Born in Richmond Hill, NY, Morton Gould (1913-1996) was recognized as a child prodigy for his ability to improvise and compose; at the age of six he published his first composition and later studied at the Institute of Musical Art (now the Juilliard School).  During the Depression, Gould worked in New York’s Vaudeville and movie theaters, and when Radio City Music Hall opened he became their pianist. By the age of 21 he was composing, conducting, and arranging orchestral programs for weekly WOR Radio broadcasts and gained national recognition for it, as he appealed to a wide-ranging audience with his combination of classical and popular music. In addition, Gould composed scores for Broadway, film, television, and ballet. A Pulitzer Prize and Kennedy Center Honors winning composer, Gould’s contributions to New York City Ballet include American Concertette (1943) for Interplay, orchestrations of Kay Swift’s music used for Alma Mater, an original score for I’m Old Fashioned based on a theme by Jerome Kern, and Derivations for Clarinet and Jazz Band (1954-55) used for Clarinade.