Joseph Willcox Jenkins

Joseph Willcox Jenkins

Biography

Joseph Willcox Jenkins (15 February 1928, Philadelphia, Pa. - 31 January 2014, Lawrenceville, Pa.) was an American composer and educator.

He received a B.S. from St. Joseph's College, an M.M. and B.M. from the Eastman School of Music, and a Ph.D. from Catholic University of America. He also studied composition with Vincent Persichetti at the Philadelphia Conservatory of Music and with Thomas Canning and Howard Hanson at Eastman.

He was a composer and arranger for the United States Army Field Band, Army Band, Army Chorus and Armed Forces Network. He was the recipient of the ASCAP Serious Music Award for two decades and the Omicron Delta Kappa Teacher of the Year award, 2000. He continued to teach, even after his retirement, as Professor Emeritus at Duquesne University's Mary Pappert School of Music.

During the 25 years between his two marches, Pieces of Eight and Canonic March, Jenkins composed numerous other works for concert band. American Overture for Band is the most popular, but Cumberland Gap, Toccata for Winds, Charles County Overture, Cuernavaca, Symphonic Jubilee, In Traskwood County, Christmas Festival Overture, and Three Images are also widely performed.

Works for other media include four symphonies, a string quartet, carols, songs, chamber music, pieces for bagpipe, organ music, and a hymn for the inaugural ceremony of Duquesne University's new president in 1980. Recent composition include four musical comedies, a biblical tone poem for organ. Symphony No. 4, for orchestra and chorus, a symphonic work for strings and winds for the Australian Broadcasting Corp., and a band piece for the University of Illinois.

Jenkins served on the faculty of Duquesne University in Pittsburgh from 1961 until his retirement in 2000.

Works for Winds

• American Overture for Band (1956)
• Arioso for Band (1963)
• Cannonade (1991)
• Charles County Overture (1959)
• Cuernavaca (1969)
• Cumberland Gap (1961)
• In Traskwood Country (1977)
• Pieces of Eight (arr. Neff; ed. Fennell) (1954)
• Purcell Portraits (1963)
• Symphonic Jubilee (1975)
• Symphony No. 5 (1979)
• Tartan Suite (1979)
• Three Images for Band (1962)
• Toccata for Winds (1978)
• Viva Vivaldi (1963)

Resources

• Camphouse, Mark, editor. Composers on Composing for Band. Volume 3. GIA Publications, 2007. pp. 115–139.
• Joseh Willcox Jenkins. Wikipedia. Accessed 24 November 2021
• Miles, Richard B., editor. Teaching Music Through Performance in Band. Volume 4. GIA Publications, 2002. p. 438ff.
• Smith, Norman E. Program Notes for Band. GIA Publications, 2002. p. 327ff