National Peace Jubilee

Summary

The National Peace Jubilee was a celebration that commemorated the end of the American Civil War, organized by Patrick Gilmore in Boston from June 15-19, 1869. It featured an orchestra and a chorus, as well as numerous soloists. More than 11,000 performers participated, including the famous violinist Ole Bull as the orchestra's concertmaster,[1] and Carl Zerrahn as director of the choral forces.[2] The Jubilee became the "high-water mark in the influence of the band in American life".[3] Along with the World's Peace Jubilee and International Musical Festival in 1872, it made Gilmore a famous composer and bandmaster. For the Jubilee, a newly commissioned "Hymn of Peace" was written by Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes, set to the music from "American Hymn" by Matthias Keller (1813-1875) and performed on the opening day.[4]

Peace Jubilee, Boston, 1869
Peace Jubilee, Boston, 1869

Participants included:

  • 100 choral groups with a total of 10,926 singers[1]
  • 525 musicians with the orchestra[1]
  • 486 musicians with the wind band[1]

See also edit

References edit

  • Crawford, Richard (2001). America's Musical Life: A History. W. W. Norton & Company. ISBN 0-393-04810-1.
  • Hall, Roger L. (2019), Angel of Peace: Music in Old Boston, PineTree Press.
  • Hansen, Richard K. (2005). The American Wind Band: A Cultural History. GIA Publications. ISBN 1-57999-467-9.

Notes edit

  1. ^ a b c d Hansen, pg. 229
  2. ^ John Tasker Howard (1936). "Zerrahn, Carl". Dictionary of American Biography. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
  3. ^ Crawford, pgs. 289-291
  4. ^ Hall, pg. 14-16

Further reading edit

  • William Dean Howells. Jubilee Days. Atlantic Monthly, Aug. 1869.
  • Moore, Thomas (1869). Let Us Have Peace: Music to be Performed at the Grand National Peace Jubilee. Oliver Ditson & Co.
  • Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore: History of the National Peace Jubilee and Great Musical Festival: Held in the City of Boston 1869. Illustrated with Steel Engravings. Published 1871 by the Author and for Sale by Lee, Shepard, and Dillingham, New York
  • Jarman, Rufus (1969), "Big Boom in Boston", American Heritage, 20 (6)

External links edit

  • A History of the Wind Band
  • Patrick S. Gilmore and the Boston Peace Jubilees
  • Announcement and Programme of the Festival
  • Programme of the Second day June 16, 1869 and Third day June 17, 1869
  • List of Officers and Committees of the National Peace Jubilee Association
  • List of distinguished persons invited to the Jubilee – page 344-46
  • Official Programme for the five Days of the Festival page 432 ff

42°20′59.19″N 71°4′35.68″W / 42.3497750°N 71.0765778°W / 42.3497750; -71.0765778 (Copley Square, Boston)