William Schuman

Schuman, William (1910–92), U.S. composer. His symphonies, chamber music, ballets, and operas are known for their rhythmic vivacity and their debt to jazz. His cantata A Free Song won the first Pulitzer Prize in music (1943). He was president of the Juilliard School of Music (1945–62) and of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (1962–69).