Born in New York, NY, March 27, 1892
Died in Santa Monica, CA, April 3, 19721
- Ferde Grofé [FAIR-dee grow-FAY], born Ferdinand Rudolph von Grofé, was an American composer, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist who was born into a musical family of German immigrants.
- Grofé first made a name for himself after becoming one of the primary arrangers for Paul Whiteman. He worked with Whiteman during the 1920s and early 30s. After leaving Whiteman’s orchestra, Grofé formed his own orchestra and continued to compose.
- Grofé’s best-known arrangement for Whiteman was orchestrating Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue in 1924.
- Many of Grofé’s best-known works are based on American landscapes, such as Grand Canyon Suite, Hudson River Suite, and Death Valley Suite. He also worked in film scores–His score for Minstrel Man received an Oscar Nomination for Best Music and Scoring of a Musical Picture in 1945.2
- Connection to radio – Grofé’s light, colorful, and America-centric compositions were popular for radio broadcast as they appealed to Americans who had little understanding of or appreciation for European classical music.3