Canzonetta, Op. 71, No. 4

Arthur William Foote (5 March 1853 in Salem, Massachusetts – 8 April 1937 in Boston, Massachusetts) was a member of the "Boston Six." The other five were George Whitefield Chadwick, Amy Beach, Edward MacDowell, John Knowles Paine, and Horatio Parker. The modern tendency is to view Foote’s music as “Romantic” and “European” in light of the later generation of American composers. A Harvard graduate and the first noted American classical composer to be trained entirely in the U.S., in some sense he is to music what American poets were to literature before Walt Whitman. He was an early advocate of Brahms and Wagner and promoted performances of their music. Foote was an active music teacher and wrote a number of pedagogical works.

The Grove Music Encyclopedia says: “In his finest works Foote was a memorable composer. His style, firmly placed in the Romantic tradition, is characterized by lyrical melodies, expressive phrasing, and clear formal structure."

The "Cantilena in G", is probably Foote's most "well-known" organ work, as it appears from time to time on recordings and recital programs. Dedicated to Charles Heinroth, it is the first of the "Seven Pieces", composed in 1910. To me, this work immediately calls to mind Bach's "Air on the G-String".

Charles Heinroth (1874-1963) was Organist of the City of Pittsburgh and a well-known recitalist in his time.

The "Seven Pieces" are mostly large scale works. This is particularly the case with the "Solemn March" and the blazing "Toccata."

"Canzonetta" shows Foote in an intimate mood. My wife said it made her think of Mendelssohn's "A Midsummer Night's Dream."

The work is dedicated: "To Henry Morton Dunham ." Dunham (1853-1929) was a very solid composer, whose works are influenced by Rheinberger, but with an American accent. He was organist of the Ruggles Street Baptist Church.

Score and photos of Foote and of Dunham are attached below, as well as photos of the churches they served.

Tomorrow: "Tempo di Minuetto."