Music Group 2022-05-18 Amy Beach: America's Finest Romantic Composer

This week's program was prepared by Myndall. The topic was going to be female composers, but Myndall restricted it to Amy Beach, America's most famous female composer, since there is so much of her music to explore.

Amy Cheney Beach was born in the woods of New Hampshire on September 5, 1867. She memorized and sang 40 songs by age one, improvised counter-melody by two, started composing by four, performed piano by six and was a soloist with the Boston Symphony at 16. Here's a nice bio. She began her career in Boston. Dvorak thought American composers should write pieces based on Negro spirituals and Native American music. She told him that she did not know their sounds. There was a large Irish population in Boston, and to Amy Beach, Irish American music was American music. After the following symphony was performed, reviewers said that women should not write music, and psychiatrists said that women did not have the strength to be composers. Yeah...right.

       Romance for violin & piano (1893)

Submitted by Lewis, who intends to perform it with a violinist later this year.

       Gaelic Symphony in E minor (1894)

I. Allegro con fuoco
II. Alla siciliana-allegro vivace   (11:25) -beautiful Gaelic themes
III. Lento con molto espressione (19:10)
IV. Allegro di molto (31:51)

       Theme and Variations (1916)

Based on a Native American lullaby. Listen to the flute playing the melody in variation #2 (2:33). The flute was pitched to a common Native American instrument.

       Hermit Thrush at morn (1922)

She spent 18 summers at Edward MacDowell’s studio in woods and composed this piece (played at the end of the above bio).
And here is a singing hermit thrush.

       Prelude on an Old Folk Tune (1926)

After her husband died, she went to Europe on a concert tour and then moved to New York to be the composer in residence at St. Bartholomew’s Church. This is the only solo organ piece she wrote. Gloria from Mass in A.

       Piano Quintet in F-Sharp Minor, Op.67 (1907)
           II. Adagio espressivo

She later went back to her favorite, romantic style. This piano quintet is considered her masterpiece.