Kenneth Schermerhorn
| Kenneth Schermerhorn | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Kenneth Dewitt Schermerhorn |
| Born |
November 20, 1929 Schenectady, New York, United States |
| Died | April 18, 2005 (aged 75) Nashville, Tennessee, United States |
| Occupation(s) | Composer, conductor |
| Associated acts | Nashville Symphony |
Kenneth Dewitt Schermerhorn (/ˈskɜːrmərhɔːrn/ SKUR-mər-horn; November 20, 1929 – April 18, 2005) was an American composer and orchestra conductor, most notably for the Nashville Symphony.
Schermerhorn was born in Schenectady, New York, where he studied clarinet, violin, and trumpet in school. At age 14, he forged a baptismal certificate to appear older so he could play in a dance band that played in night clubs. He soon created his own five piece band called The Blue Moods. He sang the lead and played trumpet for the group.
At 17, he was accepted into the New England Conservatory of Music, from which he graduated in 1950 with honors. He went on to play trumpet with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Kansas City Philharmonic among several other orchestras.
Schermerhorn was drafted into the U.S. Army and in 1953, while serving in Germany, he was assigned to be the conductor of the U.S. Seventh Army Symphony Orchestra. This was his first conducting position and he proved to be quite successful, winning the Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge Medal and the Harriet Cohen International Music Award for young conductors.
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