Amy Beach: Path-Breaking American Musician

E. Douglas Bomberger gives a talk on a major figure in American music, the remarkable composer and pianist Amy Beach (1867-1944). Beach was the earliest American female composer whose works are still regularly heard today, on the radio, concerts and streaming platforms. Beach’s Mass in E-flat major and her Gaelic Symphony were premiered by the Boston Symphony Orchestra in the 1890’s, to acclaim by both critics and audiences. The Library holds the manuscript of both those orchestral works along with several others in the A.P. Schmidt Company Archives. Beach’s long and eminently successful career included a number of European tours, and performances of her piano concertos in which she was the soloist.

This event will be held as part of the AMS/Library of Congress Lecture Series.