DE PERE—Dudley Birder, affectionately known as the “Music Man” in the region, passed away Saturday, Nov. 26. He was 95 years old.
Birder was a professor of music at St. Norbert College dating back to 1958 and served as artistic director of St. Norbert College Music Theatre from 1961-2017. Birder founded the chorale that now bears his name in 1974 and he officially retired in 2018. The chorale named Kent Paulsen, Birder’s long-time assistant, as the new artistic director in 2018.
Established in 1974, the chorale presents three to four concerts each year, usually with orchestra. The chorale is a musical organization composed of adult singers from more than 30 communities in northeast Wisconsin. Members can range from 15 to seniors.
In 2007, the chorale commissioned Randol Alan Bass to write Psalm 96 in honor of Dudley Birder’s 80th birthday. Each year, the chorale provides scholarship money to students and teachers who excel in choral music. A million-dollar endowment is in place to keep the chorale operating in perpetuity.
Dudley Birder Hall, formerly St. Boniface Church, was dedicated in Feb. 2013. The completely renovated building, located on the corner of Grant and Fourth streets, has Birder’s name attached.
The $1.7 million project, supported by donors, converted the church into a performance space, especially for music. It holds about 200 seats and is used for recitals, chamber concerts and public lectures. It’s also used for Dudley Birder Chorale rehearsals. Much of the work involved installing professionally designed, custom-made acoustical materials for state-of-the-art sound quality.
St. Norbert College said Dudley was synonymous with St. Norbert for many people.
“More than anyone, he elevated the modern profile of the college and made thousands and thousands of people around the world aware of it as our foremost cultural ambassador,” the college stated.
Closer to home, the Dudley Birder Chorale and Music Theatre contributed to the cultural life of Northeast Wisconsin.
“We will be forever grateful to him for his decades of musicianship, friendship and dedication, and our hearts go out to the Birder family.”
