Harrison Potter (May 9, 1891,

North Adams, Massachusetts North Adams is a city in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. Its population was 12,961 as of the 2020 census. Best known as the ...

– October 3, 1984,

Holyoke, Massachusetts Holyoke is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, that lies between the western bank of the Connecticut River and the Mount Tom Range. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 38,238. Located north of Springfield ...

) was an American concert pianist, accompanist, choral conductor, and educator. Potter studied piano with Felix Fox, and, in Paris,

Isidor Philipp Isidor Edmond Philipp (first name sometimes spelled Isidore) (2 September 1863 – 20 February 1958) was a French pianist, composer, and pedagogue of Jewish Hungarian descent. He was born in Budapest and died in Paris. Biography Isidor Philipp ...

. Early in his career, Potter taught for a time at Boston's Fox-Buonamici Piano School. He also served as assistant conductor of the 301st Army Regiment Band during World War I. He performed widely as a recitalist and accompanist during his career. A Boston Globe review of a 1926 recital in Boston's Jordan Hall stated, "Mr. Potter’s excellence as a pianist is in his fine command of tonal gradations, his wide variety and subtlety of tonal color. He clearly loves his instrument and brings out its true powers admirably." Potter's recording of

Charles Tomlinson Griffes Charles Tomlinson Griffes ( ; September 17, 1884 – April 8, 1920) was an American composer for piano, chamber ensembles and voice. His initial works are influenced by German Romanticism, but after he relinquished the German style, his late ...

' Piano Sonata is referenced in the 1943 first edition of

Edward Maisel Edward Maisel (August 16, 1917, Buffalo, New York – March 21, 2008) was an internationally known writer on music and tai chi. He went to Harvard University where he graduated magna cum laude; he was also Phi Beta Kappa. He lived in New York City ...

's biography of Griffes, though due to its unavailability at the time of the second edition, other recordings were referenced instead. From 1930 to 1948 Potter served as the

Chautauqua Institution The Chautauqua Institution ( ) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit education center and summer resort for adults and youth located on in Chautauqua, New York, northwest of Jamestown in the Western Southern Tier of New York State. Established in 1874, the ...

's assistant choral director and as Choral Director from 1948 to 1952. He also served as assistant conductor of the Ontario Society of New York from 1944 to 48. From 1946 to 1957, Potter taught at

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a private liberal arts women's college in South Hadley, Massachusetts. It is the oldest member of the historic Seven Sisters colleges, a group of elite historically women's colleges in the Northeastern United States. ...

, the Felix Fox School of Pianoforte Playing in Boston, Massachusetts, the Chautauqua School of Music, and

Sarah Lawrence College Sarah Lawrence College is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Yonkers, New York. The college models its approach to education after the Supervision system, Oxford/Cambridge system of one-on-one student-faculty tutorials. Sara ...

. Potter accompanied many noted vocalists during his career including Metropolitan Opera singers Rose Bampton and Rise Stevens. obituary, 14. He died in

in 1984.

Recordings

* Harrison Potter, piano, "Five Sketches in Sepia," by

Ernest Bloch Ernest Bloch (July 24, 1880 – July 15, 1959) was a Swiss-born American composer. Bloch was a preeminent artist in his day, and left a lasting legacy. He is recognized as one of the greatest Swiss composers in history. As well as producing music ...

, Friends of Recorded Music, FRM-12 (78 RPM), 1937 * Harrison Potter, piano, "Piano Sonata," by

, Friends of Recorded Music, FRM-10-11 (78 RPM), 1937

Footnotes

1891 births 1984 deaths American classical pianists Male classical pianists American male pianists American music educators People from North Adams, Massachusetts Pupils of Isidor Philipp 20th-century classical pianists 20th-century American pianists Classical musicians from Massachusetts 20th-century American male musicians {{US-classical-pianist-stub Mount Holyoke College faculty