Lowell M. Durham papers on Utah musicians, 1940-1991

Series — Multiple Containers

Identifier: MSS 8150 Series 2

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Contains files on Durham's colleagues. Includes documents on people like Maurice Abravanel, Crawford Gates, Jay Welch, Varujan Kojian, and Leroy Robertson. A variety of materials are included, such as newspaper clippings of reviews of the works done by these people, notes on their careers, even some correspondence. There are as well materials related to the creation of the Leroy Robertson foundation and the publication of the book on Maurice Abravanel. Some of these relate as well to the Utah Symphony and Deseret Music. Materials date from between 1940 and 1991.

Dates

1940-1991

Conditions Governing Access

Open for public research.

Conditions Governing Use

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances. Permission to publish material from the Lowell M. Durham papers must be obtained from the Supervisor of Reference Services and/or the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Board of Curators.

Biographical History

From the Series: Lowell M. Durham (1917-1992) was an Mormon composer and author in Utah, and professor at the University of Utah.

Lowell Marsden Durham was born on March 4, 1917 to George H. Durham and Nellie Marsden in Utah. In 1941, he received his Bachelor's degree from the University of Utah. He also married Betty Dee Divers that year, on April 26, 1941. He then received a Master's degree from the University of Iowa in 1942, and a Ph.D. from there in 1945. His post-doctoral work was completed at Columbia University and New York University. He returned to the University of Utah in 1946 as a faculty member. He served in executive positions on the Music Critics Association and the American Musicological Society, was a music critic for the Salt Lake Tribune, the musical director of KSL, and then Dean of the College of Fine Arts at the University of Utah in 1955. He retired in 1964. He and his wife Betty had three children: Lowell M., Jr., Susan, and Thomas L. Durham died on November 10, 1992 in Salt Lake City.