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1640 - 1890
Compiled by Roger L. Hall
This timeline covers over two hundred years of music published or written in America, between 1640 and 1890.
The first part includes music composed and published in America
between the time of the Puritans and the Gilded Age.This is a representative listing and makes no claim to be comprehensive.
The entries provide highlights of key historical events
and music composed during these centuries.
There are also links to American Music Preservation pages and other web sites.Your comments or questions are welcome about the AMT.
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1640 The first edition of The Whole Booke of Psalmes Faitfully TRANSLATED into ENGLISH Metre (also known as The Bay Psalm Book) was printed in Cambridge, Massachusetts without music. This was the third publication in British Colonial America. From the Preface by John Cotton in Old English:
"That soe wee may sing in Sion the Lords songs of prayse according to his owne will...and bid us enter unto our masters ioye to sing eternall Halleluiahss."
[translation: That so we may sing in Zion the Lord's songs of praise according to his own will...and bid us enter unto our master's joy to sing eternal Hallelujahs]One of the best known psalms is: "Psalm 23."
1698 Ninth edition of The Bay Psalm Book (original title: The Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs of the Old & New Testament: Faithfully Translated into English Meetre) was the first one to contain music (13 tunes in two voice parts). The tunes included: "Low Dutch Tune" [shown at right], and "Psalm 100".
1721 First music printed with barred notes in a collection by Rev. Thomas Walter from Roxbury, Massachusetts and titled: The Grounds and Rules of Musick Explained, or An Introduction to the Art of Singing By Note.
1726 What is believed to be the earliest American tune was composed by Rev. John Tufts from Dedham, Massachusetts and published in the fifth edition of his tune collection: An Introduction to the Singing of Psalm-Tunes. There were 37 tunes in three voice parts in this collection. The tune attributed to Rev. Tufts was titled: "100 Psalm Tune New."
1730 First collection of Pennsylvania German hymns, printed by Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia and titled: Gottliche Liebes Und Lobes Gethoene. This was a collection of hymns by Conrad Beissel from the Ephrata Cloister (also known as Seventh Day Baptists).
1737 First organ built in British North America by Johann G. Klemm (or Clemm) of Phildephia, for Trinity Church in New York City.
1747 First choral music collection from the press of the Ephrata Clositer, a Protestant monastic order in Pennsylvania: Paradisches Wunder-Spiel. The words were printted with space left for the music to be entered by hand.
1759 First secular song written by a native American: "My Days Have Been So Wondrous Free" This song was written by Francis Hopkinson who would later serve as a delegate in Philadelphia and was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. He was said to be a designer of the first American flag.
1761 First music collection compiled by an American musician: Urania. A Choice Collection of Psalm-Tunes, Anthems and Hymns. This collection compiled by Rev. James Lyon also contained a few of his own tunes.
1762 First musical society, titled The St. Cecilia Society, founded in Charleston, South Carolina. This society's history remains shrouded in mystery but is known to be a sponsoring group for concerts and not a performing organization.
Also this year the first documented singing meetings were held in Stoughton, Massachusetts and led to the later formation of The Stoughton Musical Society [see1786-1787]
1768 First propaganda song text: "The Liberty Song" , words by John Dickinson, and set to an English tune by William Boyce, "Heart of Oak."
1770 First collection of music by a native born composer: The New-England Psalm-Singer by William Billings (1746-1800), who was primarily a tanner in Boston, but also a singing teacher and composer.
1771 First song to appear in a periodical: "The Hill Tops: A Hunting Song." Published in Royal American Magazine, Volume I, April 1771, Boston, Massachusetts.
1774 Billings taught a singing school in Stoughton, Massachusetts and it is the only one at that time with all the students listed. One of the students was Jacob French, who later became a composer.
1775 First piano-forte manufactured by John Behrent of Philadelphia.
1776 "Father and I Went Down to Camp" -- probably the earliest American words written to the "Yankee Doodle" tune, printed as a broadside, and attributed to Edward Bangs, a student at Harvard College. It has been claimed that Dr. Richard Schukburgh (or Schakburg) wrote the first American words to "Yankee Doodle" near Albany, New York in 1755, but there is no proof of that claim. The composer of the "Yankee Doodle" tune is unknown but it is beleived to have been written in America in the 1750s or 1760s.
1778 First patriotic war song by a native American: "Chester", words & music by William Billings. The tune was first written by Billings in 1770 and five stanzas were written in 1778. A new text (not by Billings) was added in 1786 and was sung for many years by the Old Stoughton Musical Society. It has been recorded.
1786 The Stoughton Musical Society was founded. This is now the oldest choral society in the United States.
1787 "The Grand Constitution", a ballad written about the U.S. Constitution is set to the English tune, "Heart of Oak." The Stoughton Musical Society's Constitution was written in October of 1787, just two weeks after the U.S. Constitution. It is now the oldest constitution of any musical organization in the United States.
1788 First secular music printed by a native born composer: Seven Songs for the Harpsichord or Forte Piano, by Francis Hopkinson. Actually there are eight songs and they are dedicated to George Washington.
1789 Songs written in tribute to George Washington's Inauguration as First US President, including a an "Ode to the President of the United States" ironically set to the English tune, "God Save the King."
1790 First singing contest held in the United States between the choir of the First Parish Church in Dorchester and the male singers of the Stoughton Musical Society. The Stoughton group won the contest after they sang Handel's "Hallelujah Chorus" from memory and without any instrumental accompaniment -- an impressive performance for its time.
1791 First orchestral score published in America was the song, "The Death Song of an Indian Chief," composed by Hans Gram, who had emigrated from Denmark. This song was published in The Massachusetts Magazine, Vol. II (March 1791).
1794 Several important tune collections were published. One was The Continental Harmony by William Billings. Another one was The Harmony of Maine by Supply Belcher of Farmington, Maine [shown at right]. Belcher was originally from Stoughton, Massachusetts.
1798 First use of the popular English tavern tune, " Anacreon in Heaven" in a song dedicated to President John Adams: "Adams and Liberty."
1799 Memorial songs composed in memory of George Washington, such as Peter A. con Hagen's "Funeral Dirge on the Death of General Washington."
1805 One of the first collections with American folk hymns titled, The Christian Harmony, or Songster's Companion, by Jeremiah Ingalls, published in Exeter, New Hampshire. Ingalls later moved to Newbury, Vermont where he wrote more sacred music. His music has remained popular with various choruses, like the Old Stoughton Musical Society, whose favorite Ingalls tune has been "New Jerusalem." Ingalls music is also popular with Sacred Harp singers.
1814 "The Star Spangled Banner" was written by Francis Scott Key and set to the tune of "Anacreon in Heaven." The original title of the poem by Key was "The Defense of Fort McHenry" and it was first published in several Baltimore newspapers a short time after it was written, probably on September 16, 1814.
1815 The Handel & Haydn Society was founded in Boston. It is now the oldest continuous performing arts organization in the U.S.
1827 First popular American song hit: "The Minstrel's Return from the War," by John Hill Hewitt, called "Father of the American Ballad." This song was believed to have been written in 1825 and published two years later by his brother.
1831 "My Country 'Tis of Thee" (also known as: "America") was first sung at Park Street Church in Boston. The words were written by Samuel Francis Smith and set to the tune of "God Save the King."
1835 "Amazing Grace" published to the tune of "New Britain" in William Walker's The Southern Harmony. This is the version most often sung today. It was printed in other tune collections, for example: The Sacred Harp. Also written this year a Shaker dance song was composed by Elder Issachar Bates, "Come Life, Shaker Life" which has become popular in the 20th century.
1838 First music in public schools, begun in Boston and led by music educator, Lowell Mason, who was best known for his many hymns and anthems, including "Jerusalem, My Glorious Home."
1840 "The Old Arm Chair, A Ballad" a song by Henry Russell, was published in Boston [sheet music cover signed by Russell is shown at left].
1842 The New York Philharmonic founded and is now the oldest orchestra in the U.S.
1845 First American grand opera, Leonora, by William Henry Fry.
1848 Shaker dance song, "Simple Gifts," (also known by its first line: "Tis the gift to be simple") was composed by Elder Joseph Brackett in Alfred, Maine. Later made world famous in arrangements by Aaron Copland (1900-1990).
1851 Stephen Foster's biggest hit, "Old Folks at Home," was published as sheet music. Due to lack of money in his later life, Foster would later write a series of Sunday School hymns during the Civil Ware era. One of these was a beautiful setting of the Lord's Prayer: "Give Us This Day."
1853 Debut of piano virtuoso and composer from New Orleans, Louis Moreau Gottschalk. One of his popular piano pieces was "The Last Hope" which was later arranged for several different hymns, including one in 1979: "They Who Seek The Throne Of Grace"
1855 "Song of the Old Folks" (tune: "Auld Lang Syne") -- words adapted by Albert Laighton, written for an Old Folks Concert in Reading, Massachusetts and published in Father Kemp's Old Folks Concert Tunes.
1859 Biggest Southern hit song, "Dixie," written by Daniel Decateur Emmett, a Northerner from Ohio.
1862 "Battle Hymn of the Republic" published with words by Julia Ward Howe and set to the tune: "Glory, Hallelujah." One year earlier, the same tune had been used for "John Brown's Body," a song written in jest about Sgt. John Brown at Fort Warren in Boston. Both tunes were based on an old Methodist hymn, "Say, Brothers Will You Meet Us?,"by William Steffe.
1867 Mass in D by John Knowles Paine (1839-1906) was the first major work by an American to be performed in Europe. This Mass had been published in 1866 in a piano-vocal score by Beer & Schirmer in New York.
1869 "Angel of Peace" -- song performed at the National Peace Jubilee in Boston, organized by bandleader Patrick S. Gilmore, to commemorate the end of the Civil War and with nearly a thousand musicians performing.
1872 "Festival Hymn" composed by Dudley Buck for the World's Peace Jubilee in Boston [music cover shown above]. There were several thousand musicians in attendance during the week of concerts and Johann Strauss II from Vienna was a special guest of honor and conducted several of his waltzes.
1873 John Knowles Paine named Assistant Professor Music at Harvard University -- the first such position at any American university.
1876 Centennial Meditation of Columbia -- a commissioned cantata (poem by Sidney Lanier, music by Dudley Buck) was performed at the U.S. Centennial celebration. Also, John Knowles Paine's Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 23 was premiered in Boston, conducted by Theordore Thomas, and set the standard for the symphonic tradition in 19th century America. His Symphony No. 2 in A, Op. 34 was premiered in 1880.
1881Song of Our Saviour -- a majestic cantata for soloists, chorus, organ and orchestra by Edwin Arthur Jones (1853-1911) is completed. It had been submitted in a shorter version titled, The Nativity Hymn, for a composition competititon sponsored by the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. The main judge was America's most distinguished conductor of that era, Theordore Thomas. Jones received an Honorable Mention. This cantata was never performed during the lifetime of E.A. Jones. The world premiere performance was given in Stoughton, Massachusetts in 1992.
1886 The centennial celebration of The Stoughton Musical Society took place in June with a full day of activities, culminating with a performance of Haydn's oratorio, The Creation. Also that year another major symphony by a composer from the Second New England School, Symphony No. 2 in B flat, Op. 21 by George W. Chadwick (1854-1931), was premiered in Boston in December of 1886.
1890 An oratorio titled, Easter Concert, by Edwin Arthur Jones, was published in a piano-vocal score by White & Smith in Boston. This oratorio was modeled after Handel's Messiah and is in three parts. It contains instrumental preludes for each section, a series of tuneful solo arias and quartets, and many majestic choruses, including "The Lord is King." The oratorio received its first modern day performance in Stoughton, Massachusetts in 1981. It was performed from the piano-vocal score since the orchestral parts are lost.
SOURCES:
Harry Dichter & Elliott Shapiro. Handbook of Early American Sheet Music, 1768-1889. R.R. Bowker Co., reprint by Dover Publications, 1969 and 1977. 287 pages.
W. Thomas Marrocco and Harold Gleason. Music in America: An Anthology from the Landing of the Pilgrims to the Close of the Civil War, 1620-1865. W.W. Norton & Co. Inc., 1964. 371 pages.
Material in the archives of The Old Stoughton Musical Society [OSMS] and
The Society for Earlier American Music [SEAM].
Additional Information
American Music Recordings Collection [AMRC]
New England Music Archive [NEMA]
Society for Earlier American Music [SEAM]]
Historic American Sheet Music, 1850-1920
Music for the Nation: American Sheet Music
Coming later in 2008...
Part Two will have highlights between 1890 and 1990.
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