Don Gillis was born in Cameron, Missouri, on June 17, 1912. He was
graduated from Christian University at Fort Worth, Texas in 1936, after
having engaged in various musical activities including the direction of
a band and a symphony orchestra, and the writing of two musical comedies
produced at the University. Following the completion of his education he
became a member of the faculty of Christian University and Southwest
Baptist Seminary; served as a trombonist and arranger for a Fort Worth
radio station; and played the trombone in the Fort Worth Symphony. In
1944 he became a producer for the National Broadcasting Company in New
York, taking charge of many important programs including those of the
NBC Symphony.
As a composer of symphonies and other orchestral compositions Gillis
reveals a refreshing sense of humor as well as a delightful bent for
whimsy, qualities which make some of his works ideal for programs of
light music. He has often drawn inspiration and materials from American
folk music and jazz, consistently producing music that combines sound
musical values with sound entertainment. “My feeling,” he has said, “is
that music is for the people and the composer’s final aim should be to
reach them. And since the people whistle and sing, I should like them to
whistle and sing my music.” Thus Gillis aims for simplicity, sincere
emotions, and sheer fun. “I have tried to write so that there will be a
feeling of enjoyment in the fun of the thing.”
_Portrait of a Frontier Town_, a suite for orchestra (1940), is a
tuneful composition consisting of five short movements. The title of
each of these provides the clue to the programmatic content of the
music. The first, “Chamber of Commerce,” portrays the activities of such
an organization in a typical American town. “Where the West Begins”
tells of the opening of the West through two significant musical
subjects, the first for strings, and the second for oboe, flute, and
clarinet. “Ranch House Party” is described in the score as “brightly—in
a gay manner.” A jovial melody first given by the full orchestra gives
prominent attention to percussion instruments. This is followed by a
mood picture, “Prairie Sunset” in which the English horn, answered by
the clarinet, presents the main melody. The suite concludes with “Main
Street Saturday Night,” in which gaiety and abandon alternate with
suggestions of nostalgia.
_Symphony No. 5½_ (1947), is one of the composer’s wittiest works which
he himself subtitled as “a symphony for fun.” It consists almost
entirely of jazz melodies, some treated in burlesque fashion; the work
also quotes some famous melodies in a facetious manner. The four
movements have whimsical titles: “Perpetual Emotion,” “Spiritual?”,
“Scherzophrenia” and “Conclusion.”