JAVS Fall 2012

5 Charles Lewis, “103rd Birthday Tribute Concert for Louise Lincoln Kerr,” (speech, Kerr Cultural Center, ASU, Scottsdale, AZ, April 23, 1995). 6 Andrew Shaw, interview with the author, April 1995. 7 Jim Newton, “Mrs. Kerr, 80, Eyes Future,” Arizona Republic , April 29, 1972. 8 Diane Sullivan, interview with the author, 2001. 9 Excepting Berceuse ; one of the draft manuscript scores bears the date November – 1947. 10 Betty Lou Cummings, interview with the author, September 22, 2012. 11 Louise Lincoln Kerr, Las Fatigas del Querer for Violin and Piano (unpublished manuscript, Arizona Collection, ASU Archives MSS-90). Kerr’s Etude , for violin and viola, is available in a new edition by the American Viola Society at: http://ameri canviolasociety.org/resources/scores/american-viola-proj ect/. Her Five Character Pieces for Viola and Piano is available from the Four Seasons Orchestra at: http://www.fourseasonsorchestra.org/shop.html. A recording of Kerr’s viola music has recently been released on the CD Arizona Profiles . Copies of the CD are also available on the Four Seasons Orchestra website. Dr. Carolyn Waters Broe is the viola instructor at Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix, Arizona. She is also the conductor of the Four Seasons Orchestra and the violist with the Four Seasons String Quartet of Scottsdale, Arizona. Broe has performed as the viola soloist with several orchestras and is recorded on numerous CDs. More information is available at http://www.fourseasonsorchestra.org.

Conclusion

Louise Kerr left a valuable legacy of chamber music for the viola and other instruments. Her rich experiences in New york with jazz pianists and her association with the Impressionist composers and painters influenced Kerr to write colorful and creative compositions. Her exposure to Native American melodies, Spanish folktunes, and cowboy songs of the Southwest helped her to compose in a unique style. Louise Kerr’s ability as both a violist and violinist gave her an excellent perspective on how to compose for strings. She excelled at composing short character pieces, infusing them with colorful harmonic passages and exciting rhythmic motives. Kerr also left a substantial legacy through her humanitarian efforts and philanthropy, and her former home, the ASU Kerr Cultural Center, is now an Arizona and National Historical Preservation site. While she has received awards and accolades for many of her efforts, her contributions as a composer are only now receiving renewed interest. As a prolific American Southwest composer of the twentieth century, Louise Lincoln Kerr deserves to be more remem bered; her music is our national treasure.

Notes

1 A. Nannette Taylor, Louise Lincoln Kerr: Grand Lady of Music (Phoenix, AZ: Kerr Cultural Center, Arizona State University, n.d.).

2 Ibid.

3 William Kerr, interview with the author, April 22, 2001.

4 Louise Lincoln Kerr, Five Character Pieces for Viola and Piano , ed. Carolyn Broe and Miriam yutzy (Scottsdale, AZ: Classics Unlimited Music, 2002). This edition is available at http://www.fourseasonsor chestra.org or http://www.classicsunlimitedmusic.com.

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