Jacob Louis von der Mehden, Jr. (July 20, 1873 – August 27, 1954) was an American

cellist The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G2, D3 ...

, conductor, and

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

. Opened in 1965, the J. Louis von der Mehden Recital Hall on the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from Hart ...

's main campus in Storrs was named in his honor.

Education

Von der Mehden was born in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

on July 20, 1873. He graduated from the

University of Music and Theatre Leipzig The University of Music and Theatre "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig (german: Hochschule für Musik und Theater "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig) is a public university in Leipzig (Saxony, Germany). Founded in 1843 by Felix Mendelssohn ...

in 1894, earned a Bachelor of Music degree from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

in 1924, and earned a law degree via correspondence courses at the Chicago School of Law in 1927. In 1922,

Oskaloosa College Oskaloosa College was a liberal arts college based out of Oskaloosa, Iowa. Work was begun on establishing the college in 1855, under the influence of Aaron Chatterson and was affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). The college ...

conferred on him an honorary Doctor of Music Degree.

Career

Von der Mehden worked as first cellist in a San Francisco orchestra for eight years before moving to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in 1907. There he worked as a cellist or conductor with various theatrical or commercial orchestras. He briefly served as musical director of the

Herald Square Theatre The Herald Square Theatre was a Broadway theatre in Manhattan, New York City, built in 1883 and closed in 1914. The site is now a highrise designed by H. Craig Severance. History The Park Theatre opened in 1883 (also known as the New Park The ...

(1910-1911). Between 1912 and 1918 he worked in the recording industry, playing cello or conducting performances. He published numerous musical compositions throughout his career. After 1926, he largely gave up composing and cello, though he studied piano and gave occasional lessons.

Later life

Von der Mehden and his wife, Susan Evelyn Bates (1874–1955), who had married in 1899, purchased property in

Old Saybrook Old Saybrook is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 10,481 at the 2020 census. It contains the incorporated borough of Fenwick, as well as the census-designated places of Old Saybrook Center and Saybro ...

in 1911. They moved to Connecticut full-time in 1926, after Susan von der Mehden was laid off from her position at a toy manufacturing company in

. Louis died at

Middlesex Hospital Middlesex Hospital was a teaching hospital located in the Fitzrovia area of London, England. First opened as the Middlesex Infirmary in 1745 on Windmill Street, it was moved in 1757 to Mortimer Street where it remained until it was finally clos ...

on August 27, 1954. Susan died the following year.

Legacy

In her will, Susan von der Mehden bequeathed $500,000 to the

. This large bequest surprised university administrators, as the von der Mehdens had no obvious connection to UConn. The bequest was made on condition that the university build a concert hall and hold von der Mehden's musical compositions.

References

External links

J. Louis von der Mehden Papers
- held at the University of Connecticut Archives & Special Collections {{DEFAULTSORT:Von der Mehden, J. Louis 1873 births 1954 deaths University of Chicago alumni Yale University alumni 20th-century American composers 20th-century American conductors (music) 20th-century classical composers American classical composers American male classical composers American male conductors (music) People from San Francisco American cellists American classical cellists Yale School of Music alumni 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century cellists