Oklahoma native Merle Montgomery was a graduate of the University of Oklahoma and taught piano and theory at the Eastman School of Music in New York while completing her Ph.D. She served as vice president of public relations for music publisher, Carl Fischer, Inc., and was the president of the National Federation of Music Clubs. She wrote several books on music theory and a number of published compositions. She also compiled and edited two volumes of the new Scribner Music Library. She was also the assistant manager of the Oxford University Press Music Department.