Noramn Dello Joio (1913–2008), was an American composer, respected for his fine craftsmanship. Born in New York City, he studied under the German composer Paul Hindemith and taught (1944–1950) composition at Sarah Lawrence College. His music follows neoclassical tendencies in its use of classical forms, and his choral music is especially highly regarded. His works include Concertino for Harmonica and Chamber Orchestra (1942); Song of Affirmation (1952), a setting of the poem "Western Star" by the American poet Stephen Vincent Benét, for chorus and orchestra, soprano, and narrator; Meditations on Ecclesiastes (1956) for string orchestra, which won the 1957 Pulitzer Prize in music; and Evocations (1970) for chorus and orchestra. Dello Joio also wrote an opera, Blood Moon (1961), and several instrumental pieces, such as Diversions (1975) for piano.

Dello Joio’s first opera, The Triumph of St. Joan, (1950) was not a critical success, and he reworked it into a symphony, first titled The Triumph of St. Joan and later renamed Seraphic Ode. He composed a new opera on the same subject, originally titled The Trial at Rouen but later performed under the title The Triumph of St. Joan. (1959)