Shawnee Press
Lloyd Larson has been a prolific composer and arranger for a number of music publishers since the early 1980s. While focusing on church music, Lloyd has also composed for school music programs. Among his most noted works are those for choral and keyboard, some 1,500 publications so far! Over the...
John O’Reilly is the composer and editor whose musical career spanned educational and textbook materials to movie scores and classical works. He was published by Shawnee Press and G. Schirmer before working with Alfred Publishing full time. He became Editor-in-Chief and had a hand in many of the...
Bob Kranendonk sang for the choral group, the Pennsylvanians led by Fred Waring. Bob’s father also sang for the group and in fact together both men had a hit and appeared on the cover of the sheet music for the song “The Happy Wanderer.” When not touring or recording with the group, Bob worked in...
Mark Cabaniss always wanted to be in the music business. As a music student graduate and composer he was given that chance while teaching college, when Brentwood Music had an opening. The Nashville-based company’s founder, Jim Van Hook, took Mark under his wing and provided him with guidance that...
Ruth Sibley Bensinger wrote a song called “So Long Sweetheart” when she was a teenager. The song was about lovers split by war. Members of her musically inclined family thought the song was quite promising. Ruth decided to walk the song over to Fred Waring’s home, whom she had met once through...
Hawley Ades was hired by Irving Berlin in 1932 to assist the legendary American songwriter with musical arrangements. Hawley stayed with Berlin for five years before being hired by choir master and bandleader Fred Waring. He joined Mr. Waring at the time the bandleader hoped to launch his own...
Walter Ehret was the music arrangers’ equivalent to Mel Blanc – the man with a thousand voices. Walter was the man with a thousand pseudonyms. Under his various names, he arranged for most of the major publishers over a career that spanned over 50 years. His work was mostly centered around...
Ernest Farmer had a long and successful career at Shawnee Press in Pennsylvania before he and his wife, music editor Marjorie, formed Wide World Music together in 1980. Ernie’s involvement in the music publishing industry began right after World War II when he was hired by Shawnee Press to oversee...
Virginia Waring began her musical career as a concert pianist. In fact, it was while performing a duet piano performance on the Fred Waring Radio Program that she first met her future husband. Fred Waring had a remarkable music career that covered radio, television, recordings, and music publishing...