Bradshaw, Merrill
biographical statement
Citation:
Merrill Bradshaw Archive Website, website viewed 2 Mar. 2011 (born in WY, June 18, 1929; taught piano at BYU, died July 12, 2000; had no teacher, but learned popular classical solos of the day; was experienced in football, basketball, track (1/2-mile—third in the State Championships), designing dance decorations, drama, and just about everything else the high school offered; played piano in a dance band-- "Blackie’s Red Jackets"-- and in the school band—bassoon and trombone; was editor of the yearbook and student body president; won a prize in the National Scholastic Composition Contest for a piece he wrote while a senior; entered BYU in the fall of 1947 to study music and english; Dr. John R. Halliday became an important mentor for him; John Halliday was instrumental in getting Merrill hired at BYU; there he taught for 37 years; composed over two hundred musical works, ranging from simple piano pieces and songs to symphonies and concertos to oratorios and pageants; best known work is The Restoration; works have been performed by many regional, national and international symphonies and choirs, including the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square; had an especially good relationship with Ralph Laycock, conductor of the orchestra for many years, who premiered many of Merrill’s orchestral works, and Ralph Woodward, conductor of the A Cappella Choir who did the same for many choral works; wrote a series of essays "Letters to a Young Mormon Composer" in an enveloping, engaging style, which encouraged and influenced many composition students; sat on the National Composers Forum board, and as the first head of the Barlow Endowment for Musical Composition met with many revered conductors and composers)Found in 6 Collections and/or Records:
Merrill Bradshaw papers
Collection includes (spans the dates 1952-1996) hand-written manuscripts created by Merrill Bradshaw, original scores and parts, published and bound scores such as “Title of Liberty” and “The Restoration”; papers centered around his teaching years such as grade transcripts and class rolls; audio/video recordings that include reel-to-reel tapes, cassette tapes, CDs, video cassettes, and LPs, and correspondence.
Merrill Bradshaw departmental secretary files, 1966-1967
Departmental secretary files.
Merrill Bradshaw general correspondence, 1965-1967
General correspondence.
Merrill Bradshaw manuscripts and published scores, 1955-1996
Materials include hand-written manuscripts created by Merrill Bradshaw. Original scores and parts included. Published and bound scores are also included. Prominent scores include "The Restoration" and "Title of Liberty."
Merrill Bradshaw music faculty correspondence, 1965-1967
Contains files of the department chair, and general department and faculty records, including correspondence, minutes, procedures, publications, and a sampling of class outlines and examinations.
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