# John Chellis Conner

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/John_Chellis_Conner
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/John_Chellis_Conner.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Chellis_Conner
> Source revision: 1342481415
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

**John Chellis "Jack" Conner** (October 3, 1913 – August 20, 2001) was an American marimbist. [1]

Conner was born in [Kahoka, Missouri](/source/Kahoka,_Missouri) in 1913. At the age of six, he began his studies of [piano](/source/Piano) and [percussion instruments](/source/Percussion_instrument). By the age of twelve, he was playing regularly on the radio with the KMOX Junior Orchestra. As a young artist he was a member of the International Marimba Symphony Orchestra during their European tour in 1935. Before pursuing a solo career, he was a member of both the [St. Louis Symphony Orchestra](/source/St._Louis_Symphony) and the [St. Louis Municipal Opera](/source/St._Louis_Municipal_Opera) Orchestra and was regularly heard on major [St. Louis](/source/St._Louis,_Missouri) radio stations.

He served overseas with the [USO](/source/USO) in the European theater and he later toured [South America](/source/South_America) with the [Xavier Cugat](/source/Xavier_Cugat) Orchestra. As one of the first percussionists to take the marimba and vibraphone into the classical world as solo instruments, he made his New York debut at [Town Hall](/source/Town_Hall_(New_York,_New_York)) in 1950. After hearing Conner’s artistry on the instruments, [Darius Milhaud](/source/Darius_Milhaud), the French composer, was inspired to compose a concerto for Conner to perform. This Concerto for Marimba and Vibraphone was given its world premier with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in 1948 with [Vladimir Golschmann](/source/Vladimir_Golschmann) conducting.

In addition to his classical career, Conner was a [jazz](/source/Jazz) musician, especially in the New York City area. He was associated with [Roger Williams](/source/Roger_Williams_(pianist)), the pianist, with whom he had a 25-year association. He also performed with the [Don Ho](/source/Don_Ho) show in [Hawaii](/source/Hawaii) and [Las Vegas](/source/Las_Vegas_Valley) and served as music director and conductor for [Anita Bryant](/source/Anita_Bryant). He also appeared on numerous radio and television programs such as [Merv Griffin](/source/Merv_Griffin), [Mike Douglas](/source/Mike_Douglas) and the [Lawrence Welk Show](/source/Lawrence_Welk_Show).

Conner’s greatest love was inspirational and [sacred music](/source/Sacred_music) and he had a longtime association with [Youth for Christ](/source/Youth_for_Christ) and [World Vision](/source/World_Vision_International), and his ministry in [Christian music](/source/Christian_music) took him into concert halls, theaters, and churches throughout the world. He was also a producer of Christian films such as “In God We Trust”, which he wrote and in which he played a major role. He made numerous recordings featuring both the marimba and vibraphone.

In 1990, he was presented the honorary degree, Doctor of Sacred Music, by [Trinity College of Florida](/source/Trinity_College_of_Florida). He spent his later years performing with his son and daughter-in-law as “The Conners in Concert.”

## References

1. [John Chellis Conner's obituary](http://www.local802afm.org/publication_entry.cfm?xEntry=77418923#2) [dead link] [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20030527193938/http://www.local802afm.org:80/publication_entry.cfm?xEntry=77418923#2)

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [John Chellis Conner](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Chellis_Conner) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Chellis_Conner?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.