KU mourns music theory teacher who died of brain cancer

Deron McGee

The Kansas University community is mourning a music professor who died after a long battle with brain cancer.

Deron McGee, 50, associate professor of music theory, died May 28 at his home in Lawrence, according to a statement put out Thursday by the university. McGee had been with the School of Music since 1994 and had stopped teaching in spring 2012.

“Although Deron battled brain cancer for over a decade, those of us close to him could see that, in the early months of 2015, his decline was accelerating,” Scott Murphy, professor of music theory and a former student of McGee’s, said in KU’s announcement. “It is customary to eulogize great men and women when they die; in the musical world, we compose music for our fallen heroes.”

In February, Murphy and associate professor of trumpet Steve Leisring began planning a composition for McGee’s funeral when the time came, according to KU. Instead, they performed the piece for his 50th birthday on April 18, with relatives, friends, former students and colleagues in attendance.

“It was a joyous occasion,” Murphy said.

McGee established the Kansas Center for Music Technology at KU, directed the Music Theory and Composition Division for several years and received the 1998-1999 Gretchen VanBloom Budig Professorship. He worked with several music publications and co-authored the book “Knowledge-Based Programming for Music Research.”

Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little said in the statement that KU was saddened to lose such a respected member of its community.

“I offer my sympathy to the family, friends, colleagues and former students whose lives were touched by Deron McGee,” she said.

A memorial service will be 2 p.m. Sunday at Plymouth Congregational Church.