Fred Jewell was one of the leading composers of band and circus music of the early twentieth century. Born in Worthington, Indiana in 1875, he started his musical career at age sixteen as a baritone player in a circus band. He rose to the position of bandmaster for the Barnum and Bailey, Gentry Brothers, Hagenbeck-Wallace, and Sells-Floto Circuses. He wrote dozens of marches and other pieces of music for the circus. Upon returning to Indiana, he began to concentrate on the concert band, writing music in several genre for that ensemble.He relocated to Iowa from 1918-1923, where he established his publishing company and directed the Iowa Brigade Band. He returned to Worthington in 1923, where he became director at the local high school and the President of the Town Council. His publishing business grew during the 1920s, and he was named director of the Indianapolis Murat Temple Shrine Band, one of the nation's leading Masonic ensembles. Frequently in demand as a guest conductor, he joined the American Bandmasters Association and wrote many marches for the educational market. He guided his publishing company through the depression years until his death in 1936.It is as a composer of marches that Jewell is remembered decades after his death. Several of his marches, including "E Pluribus Unum," "Gentry's Triumphal," "The Screamer," and "Quality-plus" have remained in the repertoire of concert bands. Following Jewell's biography, this study includes a chronological discussion of his works, with each piece of music analyzed brieflyas to instrumentation, form, and facts of publication. Jewell's scoring styles and his publishing career are also discussed.An increased interest in the influence of American bands during Jewell's lifetime has stimulated researchers in that area. Jewell, as one of the leading figures of the time, can be thought of as a model typical of enterprising musicians and composers whose careers spanned a wide spectrum, both geographically and in versatility. Their impact on the artistic development of America is just beginning to be recognized. / School of Music
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:BSU/oai:cardinalscholar.bsu.edu:handle/175606 |
| Date | January 1994 |
| Creators | Conrad, Charles P. |
| Contributors | Pohly, Linda L. |
| Source Sets | Ball State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Format | v, 540 leaves : ill., music ; 28 cm. |
| Source | Virtual Press |
| Coverage | n-us-in |
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