Morris Hutchins Ruger was a gifted American composer. He was born in 1902 and grew up in New York City, where his family took him to the opera and symphony. His early passion for a musical career was dampened by family disapproval – they encouraged him to study chemistry. After his first year in college, he finally persuaded them he was better suited to be a music major.
Ruger received degrees at Columbia University and Northwestern University and eventually accepted a teaching post at San Bernardino Valley Junior College in Southern California. In addition to his teaching responsibilities, Ruger went on to compose works for orchestra, piano, chorus and chamber orchestra.
His love of literature inspired many of his compositions, including operas based on Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter and Edgar Allen Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher. Ruger composed choral music based on dozens of poems drawn from great literature.
Learn more in the Morris Hutchins Ruger papers at UW’s American Heritage Center