Edwin Arthur Jones
Encyclopedia
Edwin Arthur Jones, was an American composer
. He was called "one modest man who knows the power of music" by Edward Everett Hale, author of The Man Without a Country. This modest man, from a rural Massachusetts town about 20 miles south of Boston
, composed some very significant works. These include a masterful cantata and a large oratorio in three parts, modeled after Handel's Messiah.
, Massachusetts
on June 28, 1853. After studies at the New England Conservatory of Music in violin, organ and harmony, Jones entered Dartmouth College
in 1872.
That same year, when he was only 19, Jones was a violinist among the thousands of instrumentalists and singers who played at the World's Peace Jubilee and International Musical Festival
in Boston
, organized by bandmaster Patrick Gilmore
. One of the special invited guests was the Viennese composer, Johann Strauss Jr, who performed some of his popular waltzes.
E.A. Jones graduated from Dartmouth College in 1876, where he was Class President, Director of the Dartmouth Glee Club, First violinist in the Dartmouth College Orchestra, one of the editors of the college newspaper, and Captain of the Dartmouth baseball team.
to help his family run a store. His first major composition was a delightful set of waltzes for solo piano, The Farewell Waltzes, which he had composed while at Dartmouth College. This composition was published in Baltimore in 1874. He also made an arrangement for chamber orchestra.
Six years later, in 1880, his First String Quartet was performed at the Peabody Concervatory in Baltimore, where it was well received. He then returned to his home town in Massachusetts.
In 1881, he composed his masterpiece — a large cantata for soloists, chorus, organ and orchestra, Song of Our Saviour. This cantata was never performed during his lifetime and received its world premiere over one hundred years later on May 3, 1992. The cantata was a reworking of an earlier composition, The Nativity Hymn, one of only four to receive honorable mention in 1879 in the Cincinnati College of Music competition, judged by the distinguished American conductor, Theodore Thomas.
The other major choral work by Jones was his oratorio, Easter Concert, for soloists, chorus and orchestra. It was published in 1890 in a piano-vocal score by White-Smith Music Publishing Company in Boston. This version received its first modern day performance on April 26, 1981. Unfortunately, the orchestral parts have not been located for the oratorio.
Besides his two large choral works, Jones also composed other vocal works, including:
Blessing and Glory: Fugue - Tenors and Basses (1874); Praise Ye The Lord - Tenors and Basses (1874); Wake, Maiden Wake - Tenors and Basses (1881); King Christian - Bass solo and SATB Chorus (1886); Old Stoughton - SATB Chorus (1886);
Ode to Music - SATB Chorus (1888); Love Hailed a Little Maid - Soprano solo and piano (1888); Snowflakes - Soprano solo and piano (1888); Hail, Smiling Morn! - Bass solo and chamber ensemble (undated); Lord, Dismiss Is With Thy Blessing - SATB Chorus (undated).
Among his instrumental works are:
Two String Trios - in D Major and G Major(1878);String Quartet No. 1 in F Major (1880);Dedication March - for orchestra (1881); Suite Ancienne - for orchestra (1886); String Quartet No 2 in G minor (1887) - first performed at Mrs. J. L. (Isabella Stewart) Gardener's home in Boston by the Kneissel Quartet in 1889.
Jones was a member of the two choral societies in town: The Stoughton Musical Society
, founded in 1786 and now the oldest choral society in America, and The Musical Society in Stoughton, founded in 1802, disbanded in 1982. He was largely responsible for the Stoughton Musical Society's invitation to perform at the World's Columbian Exposition
in Chicago
in 1893.
In addition, he designed the Stoughton Town Seal in 1892. It is perhaps the only one with a special music logo in it — designating the oldest choral society in the United States
. Today, there is a school named for him on Walnut Street in Stoughton.
He died at his family's home on Pearl Street on January 9, 1911, at the age of 57.
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
. He was called "one modest man who knows the power of music" by Edward Everett Hale, author of The Man Without a Country. This modest man, from a rural Massachusetts town about 20 miles south of Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, composed some very significant works. These include a masterful cantata and a large oratorio in three parts, modeled after Handel's Messiah.
Early life and education
Edwin Arthur Jones was born at 9 Pearl Street in StoughtonStoughton
Stoughton is the name of some places:in the United States of America:*Stoughton, Massachusetts**Stoughton *Stoughton, Wisconsin*Stoughton Hall, Harvard Yard, Cambridge, MassachusettsIn England:*Stoughton, Leicestershire*Stoughton, Surrey...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
on June 28, 1853. After studies at the New England Conservatory of Music in violin, organ and harmony, Jones entered Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
in 1872.
That same year, when he was only 19, Jones was a violinist among the thousands of instrumentalists and singers who played at the World's Peace Jubilee and International Musical Festival
World's Peace Jubilee and International Musical Festival
The World's Peace Jubilee and International Musical Festival of 1872 took place in the Back Bay area of Boston, Massachusetts. Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore directed the festival, which lasted some 18 days. The jubilee honored the ending of the Franco-Prussian War.- Brief history :For this...
in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, organized by bandmaster Patrick Gilmore
Patrick Gilmore
Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore was an Irish-born composer and bandmaster who lived and worked in the United States after 1848. Whilst serving in the Union Army during the Civil War, Gilmore wrote the lyrics to the song "When Johnny Comes Marching Home", the tune he took from an old Irish antiwar folk...
. One of the special invited guests was the Viennese composer, Johann Strauss Jr, who performed some of his popular waltzes.
E.A. Jones graduated from Dartmouth College in 1876, where he was Class President, Director of the Dartmouth Glee Club, First violinist in the Dartmouth College Orchestra, one of the editors of the college newspaper, and Captain of the Dartmouth baseball team.
First Compositions
After graduation, he went to BaltimoreBaltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
to help his family run a store. His first major composition was a delightful set of waltzes for solo piano, The Farewell Waltzes, which he had composed while at Dartmouth College. This composition was published in Baltimore in 1874. He also made an arrangement for chamber orchestra.
Six years later, in 1880, his First String Quartet was performed at the Peabody Concervatory in Baltimore, where it was well received. He then returned to his home town in Massachusetts.
Orchestra Leader and Composer
After returning to Stoughton, Jones formed his own orchestra of 20 musicians. A photo of his orchestra from 1885 is found in E.A. Jones: His Life and Music.In 1881, he composed his masterpiece — a large cantata for soloists, chorus, organ and orchestra, Song of Our Saviour. This cantata was never performed during his lifetime and received its world premiere over one hundred years later on May 3, 1992. The cantata was a reworking of an earlier composition, The Nativity Hymn, one of only four to receive honorable mention in 1879 in the Cincinnati College of Music competition, judged by the distinguished American conductor, Theodore Thomas.
The other major choral work by Jones was his oratorio, Easter Concert, for soloists, chorus and orchestra. It was published in 1890 in a piano-vocal score by White-Smith Music Publishing Company in Boston. This version received its first modern day performance on April 26, 1981. Unfortunately, the orchestral parts have not been located for the oratorio.
Besides his two large choral works, Jones also composed other vocal works, including:
Blessing and Glory: Fugue - Tenors and Basses (1874); Praise Ye The Lord - Tenors and Basses (1874); Wake, Maiden Wake - Tenors and Basses (1881); King Christian - Bass solo and SATB Chorus (1886); Old Stoughton - SATB Chorus (1886);
Ode to Music - SATB Chorus (1888); Love Hailed a Little Maid - Soprano solo and piano (1888); Snowflakes - Soprano solo and piano (1888); Hail, Smiling Morn! - Bass solo and chamber ensemble (undated); Lord, Dismiss Is With Thy Blessing - SATB Chorus (undated).
Among his instrumental works are:
Two String Trios - in D Major and G Major(1878);String Quartet No. 1 in F Major (1880);Dedication March - for orchestra (1881); Suite Ancienne - for orchestra (1886); String Quartet No 2 in G minor (1887) - first performed at Mrs. J. L. (Isabella Stewart) Gardener's home in Boston by the Kneissel Quartet in 1889.
Jones was a member of the two choral societies in town: The Stoughton Musical Society
Stoughton Musical Society
Organized in 1786, this is currently America's oldest choral society. Over the past two centuries it has had many distinguished accomplishments. In 1908, when incorporated under the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the name was changed to Old Stoughton Musical Society...
, founded in 1786 and now the oldest choral society in America, and The Musical Society in Stoughton, founded in 1802, disbanded in 1982. He was largely responsible for the Stoughton Musical Society's invitation to perform at the World's Columbian Exposition
World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. Chicago bested New York City; Washington, D.C.; and St...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
in 1893.
Civic Leadership
E.A. Jones is also remembered for his participation as a member of the School Committee and Superintendent of Schools, Trustee of the Public Library, President of the Fortnightly Club, and Secretary of the Chicataubut Club.In addition, he designed the Stoughton Town Seal in 1892. It is perhaps the only one with a special music logo in it — designating the oldest choral society in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Today, there is a school named for him on Walnut Street in Stoughton.
He died at his family's home on Pearl Street on January 9, 1911, at the age of 57.