Composer Portrait: The Music of Walter Arlen
Walter Arlen was born in Vienna in 1920. His family was dispossessed by the Nazi takeover in March 1938. While in war-effort jobs in Chicago, he studied with composer Leo Sowerby. In 1947, he became the assistant to composer Roy Harris and his wife, pianist Johanna Harris, as they accepted four year-long composer-in-residence positions at four universities, working with most US composers, conductors, and soloists. He was invited to join the Los Angeles Times as a music critic in 1952. In 1969, he founded the music department at Loyola Marymount University, and served as its chairperson and professor while continuing to write reviews until 1980. His compositions began to be performed and recorded in 2008.
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