Vivian Fine (1913 – 2000)
Vivian Fine was born in Chicago. She was a piano prodigy and was awarded a scholarship at the Chicago Musical College at the age of 5. She studied composition with Ruth Crawford and wrote her first piece at the age of 13. Her 1937 composition PIece for Muted Strings (Elegiac Song) was dedicated to the children of Spain during the Spanish Civil War:
This is her Sonatina for Oboe and Piano from 1942:
In 1983 she became one of the first two women finalists for the Pulitzer Prize in Music, but it was awarded to Ellen Zwilich.