Dan Murdock Urquhart
January 6, 1944 ~ January 28, 2024
Dan M. Urquhart, age 80, formerly of Fruita, CO, and Tallahassee, FL, passed away peacefully Sunday, January 28, 2024, at Good Samaritan Center in Canistota, SD.
Memorial Services have not been scheduled at this time. Please check back for updates.
Dan Murdock Urquhart was born January 6, 1944, to Murdock and Veda (Holliday) Urquhart in Raleigh, NC. He grew up a “farm kid” in Colorado where he enjoyed horseback riding, bicycling, gardening, and hunting. He discovered a love and gift for music at age 12 and began playing clarinet, saxophone, and piano. He attended school in Fruita, CO, and joined the marching band at Fruita High School, where he later became a drum major. Dan graduated as Valedictorian in 1961. In 1962, Dan married Marilyn K. Regan. The couple had two children.
Dan received a Merit Scholarship to attend Southern Colorado State College and graduated in 1965, with a BA in music. He received the Woodrow Wilson Scholarship to Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY, where he received both his M.A. in Music Theory and a Ph.D. in Music Theory and Composition in 1968. He then accepted a faculty position in the theory/composition department of the College of Music at Florida State University. He taught undergraduate and graduate theory courses until his retirement in 1996. He is also known for his compositions: Psalm 149 (chorus and tape), Mooscapes (concert band), Sonatine for Clarinet and Piano, and others. His professional accomplishments also include research into synthesized music, bringing the first Moog Synthesizer to the campus, and educating future musicians and music educators.
Dan enjoyed supporting his children in school, music, sports, and scouting and took pride in their achievements. He loved traveling, camping, and bicycling, and had a passion for baking bread, composing music, classic literature, writing, and woodworking. He continued to write short stories and compose music after retirement.
Dan is survived by his children, Michael Urquhart, Carrabelle, FL, and Kara Lynn Baas, Brandon, SD; his brother, N. Scott Urquhart, Grand Junction, CO.; and two granddaughters, Meredith Williams, Omaha, NE, and Regan Urquhart, Colorado Springs, CO.
Dan was preceded in death by his parents, and his step-father, Paul Quimby.
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