Daniel Monroe Gwin's Obituary
In Loving Memory of
Daniel Monroe Gwin
Daniel Monroe Gwin was born on Sunday, January 11, 1953, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, at St. John’s Hospital, the son of Fiina Luella Shankle and James Perry Gwin. He attended Luther Burbank Elementary, Alexander Graham Bell Junior High and Will Rogers High School in Tulsa, earning his diploma in 1971.
He performed the role of Dr. Brown in the Bell Jr. H.S. ninth grade production of Donald Payton’s Finders Creepers. He performed the role of the Professor in his Sophomore class play production of Thornton Wilder’s By the Skin of Our Teeth.
While a student at Will Rogers H.S., he auditioned for and performed with the orchestra of the All-City Messiah. As a senior at Rogers H.S., he performed as principal cellist of the Tulsa Youth Orchestra and was cellist for the Concertime (Scholarship) String Quartet which was headquartered at the Harwelden Mansion in Tulsa.
He auditioned to perform as a participant on cello in the Congress of Strings in 1971 sponsored by Local 94 of the American Federation of Musicians. He was selected to perform at the music camp held on the University of Southern California campus.
As a sophomore at Oklahoma University he was awarded the Maxine Appleman-Fegin Award for Outstanding Student in the School of Music. As a junior he successfully auditioned for the Norman Music Club scholarship.
Dan earned his Bachelor of Music degree, cum laude, in Violoncello Performance, at Oklahoma in 1975 and his Master of Music degree in Violoncello Performance at the University of Southern California in 1977. At OU he studied cello with Professor Marjory (Lunt) Cornelius and chamber music with Professor Daniel Guilet. At USC he studied cello with Professor Gabor Rejto, chamber music with professors Milton Thomas and Milton Kestenbaum and double bass with Professor Kestenbaum.
He was Adjunct Associate Professor of Music (double bass) at the University of New Mexico, 1977-1988, Double Bass Instructor at the University of Texas-El Paso 1979-1981 and from 1977-1988 was Principal Double Bassist of numerous professional orchestras in New Mexico and Colorado, which included the Orchestra of Santa Fe (European Tour in June/July 1980), Albuquerque Opera/Opera Southwest, New Mexico Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra of Albuquerque and the Four Corners Opera (Durango).
He appeared frequently as a guest musician on double bass and cello with the Seraphin Trio (at UNM), the Raphael Trio at the Ouray (Colorado) Summer Music Festival, the Nova Chamber Music Series in Salt Lake City, the Amabile Piano Quartet, the Jupiter Trio, the Assembly Hall Recital Series on Temple Square, Westminster College in Salt Lake City and appeared in recital with musicians Joseph Silverstein, Neal Stulberg, Sara Tutland, Ralph Matson, Terry King and Erich Graf. He was a member of the double bass section of the Utah Symphony/Utah Opera 1988-2005.
Dan published his first family history, A Family History for Steven, in 2008. His two volume tome received the “Award for Excellence, Genealogy and Family History” by the National Genealogical Society in 2009.
From January 1999 to October 2008 he dealt with the slow progression of essential tremor which was eventually diagnosed as tremor-predominant Parkinson’s Disease. He continued to research his family history. His second publication would focus on his maternal grandmother’s Finnish ancestry.
He is survived by a younger sister, Sharon Annette Zelsnack of Tulsa; a brother, David Perry Gwin, sister-in-law, nephew Steven William Gwin, two grandnieces and one grandnephew, all of San Diego County, California. He was predeceased by his parents; one sister, Alice Marie Mendoza, and two brother’s-in-law, Michael Arthur Jude Zelnack and Vincent Leon Mendoza. Daniel was laid to rest at the Floral Haven Cemetery in Broken Arrow, OK.
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