University of Wyoming
Regina Willman (1914-1965) was an American classical composer during the twentieth century. Born in Burns, Wyoming and the wife of fellow composer and University of Wyoming music professor Allan Arthur Willman, she earned her B.A. in Music from the University of Wyoming (1945) and her M.A. in Music from the University of New Mexico (1961). She also engaged in private study with composers Darius Milhaud and Roy Harris and studied music at a number of institutions in the United States and Europe, including the Juilliard School of Music in New York City and the Conservatory of Lausanne in Switzerland. Willman composed a number of classical pieces between the 1930s and 1960s, including the orchestral works "Design for Orchestra I" (1948) and "Design for Orchestra II" (1953), and the ballets "Steel Mill" (1941) and "The Legend of the Willow Plate" (1949). She was also twice a resident composer at the Wurlitzer Foundation in Taos, New Mexico (1956-1957 and 1960-1961).
The Regina Willman papers contain Willman's handwritten musical scores (originals and copies), including those for "Design for Orchestra I," "Design for Orchestra II," "Steel Mill," and "The Legend of the Willow Plate." Collection also contains a binder of biographical materials and two project binders (containing manuscripts and notes) compiled by Willman titled "Translation of Le Roman de Fauvel" and "Transcriptions of Early Manuscripts - 13th-16th Centuries". Recordings of "Design for Orchestra ll", "Metropolitan Opera Intermission" interviews (1970), and "The Legend of the Willow Plate" are in this collection as well.
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There are no known other archival collections created by Regina Willman at the date of processing.
This material was received from Allan A. Willman in 1975, Gordon Gallup from 1990-2007, and Hugh Barr in 2023.
The collection was processed by Shaun Hayes in September 2009 and updated by Jamie J. Greene in April 2025.
Item Description, Box Number, Folder Number, Collection Name, Collection Number, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.