John Grier Varner (March 30, 1905 - September 13, 1978) was the assistant director of the Virginia Glee Club during the 1934-1935 and 1935-1936 seasons. Born in Mount Pleasant, Texas, Varner took his B.A. at Austin College in Texas, and taught prep school for four years prior to entering the University of Virginia, completing his M.A. and Ph.D. [1]
From 1938 to 1943, Varner served as an assistant professor of English at Washington and Lee University. He led the Washington and Lee Men's Glee Club during this period, leading them to a win in the Washington DC Fred Waring Glee Club competition in 1939, and competing in the national Fred Waring Glee Club competition in 1942 (where the club was coached by a young Robert Shaw).[2] He was the director of the Washington and Lee club in their appearance in the Music Festival (1941). In World War II he offered his knowledge of Spanish to the State Department and spent three years in Latin America. From 1947 to 1972 he was a professor at the University of Texas. His publications included Edgar Allan Poe and the Philadelphia Saturday Courier; Gramaticà de Inglés para Venezolanes y Vocabularios Útiles; The Florida of the Inca; and The Dogs of the Conquest.
References[]
- ↑ "In Memoriam John Grier Varner". University of Texas. http://www.utexas.edu/faculty/council/2000-2001/memorials/SCANNED/varner.pdf. Retrieved 2012-07-02.
- ↑ "Men's Glee Club History". Washington & Lee University. http://music.wlu.edu/content/view/304/94/. Retrieved 2013-12-26.