Dorothy Geneva Styles Explained

Dorothy Geneva Styles (December 13, 1922 - February 12, 1984)^[1] was an American composer,^[2] mathematician,^[3] organist, and poet.

Styles was born in El Dorado, Arkansas,^[4] to Minnie A. Shelnut and Alfred Alexander Styles. She demonstrated musical talent as a child, performing on WEXL radio at age 10, and giving music lessons as a teenager. Styles married Dennis Glenn Van Eck in 1941 and divorced him in 1945. She graduated from the Detroit Institute of Musical Arts and received a B.Mus. from the University of Detroit Mercy in 1945, a B.S. from Columbia University in 1954,^[5] and an M.A. from the University of Michigan in 1970.^[6]

Styles taught and also worked as an organist at Hazel Park Baptist Tabernacle in Hazel Park, Michigan, and as a choir director at St. Timothy’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wayne, Michigan. Her publications included:

Prose

• A Prime Number Theorem^[7]
• An Extension of the Idea of Countability as Applied to Real Numbers
• Centaur^[8]
• Projections of the Natural Harmonic Series: Some Implications
• Sea Chanty
• Young Verses for the Early Old

Vocal

• “I Sing a Song”
• “Japanese Raindrops” (music by Bernadette Daria Bohdanowycz; words by Styles)^[9]
• “Love Song”^[10]
• “Lullaby”
• “Mother, Tell Me”
• “Mrs. Santa Claus Loves Mr. Santa Claus”
• “Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag”

Notes and References

1. Web site: Styles. Dorothy Geneva. Ancestry® Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History Records. live. 2021-10-16. www.ancestry.com. https://web.archive.org/web/19991127091334/http://www.ancestry.com:80/? . 1999-11-27 .
2. Book: Hixon, Donald L.. Women in music : an encyclopedic biobibliography. 1993. Scarecrow Press. Don A. Hennessee. 0-8108-2769-7. 2nd. Metuchen, N.J.. 28889156.
3. Book: Directory of Women in Marquis Who's Who Publications, 1984. 1983. Marquis Who's Who. 978-0-8379-6401-0. en.
4. Book: Organ and Harpsichord Music by Women Composers: An Annotated Catalog. 1991. ABC-CLIO. 978-0-313-26802-1. en.
5. Book: Regents, University of Michigan Board of. Proceedings of the Board of Regents. 1969. The University. en.
6. Book: Cohen, Aaron I.. International encyclopedia of women composers. 1987. 0-9617485-2-4. Second edition, revised and enlarged. New York. 16714846.
7. Book: Office, Library of Congress Copyright. Catalog of Copyright Entries. Third Series: 1971: January-June. 1973. Copyright Office, Library of Congress. en.
8. Book: Fresco. 1958. University of Detroit.. en.
9. Book: Office, Library of Congress Copyright. Catalog of Copyright Entries: Third series. 1972. en.
10. Book: Variegation. 1951. en. Jacoby . Grover I. .