968, a young Max Plank joined the EMU Bands Program as Tyra's assistant. Together they forged a lifelong collaboration and friendship that would result in significant growth of the EMU's band program and its traditions. In 2002, Plank passed the leadership mantle to Scott Boerma, ending an era that spanned over 38 years of EMU Band history. After leaving EMU in 1977 and until 1985, Tyra headed th Department of Music at
Western Carolina University
Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system.
The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded ...
, strengthening its Music Education curriculum and planting the seeds of growth for its instrumental performance programs, including marching band. From 1985 until his retirement in 1989, he served as Professor and Dean of the Crane School of Music at SUNY-Potsdam.
He also held appointments as Director of the Ann Arbor Civic Band (late 1960s to 1977) and guest Clinician at the Ontario Youth Music Camp in Beaverton, Ontario, Canada (1970–73).
Tyra was a member of the Iota Chapter of
Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia
Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America (colloquially known as Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, Phi Mu Alpha, or simply Sinfonia) () is an American collegiate social fraternity for men with a special interest in music. The fraternity is open to men "w ...
at Northwestern University, the
Kappa Kappa Psi
Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity (, colloquially referred to as KKPsi), is a fraternity for college and university band members in the United States. It was founded on November 27, 1919, on Thanksgiving Day, at Oklahoma Agricult ...
Tyra wrote numerous original compositions, arrangements, and lyrics for works performed by wind ensembles, marching bands, military bands, and brass ensembles of all levels.
For beginning bands, Tyra wrote a series of compositions that he (whimsically) titled ''Wholey Hymn'', ''Modal March'', ''Pentatonic Polka'', ''Quartal Caper'', and ''Polytonal Parade''. Compositions and arrangements for intermediate bands include ''Two 17th Century Italian Songs'' and arrangements of Handel's '' The Messiah (Part I)'' and "I'd Do Anything" from the
Lionel Bart
Lionel Bart (1 August 1930 – 3 April 1999) was a British writer and composer of pop music and musicals. He wrote Tommy Steele's " Rock with the Caveman" and was the sole creator of the musical ''Oliver!'' (1960). With ''Oliver!'' and his wor ...
musical '' Oliver!.'' His ''Two Gaelic Folk Songs'' (1964) - an arrangement of the two Irish patriotic tunes ''
Molly Malone
"Molly Malone" (also known as "Cockles and Mussels" or "In Dublin's Fair City") is a traditional song set in Dublin, Ireland, which has become its unofficial anthem.
A statue representing Molly Malone was unveiled on Grafton Street by then Lo ...
'' and ''
Wearing of the Green
"The Wearing of the Green" is an Irish street ballad lamenting the repression of supporters of the Irish Rebellion of 1798. It is to an old Irish air, and many versions of the lyric exist, the best-known being by Dion Boucicault. The song procl ...
'' in the 20th-century classical music idiom - remains in the standard repertoire for many intermediate band programs. A third Gaelic tune, '' The Minstrel Boy'', was also arranged by Tyra and originally intended to round out this collection. Never published, it is now part of the Music Department archives at Eastern Michigan University.
For more skilled ensembles, he penned many arrangements of pre-game and half-time music for the Northwestern, LSU and EMU Marching Bands, including nationally televised works performed by the Tiger Marching Band when LSU competed post-season at the Sugar Bowl (1959, 1960), the
Orange Bowl
The Orange Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Miami metropolitan area. It has been played annually since January 1, 1935, making it, along with the Sugar Bowl and the Sun Bowl, the second-oldest bowl game ...
(1962), the
Cotton Bowl Classic
The Cotton Bowl Classic (also known as the Cotton Bowl) is an American college football bowl game that has been held annually in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex since January 1, 1937. The game was originally played at its namesake stadium i ...
(1963) and the
Bluebonnet Bowl
The Bluebonnet Bowl was an annual college football bowl game played in Houston, Texas. A civic group was appointed by the Houston Chamber of Commerce Athletics Committee in 1959 to organize the bowl game. It was held at Rice Stadium from 19 ...
(1964). His original compositions include ''Suite for Brass and Timpani'', ''Three Christmas Miniatures'', ''Ceremonial Sketch'' and ''Intravention.'' For Eastern Michigan University, Tyra composed ''Eastern Variants'', the music and lyrics for ''Go Green!'', '' The Pride of the Peninsula'', ''Huron War Cry'', ''EMU Fanfare'' and the break strain for the Huron (now Eagle) . These compositions - integral to modern EMU band tradition - reflect the expertise he developed in writing for low brass voices while serving at the U.S. Navy School of Music.
Northwestern University alma mater
As part of Northwestern University's early 1950s efforts to revitalize its school hymn (''Quaecumque Sunt Vera''), then Director-of-Band John Paynter recruited Tyra - at the time an undergraduate music major, trumpet player and staff assistant for the Wildcat Band - to craft English words to replace the hymn's traditional Latin verse. The earliest known recorded performance of their resulting collaboration - rename Mater (University Hymn)'' - was made on October 3, 1953 by the Northwestern Glee Club.
Paynter's instrumental/ a cappella musical arrangement and Tyra's lyrics (''. . . Hail to Purple, Hail to White, Hail to thee Northwestern . . . .'') remain an integral part of Northwestern University tradition today, typically played by the Wildcat Band at the completion of their halftime performances and at Northwestern graduation ceremonies. See the Wildcat Band performing the .
Marriage and family
Tyra was married four times. In 1955, he married Suzanne Jocelyn Sheldon (Northwestern BSM 1955, b.1933 d.1973) of Chico, California. Their union produced his six - and only children. After divorcing in 1972, Suzanne "Sue" Tyra died in December 1973. In May 1976, he married Valerie Suzanne Franklin (Eastern Michigan University BBA 1971) of Brooklyn, Michigan. They divorced in December 1980. In 1981, Tyra married Judith Ann Hastings Carpenter (b.1942, d.1987) of Pittsburg, Kansas, who preceded him in death.
Tyra's granddaughter,
Emily Tyra
Emily Tyra (born November 9, 1987) is an American actress, singer and dancer.
A native of Minneapolis, Tyra grew up studying dance, music, acting and improvisation. Trained in classical ballet, Tyra began her professional career in 2005 as a da ...
,Emily Tyra at IMDb /ref> is an established television, film and Broadway actress. Beginning in 2016, she joined the cast of CBS Entertainment's '' Code Black'' television series, portraying Dr. Noa Kean.
Final years
Following his 1989 retirement from the Crane School of Music, Tyra relocated to Atlanta, Georgia where he would spend his remaining years living nearby his daughters and their families. He died on July 7, 1995 of complications arising from leukemia. During his long illness, he liked to tell his doctors that he would put up a good fight, but it was their job to find a cure in time.
Gallery
File: Thomas Tyra USN 1956.jpg, At U.S. Navy School of Music (ca 1956)
File:LSU Tiger Band 1963.jpg, 1963 LSU Tiger Marching Band
File:Tyra Plank EMU.jpg, Tyra and Max Plank at Eastern Michigan University (ca 1970s)
File:Thomas Tyra EMU 1970.jpg, At Eastern Michigan University (ca 1970)
File:Tyra Crane Conduct 196.jpg, Dean, SUNY Crane School of Music (ca 1986)
File:Tyra Crane 1996.png, At SUNY-Potsdam Crane School of Music (ca 1986)