Betty Cutts Wylder (March 12, 1923 – February 18, 1994) was an American composer, organist, environmentalist, and folklorist, based in Long Beach, California, after 1953.
Betty Wylder | |
|---|---|
 Betty Cutts, later Wylder, from a 1943 newspaper | |
| Born | Elizabeth Anne Cutts March 12, 1923 Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Died | February 18, 1994 (age 70) |
| Occupation(s) | Composer, folklorist, environmentalist, organist |
Early life and education
editElizabeth Anne Cutts was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the daughter of Charles Rollin Cutts and Frances Marion Tabor Cutts. Her mother was a clubwoman and hospital worker;[1] her father was a music educator. She graduated from high school in Billings, Montana, and attended the University of Montana,[2] where she earned a bachelor's degree in music in 1947.[3][4]
Career
editMusic
editWith her father and her husband, and UCLA folklorist Wayland Hand, she collected folksongs in Montana in the 1940s, interviewing performers, and making audio recordings and written transcripts.[5] The team's field journals and other materials from this work are in special collections at the University of Montana.[4]
Wylder and her husband moved to Long Beach, California, in 1953, where he was a university professor of English. She was organist at Long Beach Unitarian Church for 29 years.[6][7] She composed and arranged hymns used in Unitarian Universalist services,[8] including “Enter, Rejoice, and Come In”, “Let It Be a Dance”, and “Love Will Guide Us”.[9] She met singer Undine Wildman at the church; the two women began to perform music together in night clubs.[10] She was a member of the Long Beach Women's History Month Steering Committee in the 1970s and 1980s, and helped create musical reviews for women's history programs.[10][11]
Gardening and environment
editIn Long Beach, Wylder kept an extensive backyard herb garden, with advice and donations from the Long Beach Herb Society.[12][13] She studied the lore of various herbs, especially their uses in witchcraft and traditional medicine.[14] She was program chair of the Long Beach chapter of Zero Population Growth,[15] and environmental protection chair of the PTA in Long Beach in the 1970s,[16] and lectured on herb lore[12][17] and environmental issues.[18] She was also awards chair of Long Beach Beautiful.[19]
Publications
editPersonal life and legacy
editCutts married Robert C. Wylder in 1944, while he was serving in the United States Marine Corps. They had three daughters.[15] She died in 1994, at the age of 70, in Long Beach.[23] Wylder Hall at the Long Beach Unitarian Church was named for her and for her husband.[24]
References
edit- ^ "Frances T. Cutts". The Billings Gazette. 1984-03-27. p. 12. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Engagement is Announced". The Billings Gazette. 1943-04-25. p. 15. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Pennsylvania Rites Unite Miss Betty Cutts, Lieutenant Robert Wylder of Marine Corps". The Billings Gazette. 1944-07-09. p. 14. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Montana Folksongs Collection". Archives West. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
- ^ "Ar-Drills Stop Miners' Songs". The Bangor Daily News. 1950-05-09. p. 19. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Humor in Religion is Topic". Anaheim Bulletin. 1968-08-17. p. 12. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ McCarty, Jane (1990-02-08). "Wylder to discuss life and times of a musician". The Golden Rain Seal Beach Leisure World News. p. 23. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
- ^ "Betty Wylder". Hymnary.org. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
- ^ Carney, Mike (2024-01-31). "Musical Musings 2-4: From introspective to inspirational with Karin Tooley and our Chancel Choir". Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Cleveland. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
- ^ a b "Undine Wildman". Historical Society of Long Beach. 2021-04-22. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
- ^ Zink, Linda (1976-04-25). "Long-lost heroines are something to sing about". Press-Telegram. p. 64. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Bewitching Herb Hints". The Los Angeles Times. 1988-07-31. p. 89. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Community Calendar: Herb Society". News-Pilot. 1975-10-14. p. 9. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Ivy, Carol (1974-08-11). "Wylder weeds a garden of sweet spells". Independent. pp. 49, 62. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b McDonnell, Pat (1971-02-07). "Technology and ecology must mix". Press-Telegram. pp. 31, 36. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Smog flags fly at schools". Press-Telegram. 1973-01-05. p. 28. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Witch is which". Thousand Oaks Star. 1973-04-11. p. 51. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Carlton, Mary Ellis (1974-04-28). "So where to do we go from here?". Independent. p. 23. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Carlton, Mary Ellis (1975-05-04). "Antique Emporium leads L.B. Beautiful winners". Independent. p. 3. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Hand, Wayland D.; Cutts, Charles; Wylder, Robert C.; Wylder, Betty (1950). "Songs of the Butte Miners". Western Folklore. 9 (1): 1–49. doi:10.2307/1496596. ISSN 0043-373X.
- ^ Wylder, Betty. "Petite Suite for Flute Quartet", Cambria Music.
- ^ "Unitarian Fellowship sets potluck". The Golden Rain Seal Beach Leisure World News. 1989-02-16. p. 29. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Betty Cutts Wylder". Billings Gazette. February 23, 1994. p. 11. Retrieved March 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ McCarty, Jane (1990-03-08). "Wylder to speak to Unitarian-Universalists March 15". The Golden Rain Seal Beach Leisure World News. p. 21. Retrieved 2024-03-06 – via Newspapers.com.