Longtime 'Music Man' at St. Norbert College — Dudley Birder — dies at 95

Drake Bentley, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
·2 min read
Dudley Birder at age 90.
Dudley Birder at age 90.

The founder of Music Theatre at St. Norbert College, creator of the community's chorale, and an iconic fixture — Dudley Birder — has died.

The De Pere college announced Birder's passing on Saturday. He was 95 years old.

Birder, known affectionately as "Music Man," founded the theater company in 1962 and was a producer, director and/or musical director for every production up until 2017.

He was a professor of music with the college since 1958 and founded the college's chorale in 1974.

"Everyone in the St. Norbert College family mourns the loss of our friend and colleague Dudley Birder," said St. Norbert College interim president Thomas Kunkle.

"Indeed, for many Dudley was synonymous with St. Norbert. More than anyone he elevated the modern profile of the college and made thousands and thousands of people around the world aware of it as our foremost cultural ambassador."

In 2013, St. Norbert renamed St. Boniface Church to Dudley Birder Hall following a renovation project that converted the church into a performance space, which is used for Dudley Birder Chorale rehearsals.

Dudley Birder, who has worked at St. Norbert College as a music teacher and director since 1958, stands outside Dudley Birder Hall at the corner of Grant and Fourth streets in De Pere.
Dudley Birder, who has worked at St. Norbert College as a music teacher and director since 1958, stands outside Dudley Birder Hall at the corner of Grant and Fourth streets in De Pere.

The 150-voice chorale, known for its annual All Saints Day and Holiday Pops concerts, has members that range in age from 15 to seniors. The chorale is comprised of people from more than 30 communities in northeast Wisconsin.

Birder stepped down as leader of the chorale in 2018, when he officially retired.

It takes a big stage for the Dudley Birder Chorale and its guests to perform the annual Holiday Pops concerts at the Weidner Center.
It takes a big stage for the Dudley Birder Chorale and its guests to perform the annual Holiday Pops concerts at the Weidner Center.

Although Birder retired from the classroom in 1993, he spent more than half a century on campus, working from his office at the Abbot Pennings Hall of Fine Arts into his 90s.

"I’ve said this many times, I’ve never had a day that I didn’t want to go to work," Birder told the Green Bay Press-Gazette in 2017. "Every day was not always wonderful, but I’ve always enjoyed everything I’ve done, even my teaching."

Each year, the chorale provides scholarship money to students and teachers a million-dollar endowment is in place to keep the chorale operating in perpetuity.

Dudley Birder has died, St. Norbert College announced on Nov. 26.
Dudley Birder has died, St. Norbert College announced on Nov. 26.

"The Dudley Birder Chorale and Music Theatre contributed immensely to the cultural life of Northeast Wisconsin and greatly enhanced our collective quality of life. Other institutions tried to lure him away, but for Dudley, this place was home," Kunkel said.

"We will be forever grateful to him for his decades of musicianship, friendship and dedication, and our hearts go out to the Birder family."

In a statement, St. Norbert College said that funeral arraignments are pending.

Kendra Meinert of the Green Bay Press-Gazette contributed to this report.

Contact Drake Bentley at (414) 391-5647 or DBentley1@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DrakeBentleyMJS. 

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: 'Music Man' at St. Norbert College — Dudley Birder — dies at 95