Timothy Swan
Encyclopedia
Timothy Swan was a composer and hatmaker born in Worcester, Massachusetts
. The son of goldsmith William Swan, Swan lived in small towns along the Connecticut River in Connecticut and Massachusetts for most of his life. Swan’s compositional output consisted mostly of psalm and hymn settings, referred to as psalmody. These tunes and settings were produced for choirs and singing schools located in Congregational New England. Swan is unique as an early American composer in that he composed secular vocal duets and songs in addition to sacred tunebook music. The tunebook, New England Harmony is a collection of his sacred music compositions, while The Songster's Assistant is a collection of his secular music. . Swan was also a poet and teacher of singing.
. Barnes, an "importer of foreign goods" was a loyalist who eventually left the colonies to return to England as relations between the two became increasingly strained. This caused an end to Swan's brief apprenticeship in Marlborough.
to live with his older brother William. Timothy's elder brother had an active interest in music and may have influenced his brother. Shortly after arriving in Groton, Swan enrolled in a singing school that was taught by a "Mr. Gross." This experience is probably the only formal musical education that Swan ever had.
located in Cambridge, Massachusetts
. It was here that he learned to play fife under the tutelage of a British Fifer.
In 1775 a little less than a year after enlisting at Cambridge, Swan moved to Northfield, Massachusetts
. It was here that Swan became apprenticed as a hatter
with his brother-in-law Caleb Lyman. It is here in Northfield that Swan's attention focused on musical composition. His first composition "Montague" can be placed around 1774 when Swan was sixteen years old.
two years later in 1782. It was in Suffield that Swan composed most of his music.
This rise in interest in his music prompted Swan to publish his music himself. Collaborating with Alexander Ely, Swan published The Songster's Assistant in ca. 1786. The tunebook was a collection of secular duets. Swan contributed half of the songs in the collection.
In 1801, he published New England Harmony. Unlike The Songster's Assistant, New England Harmony was a collection of sacred music. The tune book contained over 104 pages of original music. The collection contained many tunes that had been previously printed including his first tune Montague. The tunebook was not well received and Swan did not publish another collection after 1801. Even though the last tunebook did do well, Swan's music was still in demand and was published in later compilations by other tunebook compilers.
An obituary published in the Boston Daily Advertiser dated August 5, 1842 noted: "Timothy Swan, 82, generally known to the public as the author of China and other pieces of sacred music, which have [so] long held a place in successive musical collections, that the have seemed to belong to an age long gone by"
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
. The son of goldsmith William Swan, Swan lived in small towns along the Connecticut River in Connecticut and Massachusetts for most of his life. Swan’s compositional output consisted mostly of psalm and hymn settings, referred to as psalmody. These tunes and settings were produced for choirs and singing schools located in Congregational New England. Swan is unique as an early American composer in that he composed secular vocal duets and songs in addition to sacred tunebook music. The tunebook, New England Harmony is a collection of his sacred music compositions, while The Songster's Assistant is a collection of his secular music. . Swan was also a poet and teacher of singing.
Birth and Early Life
Born July 23, 1758, Timothy Swan was the eighth child of goldsmith William and Lavinia Swan of Worcester, Massachusetts. Not much is known of Swan's early years other than he resided in Worcester until his father's death in 1774. After the death of his father, Swan was apprenticed to a "Mr. Barnes" of Marlborough, MassachusettsMarlborough, Massachusetts
Marlborough is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 38,499 at the 2010 census. Marlborough became a prosperous industrial town in the 19th century and made the transition to high technology industry in the late 20th century after the construction of the...
. Barnes, an "importer of foreign goods" was a loyalist who eventually left the colonies to return to England as relations between the two became increasingly strained. This caused an end to Swan's brief apprenticeship in Marlborough.
Groton and the Singing School
It was after leaving Barnes' employ that Swan moved to Groton, MassachusettsGroton, Massachusetts
Groton is a town located in northwestern Middlesex County, Massachusetts. The population was 10,646 at the 2010 census. It is home to two noted prep schools: Groton School, founded in 1884, and Lawrence Academy at Groton, founded in 1793. The historic town hosts the National Shepley Hill Horse...
to live with his older brother William. Timothy's elder brother had an active interest in music and may have influenced his brother. Shortly after arriving in Groton, Swan enrolled in a singing school that was taught by a "Mr. Gross." This experience is probably the only formal musical education that Swan ever had.
Cambridge and Northfield
In 1774 Swan left Groton to enlist in the Continental ArmyContinental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
located in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
. It was here that he learned to play fife under the tutelage of a British Fifer.
In 1775 a little less than a year after enlisting at Cambridge, Swan moved to Northfield, Massachusetts
Northfield, Massachusetts
Northfield is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 2,951 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area...
. It was here that Swan became apprenticed as a hatter
Hatter
A hatter is a person engaged in hatmaking.Hatter also may refer to:*The Hatter, a fictional character in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland* Luton Town F.C., team a.k.a. "The Hatters"* Stockport County F.C., team a.k.a. "The Hatters"...
with his brother-in-law Caleb Lyman. It is here in Northfield that Swan's attention focused on musical composition. His first composition "Montague" can be placed around 1774 when Swan was sixteen years old.
The Suffield Years
After completing his apprenticeship in 1780, Swan moved to Entfield, Connecticut and then to Suffield, ConnecticutSuffield, Connecticut
Suffield is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It had once been within the boundaries of Massachusetts. The town is located in the Connecticut River Valley with the town of Enfield neighboring to the east. In 1900, 3,521 people lived in Suffield; and in 1910, 3,841. As of the...
two years later in 1782. It was in Suffield that Swan composed most of his music.
Marriage and Family
It is in Suffield that Swan was introduced to Mary Gay, the daughter Ebenezer Gay, third minister of the First Congregational Church of Suffield. Swan may have been introduced to Ms. Gay by his brother Benjamin Swan who was married to Lucy Gay, Mary's sister. His marriage to Mary on May 5, 1784 produced a large family similar to his own, ten children several of which were musicians like their father.Singing Schools and Tunebooks
Supplementing his work as a hatter, Swan began teaching singing-schools in he area. It was during this time that his music was first printed. In 1783 Composer-compiler Oliver Brownson included six of Swan's tunes in the third issue of Select Harmony. This was followed by requests from other compilers and publishers to include Swan's tunes in their tunebooks and other publications. By 1800, his tunes were being printed in larger areas: New York, Virginia, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Connecticut.This rise in interest in his music prompted Swan to publish his music himself. Collaborating with Alexander Ely, Swan published The Songster's Assistant in ca. 1786. The tunebook was a collection of secular duets. Swan contributed half of the songs in the collection.
In 1801, he published New England Harmony. Unlike The Songster's Assistant, New England Harmony was a collection of sacred music. The tune book contained over 104 pages of original music. The collection contained many tunes that had been previously printed including his first tune Montague. The tunebook was not well received and Swan did not publish another collection after 1801. Even though the last tunebook did do well, Swan's music was still in demand and was published in later compilations by other tunebook compilers.
Return to Northfield
In October 1807, twenty-five years after settling in Suffield, Swan and his family moved back to the town of his childhood. The reason for the move is not known, however the decision may have been prompted by his mother's failing health, who died six years later in 1813. Upon returning to Northfield, Swan went into business with his nephew Josiah Dwight Lyman, as a milliner. Swan continued to compose music and receive requests from other compilers seeking to purchase the copyright of some of his more popular tunes.Death
On July 23, 1842 at the age of 84, Timothy Swan died in his sleep in Northfield, Massachusetts. Around the time of his death the style of psalmody that he composed had given way to more proper compositions more along the lines of the European school of musical composition.An obituary published in the Boston Daily Advertiser dated August 5, 1842 noted: "Timothy Swan, 82, generally known to the public as the author of China and other pieces of sacred music, which have [so] long held a place in successive musical collections, that the have seemed to belong to an age long gone by"
Sound Files
- Florence MIDI
- Rainbow MIDI
- China (1790) MIDI
- Ocean MIDI
- Orange MIDI
- Portland MIDI
- Calvary MIDI
- Poland (1783) MIDI
- Dover MIDI
Sources
- Cooke, Nym. ed. Timothy Swan: Psalmody And Secular Songs. Music of the United States of America Vol. 6. The American Musicological Society. Madison, Wisconsin: A-R Editions, Inc. (1997)
- -------- "Timothy Swan" in Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online.
- Hudson, Charles. History of the Town of Marlborough from Its Earliest Settlement in 1657 to 1861. Boston, Massachusetts: 1862
- Langosch, Marlene. "The Published Works of Timothy Swan (1758-1842)." MMA Thesis. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press 1968.
- Murray, Sterling E. "Timothy Swan and Yankee Psalmody" The Musical QuarterlyThe Musical QuarterlyThe Musical Quarterly is the oldest academic journal on music in America. Originally established in 1915 by Oscar Sonneck, the journal was edited by Sonneck until his death in 1928...
61 no.3. (July 1975) 433-460
- "Obituary" Boston Daily Advertiser. Boston, Massachusetts: August 5, 1842. 235-36
- Records of the Congregational Church in Suffield, Connecticut, 1710-1836. Hartford, Connecticut: 1941.
- Sonneck, Oscar G. Bibliography of Early Secular American Music (18th Century). Revised by William T. Upton. New York, New York: Da Capo Press 1964
- Temple, Josiah Howard and George Sheldon. A History of Town of Northfield, Massachusetts, for 150 Years, with An Account of the Prior Occupation of the Territory by the Squakheags and with Family Genealogies" Albany, New York: Joel Munsell 1875
- Webster, E. "Timothy Swan." Manuscript Memoir. in Swan Papers, American Antiquarian Society. Worcester, Massachusetts: 1842