Burleigh, Cecil

Burleigh, Cecil, American composer, violinist, and teacher; b. Wyo., N.Y., April 17, 1885; d. Madison, Wise, July 28, 1980. He studied violin and theory as a child; after training with Anton Witek (violin) and Leichtentritt (composition) at the Klindworth-Scharwenka Cons, in Berlin (1903–05), he studied with Émile Sauret (violin) and Borowski (composition) at the Chicago Musical Coll. (1905–07). From 1907 to 1909 he toured as a soloist with orchs. and as a recitalist in North America. He taught violin at the Western Inst. of Music and Drama in Denver (1909–11), violin and theory at Morningside Coll. in Sioux City, Iowa (1911–14), and at Mont. State Univ. in Missoula. In 1919 he went to N.Y. to study violin with Auer, composition with Bloch, and orchestrtion with Rothwell, concurrently pursuing his career as a violinist. He taught violin, theory, and composition at the Univ. of Wisc. in Madison from 1921 to 1955.

Works

orch.: 3 violin concertos: No. 1 (1912), No. 2, Indian (1918; Cleveland, March 13, 1921), and No. 3 (1927); Mountain Pictures (1917–19); Evangeline (1918); The Village Dance (1921; based on a piano piece); 2 Sketches from the Orient for Band (1927; based on a piano piece); Leaders of Men (1943); 3 syms.: Creation, Prophecy, and Revelation (c. 1944; Madison, Wisc. May 1, 1955); From the Muses for Small Orch. (1945).chamber:4 Rocky Mountain Sketches for Violin and Piano (1914); Scherzando fantastique for Violin and Piano (1921); 2 violin sonatas (The Ascension, 1914; From the Life of St. Paul, 1926); 6 Nature Studies for Violin and Piano (1915); 4 Prairie Sketches for Violin and Piano (1916); Hymn to the Ancients for Piano Quintet (1940); 2 Essays for String Quartet, Illusion and Transition (1945); piano pieces. vocal: About 65 songs.

Bibliography

J. Howard, C. B.(N.Y., 1929).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire