Anna Priscilla Risher (November 2, 1875 - August 29, 1946) was an American composer, organist, pianist, later a painter as well.

Early life

A native of Dravosburg,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, Risher first studied music with

William Wallace Gilchrist William Wallace Gilchrist (January 8, 1846 – December 20, 1916) was an American composer and a major figure in nineteenth century music of Philadelphia. He founded the Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia in 1874. Early life Gilchrist was bo ...

and

Alexander Matthews Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

. She attended the

Pennsylvania College for Women Chatham University is a private university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Originally founded as a women's college, it began enrolling men in undergraduate programs in 2015. It enrolls about 2,110 students, including 1,002 undergraduate students an ...

, undertaking further studies at the

New England Conservatory of Music The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a Private college, private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music Music school, conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The ...

; at the latter, her instructors included Adolph M. Foerster, Carl Stasny, George Whitfield Chadwick, and

Leo Schultz Leo Charles Schultz (17 October 1914 – 9 June 1996) was a New Zealand farmer and a politician of the National Party. Biography Schultz was born in 1914 in Hāwera. He received his education at Ngatea District High School, and afterwar ...

. Returning to Pittsburgh, she worked as an organist at such venues as the

East Liberty Presbyterian Church East Liberty Presbyterian Church, sometimes referred to as the Cathedral of Hope, is in the East Liberty neighborhood of the East End of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The current building is the fifth church building to occupy the site ...

and Bethany Lutheran Church, and taught music as well; among her pupils was

Charles Wakefield Cadman Charles Wakefield Cadman (December 24, 1881 – December 30, 1946) was an American composer. For 40 years he worked closely with Nelle Richmond Eberhart, who wrote most of the texts to his songs, including ''Four American Indian Songs''. She also ...

. Risher's family moved to California in 1918, and she became the director of music at the Cumnock School for Girls in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. She settled in the community of

Laguna Beach Laguna Beach (; ''Laguna'', Spanish for "Lagoon") is a seaside resort city located in southern Orange County, California, in the United States. It is known for its mild year-round climate, scenic coves, environmental preservation efforts, and a ...

and soon took up painting in addition to her musical activities. She continued to compose, and worked as well as the director of music for Saint James Episcopal Church. She organized a string quartet which bore her own name, and in 1933 organized the Hollywood Woman's Symphony Orchestra, a group of fifty musicians. She also organized the Laguna Beach Little Symphony Orchestra, some of whose concerts she conducted, and chaired programming for the Society for the Advancement of American Music.

Works

Risher had a long publishing association with the magazine ''

The Etude ''The Etude'' was an American print magazine dedicated to music founded by Theodore Presser (1848–1925) at Lynchburg, Virginia, and first published in October 1883. Presser, who had also founded the Music Teachers National Association, moved h ...

'', published by

Theodore Presser The Theodore Presser Company is an American music publishing and distribution company located in Malvern, Pennsylvania, formerly King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, and originally based in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. It is the oldest continuing music publ ...

; her piano work ''Indian Lament'' received a prize offered by the Presser publishing house. In total she composed some 350 pieces. Much of her output is chamber music, but she produced a number of larger-scale works as well, including a

piano concerto A piano concerto is a type of concerto, a solo composition in the classical music genre which is composed for a piano player, which is typically accompanied by an orchestra or other large ensemble. Piano concertos are typically virtuoso showpiec ...

. She also wrote a number of pedagogical works. Four of Risher's pieces for

piano trio A piano trio is a group of piano and two other instruments, usually a violin and a cello, or a piece of music written for such a group. It is one of the most common forms found in classical chamber music. The term can also refer to a group of musi ...

- ''Andante Religioso'', ''Berceuse'', ''Mazurka'', and ''From the West'' - were recorded by the Rawlins Piano Trio and released on

Albany Records Albany Records is a record label that concentrates on unconventional contemporary classical music by American composers and musicians. It was established by Peter Kermani in 1987 and is based in Albany, New York. See also * List of record la ...

. A ''Mazurka Brilliante'' for violin and piano was recorded by

Laura Kobayashi Laura Kobayashi is a violinist and teacher currently living in northern Virginia. She has performed in orchestras, chamber groups, and as a soloist. Career Education Laura Kobayashi is a graduate of the Juilliard School, having studied unde ...

and

Susan Keith Gray Susan is a feminine given name, from Persian "Susan" (lily flower), from Egyptian '' sšn'' and Coptic ''shoshen'' meaning "lotus flower", from Hebrew ''Shoshana'' meaning "lily" (in modern Hebrew this also means "rose" and a flower in general), ...

and released on Albany as well. Additionally, a short work entitled ''Boblink'' was recorded by members of the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...

under Henry Hadley as part of an educational series of records published by

Ginn & Company Pearson Education is a British-owned education publishing and assessment service to schools and corporations, as well for students directly. Pearson owns educational media brands including Addison–Wesley, Peachpit, Prentice Hall, eCollege, ...

. Risher died in California, although the location is uncertain; it has been given variously as

La Crescenta La Crescenta-Montrose () is an unincorporated area in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. The community is bordered by Glendale, California, Glendale to the south and west, La Cañada Flintridge, Calif ...

and Los Angeles.

References

1875 births 1946 deaths American women classical composers American classical composers American organists Women organists 19th-century American composers 19th-century organists 19th-century American women musicians 20th-century American composers 20th-century organists 20th-century American women musicians 20th-century American musicians 20th-century American painters 20th-century American women artists American women painters Artists from Pittsburgh Musicians from Pittsburgh Classical musicians from Pennsylvania Painters from Pennsylvania People from Laguna Beach, California Painters from California Classical musicians from California New England Conservatory alumni Chatham University alumni 20th-century women composers 19th-century women composers {{US-musician-stub