Music Theory

Professor and Coordinator of Theory and Composition, Baur holds a Bachelor of Music, Master of Music,
and Doctor of Musical Arts degree in composition from the College-Conservatory of Music, University
of Cincinnati. As a Fulbright Scholar in England in 1971, Baur studied with Thea Musgrave and Richard
Rodney Bennett. Baur has received numerous commissions, including grants for new works from the National
Endowment for the Arts. In 1982 he was designated “Tennessee Composer of the Year” by the Tennessee
Music Educators Association. His program, Music of the 20th Century, on public radio station WKNO, was
broadcast nationally in 1992. His two-volume textbook, Music Theory through Literature, is available through
C.J. Publishers, Memphis. His compositions span a wide array of genres, including large works for chorus
and orchestra, small chamber works, numerous works for guitar, several sets of songs, and three string quartets.
His opera, The Promise, based on the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., premiered at the Germantown
Performing Arts Centre in October 2004.

In 2011 he embarked on the current theory textbook, Practical Music Theory, which incorporates the
strategic use of I nternet resources both for the student and the instructor.

Baur has been associated with The University of Memphis since 1979, where he has served as Interim
Director of the School of Music as well as Associate Director for Graduate Studies, in addition to his teaching
responsibilities.