Benefactor

The name Peabody Mason comes from Miss Fanny Peabody Mason, who until her death in 1948 was an active patron of music both in the United States and abroad. Her musical interests were piano, singing and chamber music.

Concert series premiere

The Peabody Mason Concerts were inaugurated in 1891 with a performance by

Ferruccio Busoni Ferruccio Busoni (1 April 1866 – 27 July 1924) was an Italian composer, pianist, conductor, editor, writer, and teacher. His international career and reputation led him to work closely with many of the leading musicians, artists and literary ...

.Slater, Harrison Gradwell, "Behind Closed Doors", ''Keyboard Classics'', 1987 The inaugural concert took place in the Mason music room, which had not been used by the family since the death of Miss Mason's mother. Mason music room-8x10

In the years that followed, at her homes in Boston and in Paris, in Beverly on the North Shore and on her two-thousand-acre (8 km²) estate in

Walpole, New Hampshire Walpole is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 3,633 at the 2020 census. The town's central village, where 573 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as the Walpole census-designated place (CDP) and ...

, Miss Mason continued to offer recitals by

Ignacy Paderewski Ignacy Jan Paderewski (; – 29 June 1941) was a Polish pianist and composer who became a spokesman for Polish independence. In 1919, he was the new nation's Prime Minister and foreign minister during which he signed the Treaty of Versaill ...

Arthur Rubinstein Arthur Rubinstein ( pl, Artur Rubinstein; 28 January 188720 December 1982) was a Polish Americans, Polish-American pianist.

, the

Alfred Cortot Alfred Denis Cortot (; 26 September 187715 June 1962) was a French pianist, conductor, and teacher who was one of the most renowned classical musicians of the 20th century. A pianist of massive repertory, he was especially valued for his poeti ...

Jacques Thibaud Jacques Thibaud (; 27 September 18801 September 1953) was a French violinist. Biography Thibaud was born in Bordeaux and studied the violin with his father before entering the Paris Conservatoire at the age of thirteen. In 1896 he jointly won the ...

Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), usually known in English by his Castilian Spanish name Pablo Casals,

trio,

Emma Calvé Emma Calvé, born Rosa Emma Calvet (15 August 1858 – 6 January 1942) was a French operatic soprano. Calvé was probably the most famous French female opera singer of the Belle Époque. Hers was an international career, and she sang regular ...

Maggie Teyte Dame Maggie Teyte (born Margaret Tate; 17 April 188826 May 1976) was an English operatic soprano and interpreter of French art song. Early years Margaret Tate was born in Wolverhampton, England, one of ten children of Jacob James Tate, a succ ...

, the

Nadia Boulanger Juliette Nadia Boulanger (; 16 September 188722 October 1979) was a French music teacher and conductor. She taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the 20th century, and also performed occasionally as a pianist and organist. From a ...

Chamber Ensemble,

Alexander Brailowsky Alexander Brailowsky (16 February 1896 – 25 April 1976) was a Russian-born French pianist who specialised in the works of Frédéric Chopin. He was a leading concert pianist in the years between the two World Wars. Early life Brailowsky was bor ...

Egon Petri Egon Petri (23 March 188127 May 1962) was a Dutch pianist. Life and career Petri's family was Dutch. He was born a Dutch citizen but in Hanover, Germany, and grew up in Dresden, where he attended the Kreuzschule. His father, a professional vio ...

and

Earl Wild Earl Wild (November 26, 1915January 23, 2010) was an American pianist known for his transcriptions of jazz and classical music. Biography Royland Earl Wild was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1915. Wild was a musically precocious child and ...

, among many others. In 1945, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, she gave a festival of Fauré’s music, including his opera

Pénélope ''Pénélope'' is an opera in three acts by the French composer Gabriel Fauré. The libretto, by René Fauchois is based on Homer's ''Odyssey''. It was first performed at the Salle Garnier, Monte Carlo on 4 March 1913. The piece is dedicated to ...

in concert form as a centennial commemoration of the birth of

Gabriel Fauré Gabriel Urbain Fauré (; 12 May 1845 – 4 November 1924) was a French composer, organist, pianist and teacher. He was one of the foremost French composers of his generation, and his musical style influenced many 20th-century composers ...

. Miss Mason also commissioned

Bohuslav Martinu Bohuslav ( uk, Богуслав, yi, באָסלעוו or ''Boslov'') is a city on the Ros River in Obukhiv Raion, Kyiv Oblast (province) of Ukraine. Population: . It hosts the administration of Bohuslav urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukra ...

’s Quintet for Piano and Strings, which was performed at her Boston residence at 211 Commonwealth Avenue in the presence of the composer. The artist for many of the concerts presented by Miss Mason was pianist Paul Doguereau. Doguereau organized the commemorative Fauré Festival and was also the pianist for the performance of the Martinu Piano Quintet. First-prize recipient in piano at the

Paris Conservatory The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

, Doguereau studied under several eminent musicians including

Emil von Sauer Emil Georg Conrad von Sauer (8 October 186227 April 1942) was a German composer, pianist, score editor, and music (piano) teacher. He was a pupil of Franz Liszt and one of the most distinguished pianists of his generation. Josef Hofmann called vo ...

Ignaz Paderewski Ignacy Jan Paderewski (; – 29 June 1941) was a Polish pianist and composer who became a spokesman for Polish independence. In 1919, he was the new nation's Prime Minister and foreign minister during which he signed the Treaty of Versail ...

and

Maurice Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composers rejected the term. In ...

. He concertized in Europe and North America and devoted much of his time to organizing the Peabody Mason concerts.

Passing The Torch

In her later years, Miss Mason transferred more of the responsibilities to her friend, pianist

Paul Doguereau Paul René Doguereau (September 8, 1908 – March 3, 2000) was a French pianist and piano teacher. He spent most of his career in Boston, United States, where he was a well-respected cultural figure.Richard Dyer, 10-Mar-2000, ''The Boston Globe'' ...

. They had often discussed presenting classical music at its best as a gift to general audiences. Upon her death in 1948, Miss Mason left a trust for musical enterprises under Mr. Doguereau’s direction. The Peabody Mason concerts continued to faithfully reflect the aspirations and purposes of Miss Mason. In 1950, the Peabody Mason concerts were re-dedicated to the ideal of presenting established artists as well as young artists in concert. In keeping with this aim, the concerts that followed from 1950 to 1985 featured some of the world’s most celebrated musicians. In April 1950, the re-dedicated Peabody Mason concerts began its first series with the Boston debut of the

Juilliard String Quartet The Juilliard String Quartet is a classical music string quartet founded in 1946 at the Juilliard School in New York by William Schuman. Since its inception, it has been the quartet-in-residence at the Juilliard School. It has received numerous ...

. During the first year, excerpts were given from

Henry Purcell Henry Purcell (, rare: September 1659 – 21 November 1695) was an English composer. Purcell's style of Baroque music was uniquely English, although it incorporated Italian and French elements. Generally considered among the greatest E ...

’s opera The Fairy Queen, conducted by

Daniel Pinkham Daniel Rogers Pinkham Jr. (June 5, 1923 – December 18, 2006) was an American composer, organist, and harpsichordist. Early life and education Born in Lynn, Massachusetts, into a prominent family engaged in the manufacture of patent medicines ( ...

, who was in the early stages of his career, with

Phyllis Curtin Phyllis Curtin (née Smith; December 3, 1921 – June 5, 2016) was an American soprano and academic teacher who had an active career in operas and concerts from the early 1950s through the 1980s. She is known for her creation of roles in ope ...

, a rising opera star at the time who sang the title role. As part of the same program, Pinkham conducted his own composition, a concertino for small orchestra and piano, composed for and dedicated to Paul Doguereau, the soloist. The concerts took place in

Sanders Theater Memorial Hall, immediately north of Harvard Yard in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is an imposing High Victorian Gothic building honoring Harvard men's sacrifices in defense of the Union during the American Civil War"a symbol of Boston's commitment ...

and in Paine Hall in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

, and in

Jordan Hall Jordan Hall is a 1,051-seat concert hall in Boston, Massachusetts, the principal performance space of the New England Conservatory. It is one block from Boston's Symphony Hall. It is the only conservatory building in the United States to be de ...

and at the

Gardner Museum The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts, which houses significant examples of European, Asian, and American art. Its collection includes paintings, sculpture, tapestries, and decorative arts. It was founded ...

in Boston. Under the auspices of Peabody Mason, concerts were also given at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

and

Alice Tully Hall Alice Tully Hall is a concert hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in the Upper West Side neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. The hall is named for Alice Tully, a New York performer and philanthropist whose donations assist ...

in New York City,

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

and at the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...

Brookline Brookline may refer to: Places in the United States * Brookline, Massachusetts, a town near Boston * Brookline, Missouri * Brookline, New Hampshire * Brookline (Pittsburgh), a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania * Brookline, Vermont See ...

. Appearing during the years since the re-dedication of the Peabody Mason concerts were the Boston/Cambridge debut recitals of pianists

Glenn Gould Glenn Herbert Gould (; né Gold; September 25, 1932October 4, 1982) was a Canadian classical pianist. He was one of the most famous and celebrated pianists of the 20th century, and was renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard works of Johann ...

Maurizio Pollini Maurizio Pollini (born 5 January 1942) is an Italian pianist. He is known for performances of compositions by Beethoven, Chopin and Debussy, among others. He has also championed and performed works by contemporary composers such as Pierre Boulez ...

Horacio Gutierrez The name Horacio is found sporadically throughout all Latinamerica. Historical Figures *Horacio Quiroga, an Uruguayan author and writer. *Horacio Carochi, an Italian Jesuit priest and grammarian *Horacio Pagani (auto executive) (born 1955), Argen ...

Nelson Freire Nelson José Pinto Freire (; 18 October 19441 November 2021) was a Brazilian classical pianist. Regarded as one of the greatest pianists of his generation, he was noted for his "decorous piano playing" and "interpretive depth". His extensive di ...

Gerhard Oppitz Gerhard Oppitz (born 5 February 1953, Frauenau) is a German classical pianist. He studied with Paul Buck, Hugo Steurer and Wilhelm Kempff. In 1981 he was appointed professor at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater MünchenRonald Turini and

Pascal Devoyon Pascal Devoyon (born 6 April 1953) is a French classical pianist. Biography Born in Paris, Devoyon began his studies with Blanche Bascourret de Gueraldi then with Lélia Gousseau at the Conservatoire de Paris where he won first prize in 1971. T ...

; baritone

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (28 May 1925 – 18 May 2012) was a German lyric baritone and conductor of classical music, one of the most famous Lieder (art song) performers of the post-war period, best known as a singer of Franz Schubert's Lieder, ...

Gérard Souzay Gérard Souzay (8 December 1918 – 17 August 2004) was a French baritone, regarded as one of the very finest interpreters of mélodie (French art song) in the generation after Charles Panzéra and Pierre Bernac. Background and education He wa ...

and

Håkan Hagegård Nils Olov Håkan Hagegård (born 25 November 1945)

; harpsichordist

Rafael Puyana Rafael Antonio Lázaro Puyana Michelsen (14 October 19311 March 2013) was a Colombian harpsichordist. Puyana was born in Bogotá in 1931, and began piano lessons at age 6 with his aunt and at age 13 made his debut at the Teatro Colón in Bogot ...

; sopranos

Régine Crespin Régine Crespin (23 February 1927 – 5 July 2007) was a French singer who had a major international career in opera and on the concert stage between 1950 and 1989. She started her career singing roles in the dramatic soprano and spinto soprano ...

and

Elly Ameling Elisabeth Sara "Elly" Ameling (born 8 February 1933) is a retired Dutch soprano, who was particularly known for lieder recitals and for performing works by Johann Sebastian Bach. Performing with distinguished pianists and ensembles around the glo ...

; guitarist

Julian Bream Julian Alexander Bream (15 July 193314 August 2020) was an English classical guitarist and lutenist. Regarded as one of the most distinguished classical guitarists of the 20th century, he played a significant role in improving the public per ...

; the

New York Pro Musica New York Pro Musica was a vocal and instrumental ensemble based in New York City, which specialized in Medieval and Renaissance early music, music. It was co-founded in 1952, under the name Pro Musica Antiqua, by Noah Greenberg, a choral director, ...

with Noah Greenberg, conductor; the Quartetto di Roma, the

Quintetto Chigiano The Quintetto Chigiano or Chigi Quintet was an Italian musical ensemble comprising a string quartet with pianoforte, founded in 1939 and active until 1966, when it was reformed as the Chigiano String Sextet. Led by Riccardo Brengola, it was first a ...

and the Trio Pasquier. These are only several of many distinguished debut performances. Returning to the Boston area to give Peabody Mason concerts were guitarist

; flutist

Jean-Pierre Rampal Jean-Pierre Louis Rampal (7 January 1922 – 20 May 2000) was a French flautist. He has been personally "credited with returning to the flute the popularity as a solo classical instrument it had not held since the 18th century." Biography Ea ...

; violinist

Joseph Fuchs Joseph Philip Fuchs (April 26, 1899 or 1900 – March 14, 1997) was one of the most important American violinists and teachers of the 20th century, and the brother of Lillian Fuchs. Born in New York, he graduated in 1918 from the Institute of M ...

; pianists

Guiomar Novaes Guiomar Novaes (February 28, 1895 – March 7, 1979) was a Brazilian pianist known for individuality of tone and phrasing, singing line, and a subtle and nuanced approach to her interpretations. Biography Born in São João da Boa Vista (in the a ...

, Earl Wild,

Alicia de Larrocha Alicia de Larrocha y de la Calle (23 May 192325 September 2009) was a Spanish pianist and composer. She was considered one of the great piano legends of the 20th century. Reuters called her "the greatest Spanish pianist in history", ''Time'' "o ...

, Andre Watts, Maurizio Pollini, Georg Demus,

Paul Badura-Skoda Paul Badura-Skoda (6 October 1927 – 25 September 2019) was an Austrian pianist. Career A student of Edwin Fischer, Badura-Skoda first rose to prominence by winning first prize in the Austrian Music Competition in 1947. In 1949, he perform ...

Noël Lee Noël Lee (December 25, 1924 – July 15, 2013) was an American classical pianist and composer. Born in 1924 in Nanjing, China, Lee studied music in Lafayette, Indiana, then attended Harvard University, studying with Walter Piston, Irving Fine, ...

, Andrew Rangell,

Eugen Indjic Eugen Indjic (born March 11, 1947 in Belgrade) is a French-American pianist. Biography His father was a Serb Yugoslav army general serving under King Peter II of Yugoslavia. Emigrating to the United States with his Russian mother, an amateur pi ...

and

Misha Dichter Misha Dichter (born September 27, 1945) is an American pianist. Biography Misha Dichter was born in Shanghai to Polish-Jewish parents who fled during WWII. He moved with his family to Los Angeles, California, at the age of two and began studying p ...

; mezzo-sopranos

Dame Janet Baker Dame Janet Abbott Baker (born 21 August 1933) is an English mezzo-soprano best known as an opera, concert, and lieder singer.Blyth, Alan, "Baker, Dame Janet (Abbott)" in Sadie, Stanley, ed.; John Tyrell; exec. ed. (2001). ''New Grove Dictionary ...

and

Teresa Berganza Teresa Berganza Vargas OAXS (16 March 1933 – 13 May 2022) was a Spanish mezzo-soprano. She is most closely associated with roles such as Rossini's Rosina and La Cenerentola, and later Bizet's Carmen, admired for her technical virtuosity, m ...

; and renowned ensembles such as the

Berlin Philharmonic The Berlin Philharmonic (german: Berliner Philharmoniker, links=no, italic=no) is a German orchestra based in Berlin. It is one of the most popular, acclaimed and well-respected orchestras in the world. History The Berlin Philharmonic was fo ...

Octet, the Hungarian String Quartet, the Virtuosi di Roma, the Stuttgart Orchestra, the

Lukas Foss Lukas Foss (August 15, 1922 – February 1, 2009) was a German-American composer, pianist, and conductor. Career Born Lukas Fuchs in Berlin, Germany in 1922, Foss was soon recognized as a child prodigy. He began piano and theory lessons with J ...

Improvisation Chamber Ensemble, the

Emerson String Quartet The Emerson String Quartet, also known as the Emerson Quartet, is an American string quartet that was initially formed as a student group at the Juilliard School in 1976. It was named for American poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson and beg ...

and the New York Vocal Arts Ensemble. Among well-known Boston artists, Donna Roll performed a

lied In Western classical music tradition, (, plural ; , plural , ) is a term for setting poetry to classical music to create a piece of polyphonic music. The term is used for any kind of song in contemporary German, but among English and French s ...

er recital and pianist Luise Vosgerchian gave a concert of chamber music with the violinist Emanuel Borok. These performances were but a few from a long list of illustrious artists who appeared in the Peabody Mason concerts.

The Legacy Continues

In 1995, the trust was gifted to the

Boston Symphony Orchestra The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, ...

,''New York Times'', Obituary, 9-Mar-2000 although Doguereau’s adopted son, Dr. Harrison Slater Wignall, continued to present outstanding artists in his Boston home at 192 Commonwealth Avenue in the years after Paul Doguereau’s death and up until his death in 2017.''The Boston Herald'', Obituary, 3-March-2000 Artists at Slater’s concerts included: David Korevaar; Sergey Schepkin; Richard Bosworth;

Janice Weber Janice Weber (born 1950) is an American pianist and author. Music Born in New Jersey, Weber was a precocious musical talent, making her debut at age 12 with the orchestra at New York's Town Hall. She studied with a number of teachers and mus ...

; Ian Lindsey,

Marcus Thompson Marcus Thompson (born 1946) is a violist and viola d'amore player known for his work as a recitalist, orchestral soloist, chamber musician, recording artist and educator. Thompson is a founding member and is currently artistic director of the Bost ...

Igor Lovchinsky Igor Lovchinsky (russian: Игорь Ловчинский) is a Russian-American classical pianist. Performing and recording career Born in Kazan, Russia, Lovchinsky studied at the Kazan Special Music School for Gifted Children. After immigratin ...

; Laura Villafranca; Stephen Porter; cellist Francesco Vila; Joel Cohen and

Anne Azéma Anne Azéma (born October 19, 1957) is a French-born soprano, scholar, and stage director. She is currently artistic director of the Boston Camerata. She has been an important or leading singer of early music since 1993. She has created and dir ...

of the Boston Camerata; tenor Zachary Stains; Joanna Kurkowitz; and Oleksandr Poliykov. On April 6, 2017 Dr. Harrison Slater Wignall died at his residence in Mt. Holly, NJ at the age of 66. The Paul Doguereau and Slater Wignall Peabody Mason legacy ended with Slater Wignall's death.

Peabody Mason International Piano Competition

In recent years, Peabody Mason has also held a piano competition. In the past, the winner received a yearly stipend plus a

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 ...

and a

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 ...

recital. The first

Peabody Mason International Piano Competition The early Peabody Mason Piano Competitions were organized by Fanny Peabody Mason's longtime friend, pianist Paul Doguereau. The piano competition was inspired by Mason’s commitment to, and aspirations for, the arts and serves to showcase and ...

was held in 1981, with others following in 1984 and 1985. In 2010, Dr.

Harrison Slater Harrison Gradwell Slater Wignall was an American writer, pianist, and educator. Born Harry James Wignall in New Bedford, Mass., he lived in New Bedford while his father, a US Army officer, was a prisoner of war for three years, held by the Comm ...

, the adopted son of Paul Doguereau, once again launched the piano competition as an international event for the 2010 Chopin year (200th anniversary of his birth). Previous winners have included Peter Orth, David Korevaar and

Robert Taub Robert Taub (born 1955) is a concert pianist, recording artist, scholar, author, and entrepreneur. Raised in Metuchen, New Jersey, Taub graduated from Metuchen High School in 1973.Tufaro, Greg"Metuchen 'welcomes back' alumni for Hall of Fame nomin ...

. The 2010 competition proved to be the last with the death of Dr. Harrison Slater Wignall in 2017.

Notes

8. https://www.burlingtoncountytimes.com/article/20170416/obituaries/304169774

Links

Back Bay Houses - 211 Commonwealth
{{Commons, Harrison Slater Peabody Mason International Piano Competition