Early in the Eighteenth Century a general interest in music was awakened in this country primarily through the instrumentality of the church but also through the efforts of the dancing and fencing masters who gave instruction in singing and on the spinet, harpsichord, etc., as well. It was these latter who first inaugurated public concerts in America. Later, when organs were installed in the churches, it was the church organist who became the concert promoter, and it was one of these men, William Tuckey, who first introduced oratorio to the American public. At a still later date, when choral and oratorio societies had come into existence as a result of the work of the singing schools, these associations stepped into the place they now occupy in the concert field, The growth of recitals and miscellaneous concerts has continued along the lines first laid down, although of course in ever increasing numbers and with a more exalted standard both in subject matter and in manner of performance. In the larger cities, however, the mixed concert to a great extent has given way to the solo recital, elsewhere the former still holds sway.
The first announcement of a public concert in America of which there is record appears in the Boston Weekly News Letter dated Dec. 16-23, 1731. Doubtless other similar performances had been offered before that time, but unfortunately the data at hand relative to such matters are very meager and up to the present nothing of earlier date has been unearthed. The announcement of this concert reads as follows :
" On Thursday the 30th of this instant December, there will be performed a Concert of Music on sundry Instruments at Mr. Pelham's great Room, being the House of the late Dr. Noyes, near the Sun Tavern.
" Tickets to be delivered at the place of performance at Five shillings each. The Concert to begin exactly at Six o'clock, and no Tickets will be delivered after Five the day of performance.
" N.B. There will be no admittance after Six."
Nothing further is known concerning this, America's first recorded public concert. As to who took part or of what the program consisted, other than the bare announcement that it would be performed " on sundry Instruments," we have no means of knowing. Peter Pelham, at whose " great Room " the concert was given, was a dancing master who conducted a boarding school and who was a dealer in tobacco as well. It was not customary to publish the pro-gram in the advance notices of concerts until about half a century later. The first concert promoter to offer this species of advertisement in Boston was Josiah Flagg, of whom mention is made elsewhere in connection with his work in other fields of our musical development. In the Evening Post of May 13. 1771, appears the first announcement in a Boston paper in which the program is given in full. In it Josiah Flagg solicits the patronage of the public with the following selection of " vocal and instrumental musick accompanied by French horns. hautboys, etc., by the band of the Sixty-fourth Regiment : "
ACT I
Overture Ptolomy Handel
Song, "From the East Breaks the Morn "
Concerto 1st Stanley
Symphony 3rd Bach
ACT II
Overture 1st Schwindl
Duetto, "Turn Fair Clora"
Organ Concerto
Periodical Symphony Stamitz
ACT III
Overture 1st Abel Duetto, "When Phoebus the Tops of the Hills" Solo, Violin
A new Hunting Song set to music by Mr. Morgan
Periodical Symphony Pasquale Ricci
It is seen from the above that by 1771, at least, the Boston public was privileged to hear really excellent pro-grams, considering the uncertain status of music in America at the time. During the period intervening between the first announcement of a public concert and the one quoted above, in which the program is given in full, it must not be sup-posed that Boston and its vicinity was without concert performances; but owing to the lack of data it is impossible to form any very definite idea as to the make-up of the pro-grams. Another matter which is not clear is the distinction drawn at the time between " public " and " private " concerts. It is supposed, however, that a " public " concert implied that it was given, not for the benefit of any particular musician nor as one of a series of subscription concerts (a plan then prevalent), but as a venture of the proprietor of the concert hall. The use of the term " for the benefit," so often found in connection with our early concerts, did not have the meaning usually accepted today. It was used merely to draw the distinction between the performances offered by professional musicians for financial gain and those given by amateurs for their own amusement.
The concert life of the American colonies had its beginnings in the North and in the South at about the same time. As already noted, Boston had its first recorded concert on Dec. 30, 1731. It was but a few months later that the South Carolina Gazette in its issue of April 8-15, 1732, announced that " On Wednesday next will be a Consort of Musick at the Council Chamber, for the Benefit of Mr. Salter." Charleston evidently appreciated this " consort " for the same year witnessed several others. In some of these the program was followed, after the European custom, by " Dances for the Diversion of the Ladies." Nothing is said in any of the public notices of these early concerts regarding the program. The announcements usually stated merely that there would be " Vocal and Instrumental Musick."
The first concert advertised in New York, of which there is record, took place on Jan. 21, 1736. The notice appearing in the Weekly Journal reads as follows :
" On Wednesday the 21st of January Instant there will be a Consort of Musick, Vocal and Instrumental for the Benefit of Mr. Pachelbell, the Harpsichord Part performed by himself. The Songs, Violins and German Flutes by private Hands.
" The Consort will begin precisely at six o'clock in the House of Robert Todd, Vintner. Tickets to be had at the Coffee House and at Mr. Todd's at 4 shillings."
There is no record of public concerts being given in Philadelphia until 1757, but it is probable that the Quaker City had witnessed " benefit " performances some years previously. Philadelphia, however lagged somewhat behind the other leading American cities in her concert life, although church music and opera early obtained a hold. It was not until the time of Francis Hopkinson and James Bremner (an English organist who came to the city in 1763) that Philadelphia was offered any concerts of note.
It is to the South that we owe our first introduction to the song recital. On Feb. 26, 1733, a benefit concert was given in Charleston in which it was announced that " none but English and Scotch songs " would be sung. But the programs of the larger number of our early concerts were made up principally of instrumental music. However, with the increasing interest in church music and the coming of the church organist this state of affairs changed to some extent. The advent of the singing school served to instill an interest in concerted vocal music and this side of the musical art also was brought forward. It was the concerts at which such performances were given that led to the production of oratorio.
One of the first important concerts given in America in which the chorus had a prominent part took place in Philadelphia on April 10, 1765. This performance marks an epoch in the evolution of music in this country. A part of the announcement reads as follows :
" College of Philadelphia, April 4, 1765.
" For the benefit of the Boys' and Girls' Charity School.
"On Wednesday evening next there will be a performance of Solemn Music, vocal and instrumental, in the College Hall, under the direction of Mr. Bremner. The vocal Parts chiefly by young Gentlemen educated in this Seminary, and the Words suited to the Place and Occasion, being paraphrased from the Prophets, and other Places of Scripture, upon the Plan of the musical performances in Cathedrals, etc., for public charities in England.
" The Chorus and other sublime Passages of the Music will be accompanied by the Organ, and the Intervals filled up with a few Orations by some of the Students."
In a report of the affair. the Pennsylvania Gazette of April 18, 1765, states : " The whole was conducted with great Order and Decorum, to the Satisfaction of a polite and numerous Audience." The program was as follows :
ORATION
ACT I
Overture Stamitz
Air. Prov. III, from ver. 13 to 17, and IV, 8.
ORATION
ACT II
Solo, on the Violin
Overture Earl of Kelly
Air. Isaiah LV, 1, 2. John VII, 12.
Second Overture ... Martini
ORATION
ACT III
Overture in Artaxerxes Arne Sonata, on the Harpsichord
Chorus Ps. XLVI from ver. 1 to 5.
New York came to the fore with a similar concert, given at Mr. Burns' New Room under the direction of William Tucky, on Oct. 28, 1766. The announcement states : " This concert will consist of nothing but church musick . . . accompany'd with a sufficient number of proper instruments. . . . N. B. There will be more than forty voices and instruments in the chorus." On Jan. 9, 1770, Mr. Tuckey again conducted a " concert of ,church music," which included "A Sacred Oratorio on the prophecies concerning Christ and his coming; being an extract from the late Mr. Handel's grand oratorio, called the Messiah, consisting of the overture,, and sixteen other pieces, viz., air, recitatives, and choruses, Never performed in America." This concert marked the first introduction of the "Messiah to American audiences and on this account is especially noteworthy.
In 1772 William Selby came from London to accept the position of organist at King's Chapel, Boston. He at once became prominent in musical work and it was through his serious efforts that the way was paved for the inception of the Handel and Haydn Society. It was he also who first instituted the " Concert Spirituel " in America. The name originated in France in 1725, when Philidor, a brother of the composer of that name, obtained permission from the manager of the Opéra in Paris to give a series of concerts during the Lenten season. The request was granted on condition that during the evenings of these sacred performances no compositions in the French language nor any operatic melodies were to be sung. This Concert Spirituel later was performed in the Palace of the Tuilleries, and ever after became an institution of Lent, the Conservatory adopting it as a special feature for entertainment during the season. Selby introduced this feature to Boston in 1782, when he promoted a benefit concert for the poor of the city. This performance was announced as a " Musica Spiritualis, or Sacred Concert, being a Collection of Airs, Duetts, and Choruses selected from the oratorios of Mr. Stanly, Mr. Smith, and the late celebrated Mr. Handel."
In 1785 Selby founded, in Boston, one of our earliest musical organizations, which became known as the Musical Society. The following year this society gave a benefit for the unfortunates confined in the local prisons. This concert took the form of an elaborate liturgical-musical festival and was held in the Chapel Church. Its fame traveled outside the local environment and acted as a stimulus to the musical people of other cities. The program consisted of excerpts from the "Messiah " and other of " the late celebrated Mr. Handel's " oratorios, anthems, an overture of Bach's, and the regular Morning Service of the Church. So successful was this " Musica Spiritualis " that William Selby and the Musical Society hardly let a year go by before they again announced a " Spiritual Concert for the benefit of those who have known better days." There were not as many selections from the " Messiah as in the preceding concert, but the " Hallelujah Chorus " again was included in the program. The Massachusetts Gazette published the program in full.
In 1789, during his famous inaugural tour, George Washington visited Boston, and the people of that city, anxious, perhaps, to prove that the community was aesthetic and artistic as well as patriotic and politic, arranged a concert as part of the plan for honoring him. The first part of the program contained, among other selections, "Comfort Ye My People," from the " Messiah " and "Let the Bright Seraphim," from " Samson," while the second part — to quote from a contemporary paper consisted of " the oratorio of ` Jonah,' complete, the solos by Messrs. Rea, Ray, Brewer and Dr. Rogerson. The choruses by the independent Musical Society ; the instrumental parts by a society of gentlemen with the band of his Most Christian Majesty's Fleet." A man prominent in the early concert life of Philadelphia was Andrew Adgate, and to him America owes its first concert performance on a grand scale. In 1784 Adgate founded in Philadelphia, by subscription, an " Institution for the Encouragement of Church Music." It was known first as the " Uranian Society," but in 1787 it was reorganized and adopted the name " Uranian Academy of Philadelphia." On May 4, 1786, the Uranian Society, under the leadership of Andrew Adgate, presented "A Grand Concert of Sacred Music," which took on a festival character. The following extracts from a lengthy review of the affair which appeared in the Pennsylvania Packet of May 30, 1786, will serve to show the unusual interest which it excited : " On Thursday, the 4th of May, at the Reformed German Church, in Race Street, was performed a Grand Concert of Vocal and Instrumental Music, in the presence of a numerous and polite audience. The whole Band consisted of 230 vocal and 50 instrumental performers; which, we are fully justified in pronouncing, was the most complete, both with respect to number and accuracy of execution, ever, on any occasion, combined in this city, and, perhaps, throughout America.
" The first idea of this concert was suggested to the trustees of the Musical Institution by the Commemoration of Handel in London and the Sacred Concert in Boston. This feast of harmony began with Martini's famous overture. Then followed a succession of celebrated anthems. Between the anthems the force of the band was interrupted and contrasted by two solo concertos. The whole concluded with the exertions of the full band in the performance of that most sublime of all musical compositions, the grand chorus in the Messiah, by the celebrated Handel, to these words ` Hallelujah! for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth,' etc.
" The decorum and method observed in conducting the whole harmonized with the precision and order necessary to the perfection of a musical performance. Nearly one thou-sand tickets were sold ; at two-thirds of a dollar each."
This and the various other sacred concerts conducted in different parts of the country served to awaken an interest in choral music in particular and in concerts in general. In Charleston, South Carolina, during Passion Week of 1796 a " Grand Concert Spirituale " took place, in which were rendered parts from the " Messiah," from " Samson " and from " Judas Maccabaeus." The following year Norfolk,Virginia, heard a " selection of Sacred Music from the oratorio of the ` Messiah.' "
Some idea of the growth of concert life in America and of the men who were most instrumental in its development may be gleaned from the foregoing pages. In its early period concert giving was the result of individual effort, but through the exertions of these musical pioneers the societies which they founded later took up the work. The first musical society formed in this country was the St. Cecilia Society, founded by the music lovers of Charleston, South Carolina, in 1762. This organization, which still is in existence, did much to foster concert giving in Charleston in the early days. Although it always has been semi-private in character its labors nevertheless long served to disseminate an interest in music throughout the South generally. Until well on in the Nineteenth Century it formed the center of Charleston's musical life. For many years it gave its concerts fortnightly during the season, with a special annual performance on St. Cecilia's Day, Nov. 22. It had its own orchestra, which was formed of amateurs reinforced by a number of professionals engaged by the season. In the course of years this historically important organization has developed into a club of a social nature and the musical features consequently have dropped into the background.
Another important musical association still existing is the Stoughton Musical Society, which was the outgrowth of a singing school formed by William Billings in 1774. It took the name of " Singing Society " in 1786 with a President, Vice President, Secretary, and other officers. An account of the singing contest which the Stoughton Society waged with a body of singers from Dorchester, a neighboring parish, has been given in a previous chapter. While the St. Cecilia Society of Charleston antedates the Stoughton Society by some years the latter organization was of a different caliber and it probably was the first permanent body of singers established in America. It acted as an incentive to the formation of similar organizations, for there is record of many others coming into existence within a few years of its inception. The Stoughton Musical Society also is of special significance in that it formed the connecting link between the early singing schools and the later choral, associations conducted for the purpose of oratorio singing.
The year 1815 marks the birth of the most famous choral society which America ever has produced. In the above mentioned year an elaborate concert, under the direction of Dr. G. K. Jackson, was given on Washington's birth-day, February 22, in King's Chapel, Boston, in honor of the signing of the treaty of peace at Ghent on Dec. 25, 1814, This was one of the most important concerts that America yet had heard. There were two hundred and fifty singers in the chorus and an orchestra of fifty. The only previous musical event to compare with this festival attempt was the concert given in Philadelphia by Andrew Adgate and the Uranian Society in 1786. Within a few weeks of this Peace Jubilee, notice of a meeting of those interested in the matter was called to consider " the expediency and practicability of forming a society to consist of a selection from the several choirs, for cultivating and improving a correct taste in the performance of sacred music and also to introduce into more general practise the works of Handel and Haydn and other eminent composers." The meeting resulted in the formation of the Handel and Haydn Society, and on April 20, 1815, a constitution was adopted. Thos. S. Webb was elected first president and conductor. The first concert of the society took place on Christmas Day, 1815, the program consisting of numbers from Haydn's " Creation " and from the works of Handel. The chorus numbered about one hundred voices, ten of which were female, while an orchestra of a dozen pieces and an organ furnished the accompaniments. Three were nine hundred and forty-five persons in the audience and the concert realized the sum of five hundred and thirty-three dollars from the sale of tickets.
Up to the year 1818 the programs presented by the Handel and Haydn Society were made up of miscellaneous sacred selections, but on December 25 of that year the " Messiah " was given complete. So far as may be learned this was the first performance in America of the oratorio in its entirety. Haydn's " Creation " followed in the next year and in 1820 the " Dettingen Te Deum " of Handel was performed. According to the custom of the time, during the early years of its inception the Handel and Haydn Society in the distribution of parts gave the tenor to the women's voices, the air being taken by the men. This state of affairs continued until 1827 when Lowell Mason accepted the presidency of the society and brought about the proper distribution of parts. Up to the year 1836 the " Messiah " and the " Creation " were the principal works performed, although masses by both Haydn and Mozart were given as well as the larger part of Beethoven's " Mount of Olives." In 1836 Neukomm's David " was performed for the first time and achieved a lasting popularity. Another work, " Mount Sinai," by the same composer, was given first in 1840 and also received many repetitions.
From year to year the repertory of the society was enlarged and persistent endeavor was made for a higher standard of performance. Until 1847 the president of the society acted as conductor also, but with the appointment of Charles E. Horn as leader the two offices became distinct. For one year, that of 1850, the posts were combined in the person of Chas. C. Perkins, but in the following season they were permanently separated. Following Mr. Horn came J. E. Goodson, G. J. Webb, and Carl Bergmann for one year each, after which Carl Zerrahn was appointed to the position which he held until 1895. B. J. Lang succeeded him and continued to occupy the post until 1899, when he gave way to Emil Mollenhauer, the present conductor, who brought about a thorough renovation in the affairs of the society. At the present time the active members number three hundred and ninety-five. Several concerts are given each season, usually on Sunday evenings, with an annual performance of the " Messiah" on December 25. The Boston Symphony Orchestra has furnished the instrumental accompaniments since its formation in 1881.
The efforts of the Handel and Haydn Society during its early life were not confined entirely to the performance of oratorio, for the society acted as sponsors to several musical publications as well. The first of these was the Bridge-water Collection, published by Brown,. Mitchell and Holt of Boston. Later came the Handel and Haydn Society Collection, edited by Lowell Mason, three volumes of miscellaneous anthems, and several other works. The profits derived from these publications were used in defraying the expenses of the organization.
During his long association with the Handel and Haydn Society Carl Zerrahn exerted a highly beneficent influence on the progress of music in America. In addition to his work in connection with this historical institution he also acted as director of the Worcester Festivals and of the Salem Oratorio Society. He was instrumental in promoting many concerts in Boston; for some years he conducted the Harvard Symphony concerts, and in 1872 he led the chorus of twenty thousand voices assembled for the second Peace Jubilee. At the completion of his fortieth year of service with the Handel and Haydn Society Mr. Zerrahn was tendered a benefit performance and many well deserved honors and tokens of appreciation were bestowed upon him. After long and faithful service in the cause of music Mr. Zarrahn died in 1906.
It is impossible to make mention here of other than the most important and longest lived choral organizations which have existed in this country since oratorio first was introduced, but a paragraph cited from a copy of the Euterpeiad of Boston, dated May 12, 1821, serves to show that an interest in concerts and oratorios was fast developing in all parts of America at that early date. The article is headed " Musical Excitement " and states :
" During the last week we noticed the following Musical Performances that were to take place in the present month of May :
"A Concert of Sacred Music, by the Beethoven Society, at Portland (Me.), a grand Oratorio at Augusta (Ga.), under the direction of Mr. James Hewitt, formerly of Boston, a select Oratorio at Providence, by the Psallonian Society, under the direction of Mr. O. Shaw ; a Grand Concert of Music, for the benefit of the musical fund at Philadelphia; the Grand Oratorio of ` The Creation ' by the Harmonic Society of Baltimore; a performance of Sacred Music, by the New Hampshire Musical Society, at Hanover (N. H.), and in this town a Concert of Instrumental and Vocal Music for the benefit of Mr. Ostinelli ; and the Public Oratorio by the Handel and Haydn Society of this Metropolis, for the benefit of the Howard Benevolent Society."
New York, although showing some interest in oratorio as early as 1770, fell behind the cities of Philadelphia and Boston in this respect in the earlier years of the Nineteenth Century. During this period New York was more active in giving encouragement to the ballad-opera. Nevertheless many attempts were made to keep alive the interest in oratorio, and in March, 1805, Dr. G. K. Jackson announced his intention of " having the oratorios performed under his own direction " at the French Church. The program was made up principally of selections from the " Messiah," the final piece being the " Hallelujah Chorus; but, as was customary at this period, the oratorio portions of the program were interspersed with songs and anthems.
One must look to the Choral Society, founded in 1823, for the first serious work in oratorio in New York. The Choral Society was the offspring of a former organization, the Handel and Haydn Society. The latter was organized in connection with the raising of funds for the rebuilding of Zion Church. What it did and the nature of its concerts it is impossible to learn. The Choral Society, however, on April 20, 1824, gave an excellent program at its initial performance, in which were performed selections from the " Messiah," " Judas Maccabaeus," the " Hallelujah Chorus " from Beethoven's " Mount of Olives," and Mozart's motet " O God, when Thou appearest." The chorus numbered fifty and the orchestra twenty performers under the leadership of E. C. Riley, with Messrs. Swindalls and Dyer as conductors. The Beethoven " Hallelujah Chorus " was heard for the first time and so enthusiastic was its reception that it was repeated. But the Choral Society soon dissolved, leaving the oratorio field to the New York Sacred Music Society.
This latter organization had its origin in the choir of Zion Church, which came into existence in 1823 as the Zion Church Musical Association. Application was made to the vestry by the choir for better remuneration for its services, or permission to give a concert by which to supplement the salaries. The application was not well received and consequently the choir resigned, and in order to continue the cultivation of sacred music the members organized the society before mentioned. On Feb. 28, 1827, the organization gave a concert for the benefit of the Greek fund. The chorus numbered sixty voices, and both the " Hallelujah" of Handel and that of Beethoven were rendered. But what makes this concert of particular interest is the fact that a professional soloist, Madame Malibran, was engaged to take part. This young singer, then only eighteen, was one of the distinguished soloists of Europe. A musical journal of the time in describing her singing of "Angels Ever Bright and Fair " in this particular concert of the Sacred Music Society says : " During the performance of the song, so silent was the audience that not even a whisper was to be heard. She performed it beautifully, as a matter of course, although the admirers of the simplicity of Handel had to regret the introduction of so much ornament. She was clad in robes of virgin white, and at the words ` Take, O, take me to thy care,' she raised her hands and eyes in an imploring attitude to heaven in so dramatic and touching a manner as to electrify the audience, and to call down a universal outburst of approbation, a very unusual occurrence in a church in this country."
As has been seen, oratorio already had been heard in New York in miscellaneous concerts of sacred music, but in 1831 the Sacred Music Society, under Mr. U. C. Hill, decided to take up the study of oratorio seriously and systematically. It is natural that the " Messiah," with which the members already were somewhat familiar, should be selected and on November 18 of the year mentioned the full oratorio was given in St. Paul's Chapel. The chorus numbered seventy-four voices with an orchestra of thirty-eight. The chapel was thronged, and the oratorio was repeated twice within the next two months. This organization which had given to New York its first complete performance of an oratorio continued to give annual performances of similar works until 1849. It also should be recorded that this society with a commendable spirit of enterprise gave a public performance of Mendelssohn's " St. Paul " within two years after its first performance in Düsseldorf.
In 1849 the New York Harmonic Society usurped the field hitherto held by the Sacred Music Society. Four years previously, however, it had found a rival in the Musical Institute which, under the direction of Henry C. Timm, made a specialty of the presentation of oratorios and cantatas. The chorus of this organization numbered one hundred and twenty voices, which was assisted by an orchestra of sixty performers. In 1846, two years after it was founded, the Institute gave a public performance of Haydn's " Seasons " and in 1848 Schumann's " Paradise and the Peri." But the Musical Institute, as had its predecessors, too soon ceased to exist, and a meeting of both professionals and amateurs was called to consider ways and means of uniting in one body those desirous of continuing the serious study of oratorio, and the birth of the New York Harmonic Society was, the result. Rehearsals were commenced, H. C. Timm at first offering voluntary leadership, Theodore Eisfield later being elected conductor. The Harmonic Society gave its first public performance on May 10, 1850, the " Messiah " filling the program. This was repeated on November 9 of the same year with Jenny Lind as leading soloist. In June of the following year Mendelssohn's " Elijah " was performed in Tripler, Hall, an auditorium which seated almost five thousand persons.
From the ranks of the Harmonic Society came the material for founding the Mendelssohn Union in 1863 ; then followed the Church Music Association, which was strong in the " society " element, its concerts, in which selections from oratorios were included, being most exclusive. Oratorio now had taken firm root in New York, and fortunately the genuine lovers of choral work, among them many Germans, met together and organized the New York Oratorio Society under the leadership of Dr. Leopold Damrosch. Its first meetings were held in Trinity Chapel; then the Knabe Piano firm generously offered the free use of its warerooms, afterward giving the use of an upper floor of the building as more commodious quarters. In Knabe Hall, Dec. 3, 1873, the Oratorio Society gave its first concert, when selections from the works of Palestrina, Bach, and from other classical composers constituted the program. In this concert there were but twenty-eight voices in the chorus. Within ten years the organization gave ninety-three public performances and rendered forty-four standard works or parts of such works.
In connection with the New York Symphony Society, which he organized in 1877, Dr. Damrosch in 1881 gave to New York its first May Festival, when a chorus of twelve hundred voices and an orchestra of two hundred and eighty-seven performers took part. In the organization of the chorus methods were pursued similar to those employed for the monster choruses in the Sydenham Crystal Palace, Lon-don. The nucleus' of the chorus was the membership of the Oratorio Society itself, which was designated " Section A." An independent body of singers from other New York societies was designated " Section B ; " " Section C " embraced the singers from Newark, New Jersey; " Section D " was composed of Brooklynites; " Section E " represented Jersey City; while " Section F " hailed from Nyack. In September, 1880, these individual sections began the study of the festival music under their respective leaders, and during the months that followed Dr. Damrosch himself visited each section at regular intervals. Later, these individual rehearsals were supplemented by mass rehearsals held in the Hall of Cooper Union, New York.
In connection with this festival Dr. Damrosch organized a chorus of young girls numbering over a thousand, under a special directorship, and a chorus of boys numbering two hundred and fifty, made up principally from the church choirs of the city, to take part in the afternoon performances. The concerts were held in the Seventh Regiment Armory, which was fitted up to accommodate ten thousand persons. The average daily attendance was about nine thousand. The soloists were Annie Louise Carey, Etelka Gerster, Myron W. Whitney, and Franz Remmertz. Artistically and financially the first May Festival in New York was a success, although the undertaking was severely criticized for its magnitude.
Oratorio found its way west of the Alleghenies at a comparatively early period. The Haydn Society was organized in Cincinnati in 1819. Previous to this time, however, there had been an active choral organization in the town, but serious oratorio work grew out of the enterprise of the Haydn Society. It came into birth with the incorporated city of Cincinnati itself, and it gave its first concert only four years later than did the Handel and Haydn Society of Boston. This particular concert was given in Christ Church, and the proceeds of the same were devoted to payment on the organ of the church. The program, while not an especially pretentious one, nevertheless yields sufficient proof of the ambitions of the musical people of the city. Haydn was represented by the chorus " The Marvelous Work," and Handel by the duet and chorus " Hail Judea," from " Judas Maccabaeus." In the notice of this concert which appeared in the Cincinnati Spy the writer states : " Public concerts of this description, although rather a novelty here, are quite common in Eastern cities and if well performed never fail to afford great pleasure to the audience." Then, after dwelling on the manner in which the several parts were per-formed, he adds : " This exhibition must have been highly gratifying to those who begin to feel proud of our city. It is the strongest evidence we can adduce of our advancement in those embellishments which refine and harmonize society and give a zest to life. We hope that another opportunity will occur for a further display of the talents of the Haydn Society. For their endeavor to create a correct musical talent among us they deserve thanks ; but when to their efforts is added the disposition to aid the cause of public charities, or the services of the church, their claims to the most respectful attention and applause rise to an obligation on the part of the community."
This undoubtedly was the first encouragement of oratorio west of the Alleghenies. On Dec. 19, 1822, the Haydn Society gave its second concert, the program containing selections from Handel's " Israel in Egypt," from the " Messiah," and a selection from Mozart. It is seen therefore that there was a remarkable interest in oratorio in the chief city of the Ohio Valley even at the time when New York also was just beginning to develop a taste for this class of music.
Cincinnati's Haydn Society materially assisted in promoting an interest in music, so that other organizations soon were formed, among them the Episcopal Singing Society, and the Euterpean. The latter society gave a concert in the Cincinnati Hotel, on July 18, 1823, announced to take place at " early candle-light." This phrase serves to suggest some-thing of the primitive conditions existing in Cincinnati at this period; yet its people were desirous of art culture, and anxious to develop the highest form of choral music by giving encouragement to oratorio, even under adverse conditions.
The Sacred Music Society, organized about 1840 under the directorship of Victor Williams, after giving concerts in which oratorio was mingled with other selections, later confined itself exclusively to the study of oratorio. It is impossible here to follow step by step the development of choral societies in Cincinnati. The city's May Festivals have become historic; the German singing societies, the coming of Theodore Thomas, and the enterprise of many leading citizens has made Cincinnati a truly musical city.
In May, 1873, there were gathered in Cincinnati thirty-six societies from the West and Northwest, over one thou-sand singers, with an orchestra of something over a hundred performers, and organ. This was the beginning. Theodore Thomas said: " It will send new life and vigor into the whole musical body of the West." In the performance of oratorio these May Festivals educated the people to a higher musical culture in choral music, besides cultivating a taste for the best in orchestral appreciation, and as Theodore Thomas predicted, its influence was felt in the " whole musical body of the West."
Chicago, with less than a quarter of a century to its municipal life, in 1858 had a society, the Musical Union, which took up the study of oratorio. This organization continued in existence until 1866. During these eight years it gave public performances of the " Creation," " Messiah," " Elijah," and other oratorios. After its disbandment, the Oratorio Society, under the leadership of Hans Balatka, sprang into existence. This society gave oratorio concerts during the winters of 1868, 1869 and 1870. Unfortunately the Oratorio Society was a victim of the fire. It lost its library, and its members scattered, Mr. Balatka going to MiIwaukee. The Handel and Haydn Society of Boston generously came to its aid with a donation of books, including sets of the oratorios of the " Messiah," " Israel in Egypt," " David," and a number of miscellaneous collections, and the organization was revived with J. A. Butterfield as conductor. The churches offered their lecture rooms as recital halls, and on May 16, 1872, the " Messiah " was given in the Union Park Congregational Church. The chorus numbered one hundred and fifty voices, with an orchestra of twenty-two. The same program was repeated later in the Michigan Avenue Baptist Church. In January, 1873, the Oratorio Society again was a victim of fire, and again lost its library. Several efforts were made to hold the organization together, but ultimately it ceased to exist and left the field to the Apollo Club which had been organized in the summer of 1872, and which today, under the leadership of Harrison Wild, is the only organization in Chicago that gives public oratorio performances with any degree of regularity.
Chicago held its first Musical Festivals in May, 1882, with Theodore Thomas as director of music. The " Messiah " was rendered in its completeness on the second evening, May 24, with a chorus of nearly one thousand voices, one hundred and six of which came from the Arion Club, Milwaukee, and with an orchestra of one hundred and eighty, nearly fifty of whom were residents of Chicago, the remain-der being collected from New York and Cincinnati. Of the ten soloists six were American by birth, each having attained fame abroad; of the remaining four, two were naturalized German-American citizens who already had won fame in the land of their adoption as well as in the land of their birth. The organist was Clarence Eddy, one of the most eminent of America's organ virtuosos, who had been a pupil of Haupt, and who had a phenomenal concert tour in Europe.
The State of Missouri has contributed much to the development of oratorio in the central part of the United States. St. Louis had its singing schools in 1837. In 1839 Charles Balmer, who later became well known as a music publisher, came to St. Louis. About the year 1845 Mr. Balmer organized the Oratorio Society, made up of singers from the various church choirs. Several concerts were given, and Haydn's " Creation " was performed as a whole. Later, in 1859, the Philharmonic Society was formed, with Mr. Balmer as vice-president. The chorus of this organization numbered about one hundred voices gathered from the various church choirs, and its repertory embraced the " Creation," the " Seasons," " St. Paul " and " Elijah." The war was disastrous to the Philharmonic, but in 1880 the St. Louis Choral Society was organized. This society in its first year gave four subscription concerts, Handel's " Messiah " representing the entire program of one of them.
Kansas is strong in choral organizations. It is said that here is hardly a town in the State which has not its choral oganization. For seventeen years preceding the close of the
nineteenth Century the town of Lindsborg, with a population or little more than a thousand, gave Handel's " Messiah " on each Good Friday during the period. Of one of these oratorio proformances a critic writes :
" Central Kansas, where hot winds sometimes blast the corn crop before it matures, and droughts and grasshoppers are of comparatively recent date, is not the eastern man's ideal of the place to find a musical people. Half of the United States supposes that the coyote's bark is the most musical sound to be heard in this region. Yet in this little town of less than fifteen hundred inhabitants Handel's oratorio, ' The Messiah,' was sung by a chorus of three hundred, two nights of this week in the auditorium of Bethany College A pipe organ that cost five thousand dollars and an orchestra of thirty-four pieces furnished the instrumental music. The solos were by teachers and graduates of the college. The audience of seven thousand people came from the surrounding country and from towns up and down the Smoky and Solomon Valleys, and some across the Arkansas away to the South. Distance does not count for much in Central Kansas. . . . The history of Lindsborg, a settlement of music loving Swedish-Americans, its colleges and its great annual oratorio festival is the history of a struggle for higher education, and yet this great love for music is no uncommon phase in Kansas prairie life."
The earliest oratorio society of which there is any mention on the Pacific coast was organized by Rudolph Herold in San Francisco in 1860. The oratorio of " Elijah " was performed, the solos being taken by singers who came from England to the East, and thence to San Francisco. Later, Mr. Oliver of Boston organized the Handel and Haydn Society, which became a strong force in promoting an appreciation for oratorio in the Golden Gate City. When it produced the " Creation " in 1862 it numbered two hundred and fifty voices. It also gave a performance of " Samson " in 1863. Five years later the " Creation was given at St. James' Church by a chorus of eighty voices, with William McDougall directing. Parepa Rosa appeared in this conce In 1887 the Oratorio Society presented Haydn's " Creatio on February 11, while the Handel and Haydn Society in April gave Mendelssohn's " Elijah," the chorus numbering one hundred and fifty voices. San Francisco have given encouragement to oratorio performances at his period or two societies making a specialty of the same would not have attempted two oratorio performances within two months of each other.
Since oratorio in the Eighteenth Century kindled a love for higher choral work in New York, Boston, Philadelphia,; and other cities of the East, gradually it has found favor with the public in almost every State in the Union. Handel's " Messiah " and Haydn's " Creation," together with other notable oratorios now are as familiar to the music-loving communities of America as to the people of Europe. The " Messiah " undoubtedly is the most frequently performed of any of the standard oratorios and it forms the annual Christmas offering of all the leading choral societies throughout the United States. Another great work, the St. Matthew "Passion " of Bach, also is rapidly becoming a fixture in the repertories of these societies. In addition to the performance of oratorio the various choral organizations have covered every department of vocal music -- cantatas, glees, madrigals, and more recently a capella choruses. The study of the latter has been taken up principally by societies formed almost wholly of professionals.
At the present time almost every city of importance in America has one or more organizations devoted to the study and public performance of choral music. Some of these make a specialty of oratorio, while others give their attention chiefly to unaccompanied part singing. In addition to the time honored Handel and Haydn Society, Boston has several other excellent choruses. The Cecilia Society, organized in 1877 under the direction of B. J. Lang, gives several concerts each season. This society is noted for its initiative in the presentation of new and little known works. The Apollo Club is one of the best known male choruses in the country. Emil Mollenhauer has been the director since 1901, when Mr. Lang relinquished the post. The Choral Art Society, an organization which makes a specialty of ancient music and unaccompanied singing, was formed by J. Wallace Goodrich in 1901. A number of its concerts have been given in Trinity Church, where Mr. Goodrich is the organist and musical director. In addition to these better known societies Boston also has several large choruses made up chiefly of working people. Samuel W. Cole has been most active in this field and for some years has been the director of the People's Choral Union, a chorus of over four hundred voices.
In New York the Oratorio Society still holds first place among the choral organizations. Frank Damrosch is the present director. Mr. Damrosch also is at the head of the Musical Art Society, which is conducted along lines similar to the Choral Art Society of Boston, and of the Mendelssohn Club, a male chorus. The United Singers of New York and the People's Choral Union, both exceedingly large choruses, have been instrumental in creating an interest in choral music among the masses. Another New York organization, the Manuscript Society, devotes itself exclusively to the performance of works by American composers. Brooklyn has several excellent choruses, the most important of which are the Oratorio Society and the Choral Society.
In Chicago the Apollo Club, under the direction of Harrison M. Wild, covers the oratorio field and gives a series of concerts each season. The Mendelssohn Club, 'a male chorus, also directed by Mr. Wild, is one of the finest organizations of its kind in the country. In the Musical Art Society Chicago possesses an excellent body of singers, formed almost entirely of professionals, who make a specialty of unaccompanied works. Clarence Dickinson is the director. Cincinnati has its Apollo Club, which is noted for its performance of the larger choral works. The Loring Club, a male chorus, founded in San Francisco in 1876, also is well known for the excellence of its singing. It is impossible to enumerate the many excellent choral organizations existing at the present time in all parts of the country. From the Atlantic to the Pacific each of these units exerts an influence for the betterment of concerted vocal music in its own sphere and through its efforts enables the public to hear the highest type of choral music. A singing society never is conducted for financial gain; such organizations exist only for the pleasure and profit which they may give to those associated with them and to the general public.
No mention has been made thus far concerning the various organizations of foreigners existing from time to time in this country, but it must not be supposed that the efforts made by these societies have been of no moment, for they have exerted a most beneficent influence in the cause of music. However, so long as they have remained exclusive their influence has been restricted and has been felt only when the members have become absorbed by other and more catholic institutions. This fact remains true at the present time, for the many German and Scandinavian singing societies established in all parts of the country continue to cater almost exclusively to their own people and not to the public at large. One notable exception, however, is the Bach Choir of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, whose influence has been broad-spread and conducive of much good.
From the time of its settlement by the Moravians in 1741 Bethlehem has . been a musical center. The community always has been noted for its musical life, but it was not until the latter half of the Nineteenth Century that it commenced to exert a pronounced influence on music in America, and this largely through the efforts of Mr. J. Fred Wolle. The event which brought Bethlehem into extreme prominence was the rendition on March 27, 1900, for the first time in America, of Bach's B Minor Mass under the direction of Mr. Wolle. The Bach Choir of eighty voices, which presented this great work, was organized in 1898. There was an assisting orchestra of thirty-nine and the soloists were engaged from Boston, New York and Philadelphia. The mass was presented in two parts, ene in the afternoon and the other the same evening. Each session was announced by the playing of chorals by a group of twelve trombonists stationed in the belfry of the old Moravian Church, a method of announcement which had existed in Bethlehem from earliest times. The Bach cult organized by Mr. Wolle has given many of the great master's works and has succeeded in creating a new interest in these wonderful creations.
Among the oldest and best known of the associations of foreigners in America is the Deutsche Liederkranz of New York. This famous society was formed in January, 1847, as a male chorus, but in 1856 it was reorganized and women were admitted as active members. It has since continued to maintain a high standard of excellence, largely devoting itself to the performance of works by the German composers. Arthur Claassen is the present director. Another long established chorus is the Arion, a Männerchor which was organized in 1854 as an offshoot of the Liederkranz. Dr. Leopold Damrosch chiefly was instrumental in bringing this society into prominence, and under Julius Lorenz it continues to hold its place as one of the leading male choruses in the United States.
It is not in New York alone that these societies of foreigners exist, for in every large city in the country are to be found organizations representative of almost all the European nations. The German and Scandinavian singing clubs, however, are the most numerous. Milwaukee has a Musikverein which has been heard in choral concerts in that city since 1851. Each of the German and Swedish centers supports several male choirs. In Milwaukee alone there are over twenty such choruses. As a general rule the foreign residents of the United States take more interest in chorus singing than do the native born. The clubs and societies which they have established usually combine social affairs of some sort with the musical features. Although America has shown a more marked preference for instrumental music, especially for piano music, rather than for vocal, nevertheless wonderful strides have been made in choral singing. It :s only when one stops to compare the concert life of today with that of a century ago that any idea of our progress can be realized. Our development has been rapid and sure and bids fair to continue along the same upward path.
