OBITUARY INFORMATION FROM FIND-A-GRAVE WEBSITE:
Alan Daniel Abel
Birth 6 Dec 1928, Hobart, Lake County, Indiana, USA
Death 25 Apr 2020 (aged 91), Wynnewood, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, USA
Burial Burial Details Unknown
Memorial ID 210363336
Died of COVID-19
Alan Abel (December 6, 1928 – April 25, 2020) was an American percussionist, music educator, and inventor of musical instruments. He was the associate principal percussionist of the Philadelphia Orchestra from 1959 until his retirement in 1997. He is widely regarded as one of the most important percussion educators of the second half of the twentieth century, having taught at Temple University beginning in 1972. Abel's inventions include several unique and ubiquitous triangles and a bass drum stand that allowed the instrument to be suspended with the use of rubber bands.
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Alan Abel, Former Philadelphia Orchestra Percussionist and Renowned Teacher, Dies at 91
We mourn the loss of Philadelphia percussion legend, Alan Abel, who was a guru to generations of percussionists. He died on April 25, 2020 from complications of COVID-19.
The former Philadelphia Orchestra percussionist and teacher at Temple University's Boyer College of Music and Dance, Abel was a force in the region's classical music world for decades, as a player, teacher and inventive force. His 'suspended drum bass drum' stand, invented with a colleague, and his triangles, have been used world wide.
A member of the Percussive Arts Society Hall of Fame, which includes John Cage, Lionel Hampton and Ringo Star, Abel retired from the Philadelphia Orchestra in 1997 but continued to play frequently with the ensemble, and teach upcoming generations of students. His annual percussion workshop at Temple University drew students from all over the world.
This information and the pictures below were obtained from: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/210363336/alan-daniel-abel. The picture above was obtained from the 1947 HHS Centennial Memories yearbook, made available by the Lake County Public Library, at: https://archive.org/details/HOHS1947Images/.
NOTE: Alan Abel was President of the HHS Band in 1946-47, and played under Director of Bands Fred Ebbs. This picture was obtained from the 1947 HHS Centennial Memories yearbook, made available by the Lake County Public Library, at: https://archive.org/details/HOHS1947Images/.
MEMORIAL ARTICLE FROM THE RUSTIC RIDGE ASSOCIATION (NORTHFIELD, MA) WEBSITE:
April 25, 2020
Born Dec. 6, 1928, in Hobart, Ind., Alan Daniel Abel attended the Eastman School of Music, graduating in 1951. He served in the Air Force from 1951 to 1953 and then joined the Oklahoma City Symphony.
One of the guest conductors who passed through that orchestra was Leopold Stokowski, who, in a newspaper interview, singled out Mr. Abel’s playing. The young percussionist sent the newspaper clipping to the Philadelphia Orchestra and asked to be considered for any openings, Mr. Abel told the Percussive Arts Society, in whose Hall of Fame he was inducted in 1998.
An opening came, he auditioned, and began as third percussionist in 1959. He advanced to the assistant principal spot in 1973 and became associate principal in 1988
Over the years, he was a standout on any number of instruments, whether it was the bass drum in Johann Strauss Jr.’s “Thunder and Lightning Polka,” the snare in Rachmaninoff’s The Bells, or tambourine in Wagner’s “Overture” to Das Liebesverbot.
Mr. Abel and fellow percussionist Fred Hinger often worked together to ponder how instruments could produce sound that would carry in the Academy of Music, said Liuzzi. A stand Mr. Abel created for suspending the bass drum has become standard equipment in the field.
The triangles he designed have “resonance and an ability to really cut through the orchestra,” Liuzzi said. “It’s very popular. For a while it was the only top-notch triangle.”
He taught at a number of schools, including, from 1973 to 2019, Temple University. More than a third of notable American orchestras have a percussionist who studied with Mr. Abel or with one of his students, said Liuzzi.
He had been slated to lead a class via Zoom on April 21 but was hospitalized the day before, said Mr. Abel’s daughter, Marianne.
“He was the type of teacher who could make anybody better,” said Peter Wilson, a freelance percussionist based in Phoenix who studied with Mr. Abel at Temple and privately. “He had a systematic way of doing things, so it was impossible not to improve if you did what he said.”
He also geared his training to help students succeed in the cut-throat audition circuit.
Said Wilson: “He’s hard to match for placing students in serious, reputable orchestras.”
Mr. Abel is survived by his wife of 68 years, Janet Voorhies Abel; children Marianne Chenoweth, Alan, and Paul; seven grandchildren; 17 great-grandchildren; and a brother.
Services are expected later, but he will be remembered on April 30th in a special event. To witness on-line, go to the website https://ardmorepres.org/live. Go to ‘Live and Recorded Services: A Service of Witness to The Resurrection – Alan Abel’
Temple University has established an “Alan Abel Endowed Percussion Scholarship Fund”. If you would like to contribute follow this link.
A Video about Alan Abel produced by Temple University
A Retirement video in Alan’s honor produced by the Philadelphia Orchestra
A 2020 WRTI (PBS) radio show about Alan.
A 2015 WRTI (PBS) radio show about Alan.
A 2013 WRTI (PBS) radio show about Alan.
Alan’s Wikipedia page
This memorial article was obtained from: https://rusticridgewp.com/in-memorium/alan-abel/.