Whether the average man or woman on the street recognizes the rather ordinary name, he or she will undoubtedly recognize the colorful music of iconic American composer
Leroy Anderson. He is the author of some of the most popular tunes ever written, tunes that are inherently crossover in character, tunes hummed by adults and children alike, tunes and pieces appearing in countless arrangements. Who hasn't heard and whistled that ubiquitous Christmas favorite Sleigh Ride? And numbers like Plink, Plank, Plunk! and The Syncopated Clock are not only popular from American television shows of yesteryear (I've Got a Secret and CBS Television's Late Show, respectively), but have had numerous reincarnations in various media since. Other popular pieces include the million-selling Blue Tango, television favorite Bugler's Holiday, and radio news favorite The Typewriter. Typically,
Anderson wrote his works for orchestra and then arranged them for band or another combination of instruments. Other arrangers, too, have made numerous versions of his most popular pieces. His works have appeared in one guise or another on countless labels, including RCA, Mercury, Telarc, and Naxos, to name a few.
Leroy Anderson was born in Cambridge, MA, on June 29, 1908. His mother, a church organist, first taught young
Leroy on piano and organ. From 1919
Anderson studied music at the New England Conservatory of Music. From 1926-1930 he studied composition at Harvard with Walter Spaulding, Edward Ballantine, and William Heilman. Later teachers included
Walter Piston and
George Enescu. While studying German and Scandinavian languages at Harvard in the 1930s,
Anderson worked as an arranger for the
Boston Pops. The orchestra's conductor
Arthur Fiedler was impressed with his work and eventually secured two commissions for
Anderson: Jazz Pizzicato and Jazz Legato, both from 1938 and both successfully premiered by the
Pops, were the result.
While serving in the Army during World War II,
Anderson wrote The Syncopated Clock (1945), which along with other pieces in the 1950s (especially Blue Tango) made him a celebrity.
Anderson's Concerto in C for piano and orchestra (1953) was premiered in 1954 with
Eugene List as soloist and
Anderson conducting. It was not a success, nor was his lone musical, Goldilocks (1958). His orchestral miniatures, however, remained staples of concert and pops programs throughout the U.S., while gaining currency abroad.
Anderson was active as a conductor for most of his career and made several highly successful recordings.