Winifred MacBride (born before 1900 – died after 1975), later Winifred MacBride Thomas, was a Scottish-born concert pianist who achieved international acclaim in the first half of the twentieth century, particularly for her interpretations of the works of

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

and

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

. She also taught piano at

Catawba College Catawba College is a private college in Salisbury, North Carolina. Founded in 1851 by the North Carolina Classis of the Reformed Church in Newton, the college adopted its name from its county of origin, Catawba County, before moving to its cu ...

in North Carolina.

Early life

Winifred MacBride was born in Glasgow, Scotland. She studied piano at the London

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the undergraduate to the doctoral level in all aspects of Western Music including performanc ...

; she also studied with Benno Moiseiwitsch. Her younger sister Florence MacBride played violin, and the sisters played a concert together in Glasgow in 1926.

Career

In concert

MacBride gave a debut recital at London's Aeolian Hall in 1918. In 1923 she was on the programme for

the Proms The BBC Proms or Proms, formally named the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts Presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hal ...

. Her 1924 concert at

Queen's Hall The Queen's Hall was a concert hall in Langham Place, London, Langham Place, London, opened in 1893. Designed by the architect Thomas Knightley, it had room for an audience of about 2,500 people. It became London's principal concert venue. Fro ...

, London, conducted by Sir Henry J. Wood, garnered critical raves for her technical virtuosity as well as the intelligence of her interpretive skills. MacBride was praised for her "intellectual serenity" and "radiance," the "elegance of her phrasing and touch," and her "unfailing technique." Others commented on her "spacious and sympathetic style," "admirable fire," and "her clear insight into the meaning of the music." MacBride made her American debut in October 1924, at Aeolian Hall in New York. Other New York appearances include multiple concerts at Town Hall in 1929 and 1930. She played with the

Minneapolis Symphony The Minnesota Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded originally as the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra in 1903, the Minnesota Orchestra plays most of its concerts at Minneapolis's Orchestra Hall. History Em ...

in 1926, and recorded piano rolls for

Ampico American Piano Company (Ampico) was an American piano manufacturer formed in 1908 through the merger of Wm. Knabe & Co., Chickering & Sons, and Foster-Armstrong. They later purchased the Mason & Hamlin piano company as their flagship piano. The ...

In North Carolina

In the 1940s, MacBride Thomas lived in North Carolina and taught piano privately, and as Assistant Professor of Piano at

, where her husband was head of the music department. The couple were dismissed from their faculty positions in 1952, on the basis of "disloyalty to the administration of the college, manifested by slanderous statements to students, faculty members and others, and by the incitement of unrest, suspicion, and lack of confidence among students and faculty members." The couple sued for wrongful dismissal, and the AAUP defended the Thomases from the charges. Their suit for damages went to the

North Carolina Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of North Carolina is the state of North Carolina's highest appellate court. Until the creation of the North Carolina Court of Appeals in the 1960s, it was the state's only appellate court. The Supreme Court consists ...

, where it was dismissed in 1958. MacBride Thomas continued to appear as a guest artist periodically with symphony orchestras, including the

Charlotte Symphony Orchestra The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Charlotte, North Carolina. As the largest and most active professional performing arts organization in the central Carolinas , the Charlotte Symphony plays approximately 100 perfo ...

. She and her husband also gave combined "lecture recitals" at the

Mint Museum The Mint Museum, also referred to as The Mint Museums, is a cultural institution comprising two museums, located in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Mint Museum Randolph and Mint Museum Uptown, together these two locations have hundreds of collection ...

in the 1950s. She appeared as a soloist with the Charlotte Little Symphony on a television program, "The Carolina Hour", in 1956.

Personal life

In 1920, Winifred MacBride married English-born organist and composer Christopher J. Thomas; they lived in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

. She was widowed when Thomas died in 1976.

References

External links

''The New Yorker'', "Winifred MacBride at Aeolian Hall: An unusually good pianist, playing new music as well as the ordinary"

The Reproducing Piano Roll Foundation Ampico Catalog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macbride, Winifred Scottish classical pianists Scottish women pianists Musicians from Glasgow Catawba College faculty