News: July 2000

Radio Host, Composer Robert J. Lurtsema Dies at 68

Robert J. Lurtsema

obert J. Lurtsema, a composer and the longtime host of Morning Pro Musica on WGBH Radio, died of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a lung disease, on June 12. He was 68.

Born in Cambridge, MA on Nov. 14, 1931, Lurtsema (or Robert J., as he was known to his fans) began his career in radio while in the Navy. In a recent issue of NewMusicBox (May 2000, In The First Person), he described his earliest radio gig:

I was in the Navy, about 18 years old, doing a job I really didn't like at all in French Morocco. And passed an open Quonset hut, there was some beautiful music coming out of the door and poked my head in to see what it was. And the guy inside said, "Are you applying for the announcer's job?" and I said, "Yes." And he said, "There's some news copy in the other room. Want to read it over?" and I went in and read it over and he said, "Okay, you're on the air in 5 minutes." And I read the newscast, he said, "What outfit are you with? I'll get you transferred." The next day I was in the radio station, a month later, he got word that his mother was dying back in Texas so they sent him back. And I then, having the most experience at that time, became the station manager. When I got out of the Navy, some 3 years later, with the G.I. Bill of Rights, I went to college, and decided to study journalism and communication arts, which included theater and radio. And when I couldn't get a job as an actor or director, and I still needed money to buy paints and canvas and clay and stuff, I'd go down to the local radio station, apply, work 3 or 4 months, as an announcer, and then I'd go back to my studio or to a play. That's how I got into Morning Pro Musica. I'd planned on being there about 2 or 3 months, weekends. And they asked me to take weekdays, but I didn't want to give up the weekends, so I started doing it 7 days a week. And that was almost 29 years ago. I forgot to leave.

June 26 would have marked Lurtsema's twenty-ninth year as host and producer of Morning Pro Musica, which ran from 7:00 A.M. to noon, seven days a week, and was carried by stations across the country (In 1993 the program became once again a weekend-only show, as several radio stations moved away from innovative classical music programming). The broadcasts featured a unique blend of music, news, weather, interviews, and colorful personal commentary, all delivered methodically in Robert J's inimitable voice. Every show opened with his signature recordings of bird song.

Lurtsema studied drama, broadcasting and journalism at Boston University. Following graduation in 1957, he worked as a lumberjack and encyclopedia salesman, but subsequently turned to broadcasting as a way to support his interest in the performing arts. Lurtsema worked at several New England radio stations, then moved to New York to pursue a career in publishing and advertising before returning to Boston in 1968. He was a music director for the Concert Network; full time producer/host of Folk City USA, a two-hour nightly live performance radio show; and co-host of a weekly jazz program with Fr. Norman J. O'Connor. He began working at WGBH in 1971.

In addition to his work in radio, Lurtsema was also a composer. In 1975, he was awarded a lifetime scholarship at the New England Conservatory of Music, where he began to study composition and theory. Among the songs, chamber works, and film scores he wrote are a bassoon quartet (written for the Bubonic Bassoon Quartet) which became the theme music for the WGBH-produced Julia Child and Company, and Dawnscape II — Autumn, a piece for flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn, harp, two violins, viola, cello, and percussion which was premiered in 1985 by the Boston group Composers in Red Sneakers.

Lurtsema also had strong creative interest in poetry, painting, photography, and writing. His articles and reviews were published in magazines and newspapers, including The Boston Globe and The New York Times. He was the author of two books: A Pocketful of Verse and the Robert J. Lurtsema Musical Quiz Book. Lurtsema often performed as lecturer or narrator with such groups as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Pops Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic Instrumental Ensemble, the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, and the Paul Winter Consort. He was a founder of and original participant in the Boston Early Musical Festival and the International Artists Series.

He is survived by his companion, Betsy Northrup of Wellesley, Mass.; his mother, Dorothy, of Stoughton MA; two sisters; and a brother. WGBH 89.7FM has scheduled a weekend retrospective of Robert J. on Saturday-Sunday, July 1-2, which may be listened to at that time by clicking here. Additionally, NPR's Noah Adams hosted a tribute to Robert J. on June 14.