Oliver Holden (September 18, 1765 – September 4, 1844) was an American

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 ...

and

compiler In computing, a compiler is a computer program that translates computer code written in one programming language (the ''source'' language) into another language (the ''target'' language). The name "compiler" is primarily used for programs that ...

hymns A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

Biography

He was born in

Shirley, Massachusetts Shirley is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is approximately thirty miles west-northwest of Boston. The population was 7,431 at the 2020 census. The town has a well-preserved historic New England town center. It is ho ...

. During the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, he was a marine for a year (1782–1783) on the USS ''Deane'', which returned to Boston with at least one British prize while he was in the crew. For his service, he received an annual pension. A carpenter by trade, in 1786 he moved to

Charlestown, Massachusetts Charlestown is the oldest neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States. Originally called Mishawum by the Massachusett tribe, it is located on a peninsula north of the Charles River, across from downtown Boston, and also adjoins t ...

, to help rebuild it after the war. A

carpenter Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, Shipbuilding, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. ...

and real estate dealer in his professional life, he also organized many music schools, and served as

legislator A legislator (also known as a deputy or lawmaker) is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people of the state. Legislatures may be supra-national (for ex ...

and

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

. He was a

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

. In 1791 he joined the First Baptist Church in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

and became leader of the choir. In 1801, he and some others started the First Baptist Church in Charlestown. He was in a group that left that church in 1809, due to what they perceived as lax discipline, and started a Second Baptist Church in Charlestown. He entered King Solomon's Lodge as a

freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

in 1795, and was an active member for ten years. He was in the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into single-member ...

on behalf of his town in 1818, 1825, 1826, and 1828 to 1833. His mansion, which he built around 1800, later became the Oliver Holden School, a kindergarten of Boston. He is buried at the

Phipps Street Burying Ground The Phipps Street Burying Ground is a historic cemetery on Phipps Street in Charlestown, now a neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. With History The burial ground was created in 1630, when Charlestown was a separate community from Boston; ...

in Charlestown, Massachusetts.

Books

While working as a carpenter, Holden published ''The American Harmony'' (1793), a book of sacred music, mostly original, arranged in three and four parts. Soon afterward followed ''Union Harmony, or a Universal Collection of Sacred Music'' (1793 & 1801) and ''The Massachusetts Compiler'' (1795). He wrote the last-named work with Hans Gram and Samuel Holyoke. He edited ''The Worcester Collection of Sacred Harmony'' (1797), a sixth edition, altered, revised, and corrected, with an appendix containing new psalm-tunes; it was printed upon movable types that had been procured from England in 1786, by Isaiah Thomas, of Worcester, and is the oldest music book that was thus printed. When

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

visited

in 1789, Holden wrote the lyrics and score of an ode, and trained the

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

which sang the music that greeted Washington at the Old State House. This chorus was performed again by the

Stoughton Musical Society Organized in 1786 as The Stoughton Musical Society, it is America's oldest performing musical organization. For over two centuries it has had many distinguished accomplishments. In 1908, when incorporated under the laws of the Commonwealth of Massa ...

in their concerts at the Chicago World's Exposition in 1893 His popular tune "Coronation", to Edward Perronet's hymn "

All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name "All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name" is a Christian hymn. The hymn has been called the "National Anthem of Christendom". The lyrics, written by Edward Perronet, first appeared in the November, 1779 issue of the ''Gospel Magazine'', which was edit ...

", is said to be the earliest American hymn tune still in general use. Also of note is his hymn "Confidence".

References

External links

* *
New England Composers
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Holden, Oliver American Christian hymnwriters Politicians from Boston 1765 births 1844 deaths American male composers American composers Cultural history of Boston Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives 19th-century American writers Musicians from Boston Songwriters from Massachusetts People from Shirley, Massachusetts American male songwriters

Biography

Books

See also

References

External links