Sigma Alpha Iota

sai-national.org • SUMMER 2016 • PAN PIPES 19 POETRY IN SONG Dickens. Jane founded the Sorosis women's club in 1868, which eventually merged with 63 other women's clubs from across the country, forming the General Federation of Women's Clubs (GFWC) in 1890. With a national office and state and local chapters, the Federation has been in the forefront of women's rights. ey strove for the right to vote, child labor laws, food and drug purity, health care for women and children, education, and access to libraries in cities and rural areas. Adding to her responsibilities with the Pen Women and Society of American Women Composers, Miss Branscombe assumed a leadership role with the GFWC on both the state and national level. Immersing herself into the organization, her enthusiasm for promoting American music was apparent when she was named Chairman of American Music and Folksong and was named to the Executive Committee. 5 Miss Branscombe's colleague Harriet Ware served on the National Committee of Fine Arts for the GFWC. 6 Taking into consideration the varying degrees of musical ability among members, Miss Branscombe created programs of American music for club choruses and soloists that would challenge and give a sense of accomplishment for the local clubs' performers. Music was to be performed at every meeting. For the more professional members of the clubs, including vocalists, instrumentalists, and choral groups, programs of more complex music were created. American music had found a leading champion. By 1934 Gena had compiled seven varied programs of American music composed by women and seven programs of works by both men and women composers that were available to the club women. She understood the heritage of American Indian ritual chants, the songs of the Kentucky, Virginia, and Carolina mountains, cowboy songs, sea chanteys, and spirituals. In her extensive research she had found our nation's composers who incorporated these elements in their music and then created concert programs including these pieces. Art songs, ballads, instrumental works, spirituals, choral works, chamber music, piano pieces, orchestral works, operas, and folk songs were featured in these proposed concert programs. 7 Composers such as Mrs. Amy Beach, Pearl Curran, Pearl Adams, Edward MacDowell, Mabel Daniels, Clara Edwards, Mortimer Wilson, John Alden Carpenter, Marion Bauer, Floy Little Bartlett, Albert Stoessel, Kathleen Lockhart Manning, Howard Hanson, Arthur Farwell, Sydney Homer, Charles Griffes, Helen Hopekirk, and many others' works were represented. 8 Fourteen varied American music programs were available to the local and state chapters. It was the committee's intention that the suggested music be purchased from the publishers and composers would obtain a royalty. Bringing American music to audiences and club members raised the awareness of the degree of talent of our composers and performers that our country held. Founded in 1898, the National Federation of Music Clubs (NFMC) was - and continues to be - a leading organization in the promotion of musical and cultural experiences in our communities. rough sponsorship of festivals of choral and orchestra concerts, educational programs, piano recitals, and lectures given by their esteemed members, the NFMC's promotion of artistic excellence carries on to this day. Many local chapters across the United States have their own club buildings and community arts centers. 9 Today the NFMC has a membership of over 135,000 participants including seniors, students and junior members that range in ability from professionals, amateurs, and beginners. Composers, dancers, music educators, singers, pianists, and instrumentalists benefit from the support of the local, state, and national clubs for their music making through auditions, contests, and scholarship programs. Mrs. Amy Beach composed choral works for the local and state women's choruses of the NFMC. Her piano concerts were sponsored by local chapters where she attended their meetings. When at these gatherings, Mrs. Beach mentored and guided young women composers and performers. On the national level, she presented piano recitals at NFMC annual conventions. Her renown as a dedicated and loyal member is exemplified when a few of the NFMC choruses and clubs changed their names to the Beach Choral Society or the Beach Music Club. 10 e NFMC also honored Mrs. Beach with awards for her compositions. Gena Branscombe was also an active, dedicated member of the NFMC. Miss Branscombe was Chairman of American Music for the New York State Federation of Music Clubs and eventually a Board member on the state level. rough her affiliation, she presented all Branscombe recitals and lectured about the importance of women in music and the performance of American music at club meetings. 11 Her leadership role was that of conductor, organizer, and guest speaker. e NFMC honored her by sponsoring the first complete performance of her dramatic oratorio, Pilgrims of Destiny, in Plymouth, MA. Among Mrs. Beach and Miss Branscombe's colleagues active in the NFMC were SAI Honorary Member and composer Mabel Wheeler Daniels who won awards for her 1911 women's choral works with two violins and piano, op. 16—Eastern Song and e Voice of My Beloved— as well as her 1913 choral work In Peace with a Sword. 12 rough their passion and dedication to the promotion of American music and in particular American women composers, Amy Beach, Mabel Daniels, Gena Branscombe, Mary Howe, and countless others helped change the course of music history and its attitude towards women. ey attended meetings, upheld their high musical standards, and initiated performance opportunities for themselves and fellow members. eir dedication to their professional life of composing, performing, and being mentors to club women was exemplary. ey sought out women on the local level to sing in choruses and to play music for one another at club meetings. In speeches given by these women composers, they strongly encouraged members to maintain a significant role in their music communities. American music must be performed! Still today the National League of American Pen Women continues to award a best composition prize. Organizations such as the International Alliance for Women in Music, New York Women Composers, Alliance for Women Film Composers, and the National Federation of Music Clubs promote and support the performance of women's music. What is the difference between the era of the early 1900s to mid-1950s and now? Composers SAI Honorary Member Jennifer Higdon (2010), Julia Wolfe (2015) and Caroline Shaw (2013) have won the Pulitzer Prize for their music. We are hearing more symphony orchestras perform women's music. Today more women composers have advanced college degrees and are on the faculty of universities where they are guiding a new generation of composition students. Communities and universities sponsor Women in the Arts festivals and Women Composer conferences across the country. Concerts of women's music are performed and presentations about their lives and compositions are given. Women composers continue to multi- task as producer, performer, and fund raiser for concerts of their own music and that of their colleagues. e pillar that women's clubs provided to women composers of the past was a vital support to them as music professionals. ey marched into the future where they will continue to engender inspiration and creativity for today's BRANSCOMBE continued on page 20

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