| Dr. John W. Vitz, Composer A Mass for Peace in the Third Millennium Born in Belle Vernon, PA in 1943 and following 2 years of early childhood piano lessons, American composer John W. Vitz began to put music and words together at a very young age. Throughout the years he has written hundreds of songs, citing influence from the wonderful music of film-score composers such as Jerry Goldsmith, John Barry, James Horner, and as far back as Dmitri Tiomkin. Popular Top 40 and Country and Western songwriters, Jimmy Webb, Cat Stevens, Burt Bacharach, Lennon and McCartney and especially Don Robertson have also influenced him. His many songs written include Passing Though Time, The Miracle of Christmas, You Did It All for Me, Walking With Angels, Choices, For Jennifer, and Totus Tuus, a piece that was presented to His Holiness Pope John Paul II. In 1999, Vitz began his first serious musical composition with the intention to write devotional music to the prayers of the Traditional Latin Mass. Originally called, A Mass for the Millennium, he changed the title to A Mass for Peace in the Third Millennium following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Vitz graduated from Marquette University, in 1969, and served in the U.S. Air Force in the early 1970s. He married the love of his life, Barbara Jean Wheeler, in 1977 and they have 3 beautiful adult children, Erik, Tracy and Andrea. Without whose love and support this music could not have been written. |
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