John C. Worley (1919-1999) was a saxophonist, conductor, professor, and a composer ofclassical, as well as more contemporary music forsaxophone. He was born inWaltham, Massachusetts in 1919 and died on February 16, 1999. He served as conductor and director for many performing ensembles during his long teaching career, as well as a featured performer of saxophone and clarinet.
His early performances included a position as first clarinetist in theColumbus Symphony Orchestra, as well as first clarinetist in theConnecticut Symphony.[1]
While teaching at State University College at Oneonta, NY (aka "Oneonta State", nowSUNY Oneonta) Worley took charge of the community-based Oneonta Symphony (now theCatskill Symphony Orchestra) in 1947. The ensemble had been dormant sinceWorld War II decimated its ranks, and by 1953 Worley had succeeded in rejuvenating it to the point where a full concert was possible.[2] By 1954, under his direction it had swelled to 57 musicians and began presenting local concerts for 400 people.[3] While at Oneonta State, Worley also conducted the campus vocal group, the Choraleers, and served as music director for stage productions. After his retirement from the Symphony, Worley returned to Oneonta to perform as clarinet soloist.[4]
He performed with theSaxophone Sinfonia atLincoln Center in New York City; theCape Cod Orchestra in Massachusetts; and was an active participant at several Saxophone Workshops held by friendsSigurd Raschèr andLee Patrick.
Worley organized theWilliamsburg Saxophone Quartet and was the group'ssoprano saxophonist.
He graduated fromOberlin Conservatory where he studied clarinet with George Wain, and received his Masters from theColumbia Teachers College. He studied composition with SirLennox Berkeley at theRoyal Academy of Music inLondon,England and conducting withPierre Monteux inMaine.
Worley taught at theUniversity of Bridgeport, theState University of New York atOneonta and theUniversity of Maine in Orono in Orono before moving toWilliamsburg, Virginia in 1996.
After he retired from teaching, Worley focused on composing and arranging. His original compositions include:
Transcriptions include:
 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "John Worley" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(November 2019) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
