Music Meets Drama

In our adult lifetimes we can look back at the teachers whose classes we attended whether in grade school, high school or college then wonder how we ever learned anything.  Yet, amongst the multitude of teachers are gems, real gems of education who taught us their passion for the subject matter.  In my education which includes a Master degree, I have had maybe five outstanding teachers and many fine teachers.  One of those outstanding gems of a teacher was my freshman in High School English teacher, Miss Peg McIntyre.  From her I learned the basics of our language and most important I learned to love Shakespeare.  We studied and read out loud “The Merchant of Venice” with Miss Mac reading Shylock.  She explained the meaning of each scene, the under currents of the plot, each character’s motivation and the history of the play’s era.  Miss Mac advised her class to have a dictionary at hand when reading Shakespeare.  You must look up all ...

By the time Halloween arrived this year, we were bombarded with Christmas commercials on television, stores that were decorated for the Holiday and announcements were made as to how early retailers will be opening on Thanksgiving Day.    What happened to Halloween?   What happened to Thanksgiving?   What happened to Christmas shopping and advertising starting the day after Thanksgiving?   OK, I’m giving away my age and my disgust at the consumerism that has become our Holiday season.   Writing this blog just two weeks before Thanksgiving, I remind myself of all the beautiful Christmas music that will flood the airwaves very shortly.   Gorgeous secular tunes that remind us of how wonderful it will be to be home for Christmas, twelve days of Christmas with birds, dancers and golden rings for gifts and then, reindeer with red noses set a mood of crisp winter air.   Carolers may appear at your door singing “O Holy Night” or “O Christmas Tree.” ...

Founded in 1988 and now celebrating its 25th year of existence, the Emily Dickinson International Society (EDIS) encourages the continuing study of our great poet's life and works. Their presence is felt in local chapters worldwide, through continued publication of scholarly papers published in journals, sponsoring international conferences and awarding scholarships to promote the continued study of Emily's impact not only in the literary world but on the world stage.   The University of Maryland at College Park hosted this year's international conference from August 8-11th.   A gathering of Emily scholars celebrated "Emily Dickinson, World Citizen"   with research papers, panel discussions, creative presentations and performances by a variety of actors and musicians.     To fit into an evening of Emily Dickinson musical performances, Barbara Dana trimmed "Wider Than the Sky" to 30 minutes highlighting scenes from the show.   Again, w...

"I Told Myself to Sing" is now titled "Wider Than The Sky".   Powerful new avenues have come to Barbara Dana's and my dream of a play with music.   With each revision the show gets stronger and deeper.   Emily Dickinson's spirit and spunk sparkle with intensity and purpose.   On Friday evening June 7th, Hudson Stage Company in Croton-on-Hudson sponsored our staged reading of "Wider Than The Sky".   The newest version of Barbara's brilliant script inspired all of us to new levels of performance.   With songs and music that were further adapted to fit the flow of Emily's journey of accepting her own death, the show was an emotional success for the actors and audience members alike. We welcomed Susannah Jones and Morgan Auld to the cast who found voices for multiples of characters who enter Emily's life.   Elizabeth Morton as Emily delved into the poet's soul with elegance.    Again, Martin Hennessy and I...

Giving of your musical talent for an organization that has been your support group through life-threatening   health issues is a gift of gratitude and a way of paying forward for the people who will need assistance in the future.   This describes my friend, tenor Alex Charles Klebenow, who has organized, produced and performed three concerts benefitting People Living Through Cancer (PLTC) in Albuquerque, New Mexico.    In 2007 Alex was diagnosed with cancer of the groin which metastasized to his spinal column and then his brain.   His fight to hold onto life was won with the help of wonderful doctors, family and friends.   Surviving is only part of cancer recovery.   A patient needs emotional support and a secure place to share as well as express their anger, frustration and issues related to cancer.   Alex found such a place in PLTC and over the past five years since his recovery, he has attended group sessions regularly.   ...

In previous posts I have often recounted how generous the Branscombe/Tenney/Phenix family has been to me.  My recent correspondence with Gena Branscombe's grandson, Roger, has included a request for a copy of an article she wrote in 1956.  Roger was sure it was in his family files and quickly sent me a pdf copy and along with that article were copies of programs of her music performed in Plymouth, Massachusetts.  My research and reading continues! As always, Roger, in his search for the things I request, seems to find additional materials or pictures he wants to share with me.  These items take me by complete surprise. This picture arrived in yesterday's e-mail.  The image took my breath away as it is the first picture of Gena Branscombe I have seen where she is smiling....truly smiling and her face is filled with love for her two daughters which she holds in her arms.  What a joyful picture to share with you my readers! Tha...

Any person in the arts will tell you that the one thing they would like for their career is to spend uninterrupted time creating their specific area of the arts whether that be sculpting, painting, writing, photography, film, graphic arts, dance, or composing music.     Time for creativity and developing our talent is at a premium for all of us as life gets in the way with jobs that support us, family crises or a million other details.   We dream of a place and an extended period of time that will allow us to be in our art; to practice and to create.   Such a place exists in the MacDowell Colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire.   When American composer and pianist, Edward MacDowell died in 1908, his wife, Marian, spent the next 48 years of her life creating and fundraising for his vision; an artist's retreat where people would enjoy the solitude of creative work at Hillcrest, a farm the couple had purchased in 1896.   Even before Edwa...

With 150 art songs in her compositional output, Gena Branscombe set the words of famous and not-so-famous poets to music.   Her mother's poetry became song and her own poems set to music were dedicated to her mother and her daughters.   One often wonders why a specific poem catches the attention of a composer.   When reading a poem that touches their inner feelings, does a melody form in their mind?   Maybe the poet approached the composer with their own works suggesting a collaboration. Whatever Gena Branscombe felt about the poems she set, her songs beautifully imbue the words with melody, complex harmony and quivering emotion that grasps not only the performers but the audience as well.   The poets must have been pleased. As a young ambitious music student, Canadian Katherine Hale (1878-1956) foresaw herself on the operatic stage with a career that took her around the world to perform in all the major opera houses.   Her singing career tra...

  The Elusive Arthur P. Schmidt Gena Branscombe's music publishers were numerous and among them was Arthur P. Schmidt of Boston, Massachusetts.    In   my January 2011 blog entry, I wrote the following paragraphs about him..... "German born Arthur Schmidt (1846-1921) was a trailblazer for American composers and in particular American women composers.   In my mind and opinion he broke down barriers, sought out potential that could be developed into the brightest and best.   He proved that the word composer had no gender bias to it….a composer is a composer whether man or woman!   What I have found most interesting about Mr. Schmidt is the personal interest he took in his composers.   At the Library of Congress in Washington , DC is the entirety of his business records.   There are ledger books for sales of each composer’s works, royalties paid, copyright filings, renewals and expirations, inventory listings, files with each ...

In the early 20th century two women stood out as leaders of women composers, promoters of American music and in particular American women composers.   These women were friends and colleagues   ... Mrs. Amy Beach and Gena Branscombe.   Their intersecting lives left an indelible mark on American music and today's women composers benefit from the paths these two laid down for them.   Mrs. Amy Beach was born Amy Marcy Cheney in Henniker, New Hampshire in 1867 and became Mrs. H.H.A. Beach in 1885 when at the age of 18 she married the famous physician, Henry Harris Aubrey Beach.   She was a child prodigy on the piano making her concert debut at the age of 16 in Boston.   Imagine my surprise when I first met Gena Tenney Phenix in 2000 and asked her if during her childhood had she ever met Mrs. Beach?   Her response was, "Oh, you mean Aunt Amy?   No, I do not remember meeting her though I know she was in our home when we lived on West 82nd Stree...