Norman Leyden
Encyclopedia
Norman Fowler Leyden is an American
, conductor, arranger, and clarinetist. He has worked in film
and television
and is perhaps best known as the conductor of the Oregon Symphony
Pops orchestra
. He co-wrote with Glenn Miller the theme "I Sustain the Wings" in 1943, which was used to introduce the World War II radio series.
to James A. and Constance Leyden. He graduated from Yale University
in 1938, attended Pierre Monteux
's Domaine Musicale in Hancock, Maine
in 1961, and earned a master's (1965) and doctoral degree (1968) from Columbia University
(where he also taught for several years). He married in 1942 in Duval County, Florida to Alice Curry Wells.
while attending Yale. Leyden joined the United States National Guard
in 1940 for a planned year of volunteer work and enlisted as an infantry sergeant on February 24, 1941 in New Haven, Connecticut
. His enlistment papers gives his height as six foot two and his weight as 165 and gives his specialty as a musician or band leader. During World War II
he served in the Army Air Force for five years.
While Leyden was serving as a master sergeant
in Atlantic City and rehearsing music, Glenn Miller
heard Leyden perform. Miller said to him "For a Yale man, you don't play bad tenor".Miller called on Leyden in September 1943 to conduct the Moss Hart
Army Air Force spectacular "Winged Victory". This was a big musical play in Broadway
's Shubert Theatre
with an all service band. The show started in November 1943. Leyden next requested the opportunity to arrange for Glenn Miller, and was accepted and served as one of three arrangers for Glenn Miller
's Air Force Band. His first arrangement for the band was "Now I Know". Sometimes, Leyden would write more complexity into the score than was desirable. Miller told him once "Hey Norm, it was a nice try. But remember it ain't what you write, it's what you don't write". In 1943, Leyden composed the theme music for the wartime radio series "I Sustain the Wings" with Glenn Miller, Chummy MacGregor, and Bill Meyers. The radio program ran from 1943 to 1944. Leyden also arranged for the reorganized Glenn Miller Orchestra
of Tex Beneke
. In August 2000, he led the Air Force Falconaires of the Air Force Band of the Rockies in a PBS television special Glenn Miller's Last Flight.
Between 1956-1959, he was musical director for Arthur Godfrey
's radio program. He also worked as musical director on The $64,000 Question (including writing the theme music
), and as the musical director of The Jackie Gleason Show
, originally called You're in the Picture
(1961). He also organized the Westchester County Youth Orchestra in White Plains, New York
in 1957, (an organization he led until 1968). As a staff arranger at RCA Victor he composed and arranged music for Disney and other musicals including Cinderella
, Alice in Wonderland
, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
, Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan
, and Pinocchio
. Leyden also conducted and arranged for many well-known artists including Tony Bennett
, Don Cornell
, Johnny Desmond
, Gordon MacRae
, Mitch Miller
, Ezio Pinza
, Frank Sinatra
, and Sarah Vaughan
.
Leyden moved to Portland, Oregon
in 1968 to take over the Portland Youth Philharmonic
(then the Portland Junior Symphony) while long-time conductor Jacob Avshalomov
went on sabbatical. He also joined the music department at Portland State University
.
He began his long-standing relationship with the Oregon Symphony
in 1970 as associate conductor. This lasted for 29 seasons plus 34 seasons as conductor of the Oregon Symphony Pops. Over one million people attended his Oregon Symphony Pops concerts. In May 2004, he retired and was honored with the lifetime title laureate associate conductor. Leyden also served as the music director of the Seattle Symphony Pops for eighteen seasons, and as conductor of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra
's Prairie Pops for eight seasons. He also conducted the Chappaqua Orchestra
as its second music director before moving to the West Coast. He worked with Portland
-based band Pink Martini
and can be heard performing a clarinet solo on the title track of the band's second album, Hang On Little Tomato
.
Leyden's personal music score library, housed in an airy basement studio, includes over 1,200 symphonic arrangements and 300 big band works. Leyden continues to practice the clarinet every day. On Wednesday October 17, 2007 he conducted a 90th birthday concert with the 17-piece Norman Leyden Big Band at Portland's Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
, titled Norman's Big Band Birthday Concert.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, conductor, arranger, and clarinetist. He has worked in film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
and is perhaps best known as the conductor of the Oregon Symphony
Oregon Symphony
The Oregon Symphony is an American orchestra based in Portland, Oregon. Founded as the Portland Symphony Society in 1896, it is the sixth oldest orchestra in the United States, and oldest in the Western United States...
Pops orchestra
Pops orchestra
A pops orchestra is an orchestra that plays popular music and show tunes as well as well-known classical works. Pops orchestras are generally organised in large cities and are distinct from the more "highbrow" symphony or philharmonic orchestras which also may exist in the same city...
. He co-wrote with Glenn Miller the theme "I Sustain the Wings" in 1943, which was used to introduce the World War II radio series.
Early Years
Norman Leyden was born in Springfield, MassachusettsSpringfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
to James A. and Constance Leyden. He graduated from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in 1938, attended Pierre Monteux
Pierre Monteux
Pierre Monteux was an orchestra conductor. Born in Paris, France, Monteux later became an American citizen.-Life and career:Monteux was born in Paris in 1875. His family was descended from Sephardi Jews who came to France in the wake of the Spanish Inquisition. He studied violin from an early age,...
's Domaine Musicale in Hancock, Maine
Hancock, Maine
Hancock is a town in Hancock County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,147 at the 2000 census. Located on the mainland at the head of Frenchman Bay, Hancock has commanding views of Mount Desert Island.-History:...
in 1961, and earned a master's (1965) and doctoral degree (1968) from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
(where he also taught for several years). He married in 1942 in Duval County, Florida to Alice Curry Wells.
Music career
He began his professional music career playing bass clarinet for the New Haven Symphony OrchestraNew Haven Symphony Orchestra
The New Haven Symphony Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra based in New Haven, Connecticut. The New Haven Symphony Orchestra gave its first concert in 1895 and is the fourth oldest orchestra in the United States.- History :...
while attending Yale. Leyden joined the United States National Guard
United States National Guard
The National Guard of the United States is a reserve military force composed of state National Guard militia members or units under federally recognized active or inactive armed force service for the United States. Militia members are citizen soldiers, meaning they work part time for the National...
in 1940 for a planned year of volunteer work and enlisted as an infantry sergeant on February 24, 1941 in New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
. His enlistment papers gives his height as six foot two and his weight as 165 and gives his specialty as a musician or band leader. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he served in the Army Air Force for five years.
While Leyden was serving as a master sergeant
Master Sergeant
A master sergeant is the military rank for a senior non-commissioned officer in some armed forces.-Israel Defense Forces:Rav samal rishoninsignia IDF...
in Atlantic City and rehearsing music, Glenn Miller
Glenn Miller
Alton Glenn Miller was an American jazz musician , arranger, composer, and bandleader in the swing era. He was one of the best-selling recording artists from 1939 to 1943, leading one of the best known "Big Bands"...
heard Leyden perform. Miller said to him "For a Yale man, you don't play bad tenor".Miller called on Leyden in September 1943 to conduct the Moss Hart
Moss Hart
Moss Hart was an American playwright and theatre director, best known for his interpretations of musical theater on Broadway.-Early years:...
Army Air Force spectacular "Winged Victory". This was a big musical play in Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
's Shubert Theatre
Shubert Theatre (Broadway)
The Shubert Theatre is a Broadway theatre located at 225 West 44th Street in midtown-Manhattan, New York, United States.Designed by architect Henry Beaumont Herts, it was named after Sam S. Shubert, the second oldest of the three brothers of the theatrical producing family...
with an all service band. The show started in November 1943. Leyden next requested the opportunity to arrange for Glenn Miller, and was accepted and served as one of three arrangers for Glenn Miller
Glenn Miller
Alton Glenn Miller was an American jazz musician , arranger, composer, and bandleader in the swing era. He was one of the best-selling recording artists from 1939 to 1943, leading one of the best known "Big Bands"...
's Air Force Band. His first arrangement for the band was "Now I Know". Sometimes, Leyden would write more complexity into the score than was desirable. Miller told him once "Hey Norm, it was a nice try. But remember it ain't what you write, it's what you don't write". In 1943, Leyden composed the theme music for the wartime radio series "I Sustain the Wings" with Glenn Miller, Chummy MacGregor, and Bill Meyers. The radio program ran from 1943 to 1944. Leyden also arranged for the reorganized Glenn Miller Orchestra
Glenn Miller Orchestra
The Glenn Miller Orchestra was originally formed in 1938 by Glenn Miller. It was arranged around a clarinet and tenor saxophone playing melody, while three other saxophones played the harmony...
of Tex Beneke
Tex Beneke
Gordon Lee Beneke , professionally known as Tex Beneke, was an American saxophonist, singer, and bandleader. His career is a history of associations with bandleader Glenn Miller and former musicians and singers who worked with Miller. His band is also associated with the careers of Eydie Gorme...
. In August 2000, he led the Air Force Falconaires of the Air Force Band of the Rockies in a PBS television special Glenn Miller's Last Flight.
Between 1956-1959, he was musical director for Arthur Godfrey
Arthur Godfrey
Arthur Morton Godfrey was an American radio and television broadcaster and entertainer who was sometimes introduced by his nickname, The Old Redhead...
's radio program. He also worked as musical director on The $64,000 Question (including writing the theme music
Theme music
Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...
), and as the musical director of The Jackie Gleason Show
The Jackie Gleason Show
The Jackie Gleason Show is the name of a series of popular American network television shows that starred Jackie Gleason, which ran from 1952 to 1970.-Cavalcade of Stars:...
, originally called You're in the Picture
You're in the Picture
You're in the Picture is an American television game show that aired on CBS for only one episode on Friday, January 20, 1961 at 9:30pm, the evening of the Inauguration of John F. Kennedy....
(1961). He also organized the Westchester County Youth Orchestra in White Plains, New York
White Plains, New York
White Plains is a city and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located in south-central Westchester, about east of the Hudson River and northwest of Long Island Sound...
in 1957, (an organization he led until 1968). As a staff arranger at RCA Victor he composed and arranged music for Disney and other musicals including Cinderella
Cinderella (1950 film)
Cinderella is a 1950 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the fairy tale "Cendrillon" by Charles Perrault. Twelfth in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film had a limited release on February 15, 1950 by RKO Radio Pictures. Directing credits go to Clyde Geronimi,...
, Alice in Wonderland
Alice in Wonderland (1951 film)
Alice in Wonderland is a 1951 American animated feature produced by Walt Disney and based primarily on Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland with a few additional elements from Through the Looking-Glass. Thirteenth in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film was released in New...
, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954 film)
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea is a 1954 adventure film starring Kirk Douglas as Ned Land, James Mason as Captain Nemo, Paul Lukas as Professor Pierre Aronnax, and Peter Lorre as Conseil. It was the first science fiction film produced by Walt Disney Productions, as well as the only science-fiction...
, Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan
Peter Pan (1953 film)
Peter Pan is a 1953 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the play Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up by J. M. Barrie. It is the fourteenth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and was originally released on February 5, 1953 by RKO Pictures...
, and Pinocchio
Pinocchio (1940 film)
Pinocchio is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the story The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. It is the second film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, and it was made after the success of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and was released to theaters by...
. Leyden also conducted and arranged for many well-known artists including Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett is an American singer of popular music, standards, show tunes, and jazz....
, Don Cornell
Don Cornell
Don Cornell was an American singer prominent mainly in the 1940s and 1950s noted for his smooth but robust baritone voice....
, Johnny Desmond
Johnny Desmond
Johnny Desmond , born Giovanni Alfredo De Simone, was a popular American singer.-Early years:...
, Gordon MacRae
Gordon MacRae
Gordon MacRae was an American actor and singer, best known for his appearances in the film versions of two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, Oklahoma! and Carousel and films with Doris Day like Starlift.-Early life:Born Albert Gordon MacRae in East Orange, New Jersey, MacRae graduated from...
, Mitch Miller
Mitch Miller
Mitchell William "Mitch" Miller was an American musician, singer, conductor, record producer, A&R man and record company executive...
, Ezio Pinza
Ezio Pinza
Ezio Pinza was an Italian basso opera singer with a rich, smooth and sonorous voice. He spent 22 seasons at New York's Metropolitan Opera, appearing in more than 750 performances of 50 operas...
, Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
, and Sarah Vaughan
Sarah Vaughan
Sarah Lois Vaughan was an American jazz singer, described by Scott Yanow as having "one of the most wondrous voices of the 20th century."...
.
Leyden moved to Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
in 1968 to take over the Portland Youth Philharmonic
Portland Youth Philharmonic
The Portland Youth Philharmonic is the oldest youth orchestra in the United States, established in 1924 as the Portland Junior Symphony . Now based in Portland, Oregon, the orchestra's origin dates back to 1910 when music teacher Mary V. Dodge began playing music for local children in Burns...
(then the Portland Junior Symphony) while long-time conductor Jacob Avshalomov
Jacob Avshalomov
Jacob Avshalomov is a Jewish American composer and conductor.-Early life and education:Jacob Avshalomov was born on March 28, 1919 in Tsingtao, China. His father was Aaron Avshalomov, the Siberian-born composer known for "oriental musical materials cast in western forms and media"; his mother was...
went on sabbatical. He also joined the music department at Portland State University
Portland State University
Portland State University is a public state urban university located in downtown Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1946, it has the largest overall enrollment of any university in the state of Oregon, including undergraduate and graduate students. It is also the only public university in...
.
He began his long-standing relationship with the Oregon Symphony
Oregon Symphony
The Oregon Symphony is an American orchestra based in Portland, Oregon. Founded as the Portland Symphony Society in 1896, it is the sixth oldest orchestra in the United States, and oldest in the Western United States...
in 1970 as associate conductor. This lasted for 29 seasons plus 34 seasons as conductor of the Oregon Symphony Pops. Over one million people attended his Oregon Symphony Pops concerts. In May 2004, he retired and was honored with the lifetime title laureate associate conductor. Leyden also served as the music director of the Seattle Symphony Pops for eighteen seasons, and as conductor of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra
Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra
The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra is a major American orchestra based in Indianapolis, Indiana.Annually, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra performs 200 concerts for over 350,000 people. It is the largest performing arts organization in Indiana. The ISO is currently one of only 18 American...
's Prairie Pops for eight seasons. He also conducted the Chappaqua Orchestra
Chappaqua Orchestra
Founded in 1958 by Boris Koutzen and other musicians from the NBC Symphony who were residents of Chappaqua, New York and neighboring towns in Westchester County , the Chappaqua Orchestra annually presents a season of orchestral and chamber concerts...
as its second music director before moving to the West Coast. He worked with Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
-based band Pink Martini
Pink Martini
Pink Martini is a 13-member "little orchestra" from Portland, Oregon, formed in 1994 by pianist Thomas M. Lauderdale. They draw inspiration from music from all over the world – crossing genres of classical, jazz and old-fashioned pop.-History:...
and can be heard performing a clarinet solo on the title track of the band's second album, Hang On Little Tomato
Hang on Little Tomato
Hang On Little Tomato is the second full-length album from the band Pink Martini. Seven years after their debut album, it was released on October 19, 2004 by Pink Martini's own record label, Heinz Records...
.
Leyden's personal music score library, housed in an airy basement studio, includes over 1,200 symphonic arrangements and 300 big band works. Leyden continues to practice the clarinet every day. On Wednesday October 17, 2007 he conducted a 90th birthday concert with the 17-piece Norman Leyden Big Band at Portland's Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
The Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall , opened as the Portland Publix Theater before becoming the Paramount after 1930, is a historic theater building and performing arts center in Portland, Oregon, United States...
, titled Norman's Big Band Birthday Concert.