Lieurance, Thurlow (Weed)

Lieurance, Thurlow (Weed), American composer; b. Oskaloosa, Iowa, March 21, 1878; d. Boulder, Colo., Oct. 9,1963. He learned to play the cornet. After serving as a bandmaster during the Spanish-American War, he took courses in harmony and arranging at the Cincinnati Coll. of Music. His visit to the Crow Indian reservation in 1903 prompted him to develop an intense interest in American Indian music and customs. From 1911 he made field recordings of his travels. He later taught at the Municipal Univ. in Wichita, Kans., where he served as dean of its music dept. (1940–57). His collection of American Indian music is housed in the Archive of Folk Culture at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. In his compositions, Lieurance found inspiration in the music of the American Indian. His song By the Waters of Minnetonka or Moon Deer (1917) achieved tremendous popularity.

Works

dramatic: Drama of the Yellowstone.orch.:Minisa (1930); Paris, France, symphonic sketches (1931); Trails Southwest (1932); The Conquistador (1934); Colonial Exposition Sketches; Medicine Dance; Water Moon Maiden.chamber: More than 200 salon pieces for various instrumental combinations, including piano pieces (1904–55); numerous arrangements. vocal: choral:Queen Esther, oratorio (1897); (11) Indian Love Songs (1925); (10) Indian Songs (1934); part songs; numerous arrangements. songs for voice and piano: 5 Songs (1907); 9 Indian Songs (1913); By the Waters of Minnetonka or Moon Deer (1917); Songs of the North American Indian (1920); Songs from the Yellowstone (1920–21); 8 Songs from Green Timber (1921); Forgotten Trails (1923); 3 Songs, Each in His Own Tongue (1925); 6 Songs from Stray Birds (1937); From the Land in the Sky (1941); Singing Children of the Sun (1943).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire