Louis Panella
Biography
Louis Panella (1881, Pittsburgh, Penn. – 13 March 1940, Pittsburgh) was an American composer.
The younger brother of composer Frank Panella, Louis was born in Pittsburgh and spent his entire life in that area. He taught trumpet at the Carnegie Institute of Technology [now Carnegie-Mellon University] for 26 years. He composed over 200 popular songs and marches and performed with several orchestras, including the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.
Most of Louis Panella's marches were written in honor of people, places, and organizations. His most popular march, The American Red Cross, was inspired by events of World War I. Several of his later works were dedicated to various universities. He composed very little during the last five years of his life because of very poor eyesight. During this period, his compositions were dictated to his brother Frank.
Works for Winds
- American Red Cross (1918)
- American Red Cross, The (arr. Glover) (1918/2016)
- The American Red Cross March (arr. Butler) (2017)
- Allegiance to the Flag (1911)
- Amerta March (1932)
- Civic Pride March (1911)
- Pitt Panther March, The (1922)
Resources
- Heritage Encyclopedia of Band Music. "Louis Panella." Accessed 25 March 2017
- Louis J. Panella, Wikipedia Accessed 25 March 2017