Aldine Silliman Kieffer was a leading 19th century proponent of shape note

Shape note

Shape notes are a music notation designed to facilitate congregational and community singing. The notation, introduced in 1801, became a popular teaching device in American singing schools...

 musical notation, music teacher and publisher.

Kieffer was born near Miami

Miami, Missouri

Miami is a city in Saline County, Missouri, United States. The population was 160 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Miami is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it is water.-Demographics:As of the census of 2000,...

, Saline County, Missouri. He died in Dayton, Virginia

Dayton, Virginia

Dayton is a town in Rockingham County, Virginia, United States. The population is 1,530 as of the 2010 census. It is included in the Harrisonburg, Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Dayton is located at...

, and is buried there.

Kieffer was the grandson of Mennonite

Mennonite

The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...

 musician Joseph Funk

Joseph Funk

Joseph Funk was a pioneer American music teacher, publisher, and one of the first American composers.Joseph Funk was born April 6, 1778 , in Berks County, Pennsylvania, the son of Henry and Barbara Funk, and a grandson of Bishop Henry Funck...

. After Funk's death, he and Ephraim Ruebush

Ephraim Ruebush

Ephraim Ruebush was a music teacher and publisher.Ephraim Ruebush was born in Churchville, Virginia, the son of John Ruebush and Mary Huffman. In September 1853, Ruebush traveled to Singers Glen, Virginia, to study music and printing under Joseph Funk. He married Lucille Virginia Kieffer on March...

 took over Funk's publishing company. With Ruebush and John W. Howe

John W. Howe

John W. Howe was a Free Soil and Whig member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania.Howe was born in Maine in 1801. He studied law and was admitted to the bar. He moved to Smethport, Pennsylvania, and then to Franklin, Pennsylvania, in 1829 and commenced the practice of law...

, Kieffer founded the Kieffer, Ruebush, & Company music company circa 1873, which was moved from Singers Glen

Singers Glen, Virginia

Situated between Little North Mountain and Interstate 81, Singers Glen, Virginia occupies the zip code 22850. Singers Glen is an historic settlement that is registered by the Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission and the United States Department of the Interior...

 to Dayton in 1878. Kieffer was editor of the Musical Million and Fireside Friend periodical. The Musical Million, published from 1870 until 1914, was one of the leading tools promoting shape note music for almost a half century. It helped link teachers and students across the country, and published many songs in its pages.

One of Kieffer's most popular song books was The Temple Star, published at Singer's Glen in 1877. One of his most popular songs was his poem Twilight is Stealing, set to music by B. C. Unseld

Benjamin Carl Unseld

Benjamin Carl Unseld , better known as B. C. Unseld, was a U.S. gospel music teacher, composer, and publisher.-Biography:...

in 1877 and published in the Temple Star.

Some of Kieffer's books

• The Starry Crown; for the Sabbath school, edited by Aldine S. Kieffer; Singer's Glen, Virginia: Ruebush, Kieffer, & Co., 1874.
• The Temple Star: For Singing-Schools, Conventions, Choirs, Day-Schools and Musical Societies, edited by Aldine S. Kieffer; Singer's Glen, Virginia: Ruebush, Kieffer & Co., 1877.
• The Shining Light; a varied collection of sacred songs for Sabbath-schools, social meetings, and the home circle, by J. H. Tenney and A. S. Kieffer; Dayton, Virginia: Ruebush Kieffer & Co., 1879.
• Sharon's Dewy Rose; a collection of new music and hymns for the use of Sabbath-schools, prayer meetings, and special occasions, by A. S. Kieffer and J. H. Tenney; Dayton, Virginia: Ruebush, Kieffer & Co., 1880.
• Sweet Fields of Eden; for the Sabbath school, by J. H. Tenney, A. S. Kieffer, and Wm. B. Blake; Dayton, Virginia: Ruebush, Kieffer,& Co., 1882.
• The Zion Songster No. 1; for Sabbath Schools, edited by Aldine S. Kieffer; Dayton, Virginia: Ruebush, Kieffer & Co., 1885.
• The Royal Proclamation, edited by Aldine S. Kieffer and William Blake; Dayton, Virginia: Ruebush, Kieffer & Co., 1886.
• The Zion Songster No. 2; for Sabbath Schools, edited by Aldine S. Kieffer; Dayton, Virginia: Ruebush, Kieffer & Co., 1887.
• The Star of Bethlehem, by J. H. Hall, J. H. Ruebush, and A. S. Kieffer; Dayton, Virginia: Ruebush, Kieffer, & Co., 1889.
• Crowning Day, No. 2; a Collection of Gospel Songs for Sunday schools, revivals, young people's meetings, etc., by J. H. Hall, J. H. Ruebush, A. S. Kieffer, et al.; Dayton, Virginia: Ruebush, Kieffer, & Co., 1896.

External links

• Twilight is Stealing (The life of Aldine S. Kieffer)