Blanche Robinson
Encyclopedia
Blanche Robinson (née Williams b. May 18, 1883, near Liberty, Kansas
; d. Aug 19, 1969, Los Angeles, CA) was an American
composer and well-known piano accompanist. During her prolific years as a composer, she lived in New York City
. During her more active years as a piano accompanist, she lived in Los Angeles
. In her published music, she was known as Mrs. M. Hennion Robinson or Mrs. M. Hennion-Robinson.
For nearly three years after arriving in Los Angeles, Robinson did concert work and was soloist on many notable programs. Around 1904, Robinson began specializing exclusively in accompaniment. She accompanied artists that included George Hamlin, Jeannie Jornelli, Marcella Craft
, Maggie Teyte
, and Pavlowa, Franz Wilcez and Hugo Herrman. For nine years she was the accompanist for the Woman's Lyric Club, and for five years of the Ellis Club.
Robinson became a pupil in composition of Frederick Stephenson in Los Angeles. Her The Woman at Home, a chorus for women's voices, was performed with much success by the Lyric Club. Among her better known compositions are Songs of You, The Mystic Hour, Youth, Fairies, Butterflies, The Dawn of Dawns, and a chorus for men's voices, A Song for Heroes. She performed under the management of Mr. Behymer in concert work. She also performed with Ebell Club
, the Friday Morning Club
, the Gamut Club, and many leading artists who toured Los Angeles.
Robinson died August 19, 1969, in Los Angeles. Her ashes are stored at Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery, Santa Monica
, next to those of her daughter Dorothy B. Robinson (b. 1906, Los Angeles; d. 2004), also a pianist.
In 1928, Blanche Robinson was inducted as an honorary member of Sigma Alpha Iota
(ΣΑΙ), Sigma Xi Chapter of the University of California, Los Angeles
. ΣΑΙ is an international fraternity for women in music.
), a gifted pianist and composer who had been a student of Anton Rubinstein
(1829-1894).
, Schubert, Musorgsky, Britten and Zador
Liberty, Kansas
Liberty is a city in Montgomery County, Kansas, United States. The population was 95 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Liberty is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
; d. Aug 19, 1969, Los Angeles, CA) was an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
composer and well-known piano accompanist. During her prolific years as a composer, she lived in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. During her more active years as a piano accompanist, she lived in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. In her published music, she was known as Mrs. M. Hennion Robinson or Mrs. M. Hennion-Robinson.
Two Blanche Robinsons & two Blanch Williams of the same era
| (i) Because Blanche Robinson's maiden name was "Williams" and (ii) because Blanche Robinson wrote and used poetry in art songs that she composed, she might be confused with Blanche Robinson Williams (b 1895), the poet from Virginia Virginia The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there... — who, separately, might be confused with Blanche Colton Williams, PhD (1879-1944), the author and former head of the English department at Hunter College Hunter College Hunter College, established in 1870, is a public university and one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York, located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Hunter grants undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate degrees in more than one hundred fields of study, and is recognized... . |
Music career
Before she became a teenager, Robinson began accepting engagements in concert work, and under the management of Mr. Pardee and Miss Weber toured the Middle West in recital as concert pianist. In 1901 her father's business called him to California, and the family moved to Los Angeles.For nearly three years after arriving in Los Angeles, Robinson did concert work and was soloist on many notable programs. Around 1904, Robinson began specializing exclusively in accompaniment. She accompanied artists that included George Hamlin, Jeannie Jornelli, Marcella Craft
Marcella Craft
Marcella Craft was an American operatic soprano who performed internationally in the late 19th century and early 20th century.-Personal life:...
, Maggie Teyte
Maggie Teyte
Dame Maggie Teyte DBE 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 successful wine and spirit merchant and proprietor of public houses and later lodgings. Her parents...
, and Pavlowa, Franz Wilcez and Hugo Herrman. For nine years she was the accompanist for the Woman's Lyric Club, and for five years of the Ellis Club.
Robinson became a pupil in composition of Frederick Stephenson in Los Angeles. Her The Woman at Home, a chorus for women's voices, was performed with much success by the Lyric Club. Among her better known compositions are Songs of You, The Mystic Hour, Youth, Fairies, Butterflies, The Dawn of Dawns, and a chorus for men's voices, A Song for Heroes. She performed under the management of Mr. Behymer in concert work. She also performed with Ebell Club
Ebell of Los Angeles
The Ebell of Los Angeles is a women's club housed in a complex in the Mid-City section of Los Angeles that includes a clubhouse building and the renowned 1,270-seat Wilshire Ebell Theatre....
, the Friday Morning Club
Friday Morning Club
Friday Morning Club is a historic building on South Figueroa Street in Downtown Los Angeles that was built in 1923 and was the home for many years of a women's club of the same name. The architects were Allison & Allison....
, the Gamut Club, and many leading artists who toured Los Angeles.
Family
- Father: Oliver David Williams (1854, KentuckyKentuckyThe Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
- 1932, Venice, CA) - Mother: Joanna Williams, née Dickerson (25 Oct 1855, Crawfordsville, IN - Oct 1949, Venice, CA)
- Husband: Martin Hennion Robinson (b. Jan 18, 1878, MissouriMissouriMissouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
; d. May 2, 1964, Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
) and Blanche Williams were married September 27, 1904, in Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, at the Central Methodist Episcopal Church, Los Angeles.
Robinson died August 19, 1969, in Los Angeles. Her ashes are stored at Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery, Santa Monica
Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery, Santa Monica
Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery is located at 1847 14th Street in Santa Monica, California.-Notable burials:*Hugo Ballin , artist*Mabel Ballin , Actress*George Bancroft , actor...
, next to those of her daughter Dorothy B. Robinson (b. 1906, Los Angeles; d. 2004), also a pianist.
Music club and sorority affiliations
Both Blanche Robinson and her daughter, Dorothy Robinson, were members of The Dominant Club, a Los Angeles charitable club of women musicians founded in 1906 that promotes women in classical music and chamber music. Blanche Robinson was a charter member and past president of The Dominant Club.In 1928, Blanche Robinson was inducted as an honorary member of Sigma Alpha Iota
Sigma Alpha Iota
Sigma Alpha Iota , International Music Fraternity for Women. Formed to "uphold the highest standards of music" and "to further the development of music in America and throughout the world", it continues to provide musical and educational resources to its members and the general public...
(ΣΑΙ), Sigma Xi Chapter of the University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
. ΣΑΙ is an international fraternity for women in music.
Early education
At age nine, Robinson's family moved to Chicago; there, she began eight-years of study with William Charles Ernest Seeboeck (Aug. 21, 1859, Vienna, Austria - d. 1907, ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
), a gifted pianist and composer who had been a student of Anton Rubinstein
Anton Rubinstein
Anton Grigorevich Rubinstein was a Russian-Jewish pianist, composer and conductor. As a pianist he was regarded as a rival of Franz Liszt, and he ranks amongst the great keyboard virtuosos...
(1829-1894).
Songs and Choral Music, (LP) (c1959)
Frederick Davis, conductor; Women's Lyric Club of Los Angeles; M. Hennion Robinson, piano; works by HandelHANDEL
HANDEL was the code-name for the UK's National Attack Warning System in the Cold War. It consisted of a small console consisting of two microphones, lights and gauges. The reason behind this was to provide a back-up if anything failed....
, Schubert, Musorgsky, Britten and Zador
Jeno Zádor
Jenő Zádor was a Hungarian-born American composer. He studied at the Vienna Music Academy and in Leipzig with Max Reger. He taught from 1921 at the new New Vienna Conservatory and later at the Budapest Academy of Music...
50th Anniversary Concert, Woman's Lyric Club (LP) (1954)
- The Woman's Lyric Club; Mrs. M. Hennion Robinson, piano; Heimo Haitto, violin; Benjamin Edwards, conductor