Harry P. Guy

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Harry P. Guy (born July 17, 1870 in Zanesville (Ohio) , † September 19, 1950 in Detroit , Michigan ) was an American pianist , organist and composer . He worked mainly in the field of Afro-American music , especially ragtime .

Life

Guy was born the craftsman's son of the two mulattos Samuel Guy and Lucy Ann Guy. Guy received piano , violin and organ lessons at the age of eight . In 1886 or 1887, his family moved to Cincinnati after graduating from Hill High School. At the age of 17, Guy published his first piano piece, The Floweret Waltz , in 1887 . In 1890 he moved to New York City , where he studied at the National Conservatory of Music of America and was active in the black music scene. B. as a concert pianist, once even in Carnegie Hall or accompanying the Fisk Jubilee Singers . This was followed by teaching at Paul Quinn College in Waco .

In 1895 he followed Julia Owens to Detroit , where he made a name for himself as a concert and band musician. He held positions as music minister , organist and boys' choir director at St. Matthew Episcopal Church for more than ten years and founded the Detroit African American Music Academy . In 1898 he published what is probably his most famous and often recorded piece, Echoes from the Snowball Club . His son Maurice H. Guy finally died of cancer at the age of 80 in August 1899. It was not until October 11, 2003 that his grave was given a headstone in Elmwood Cemetery .

Works

Echoes from the Snowball Club , (1898)
Pearl of the Harem , (1901)

Harry P. Guys' oeuvre consists primarily of ragtimes, waltzes and (sometimes patriotic) songs.

  • The Floweret Waltz (1887)
  • My Wooing (1888)
  • When the Dew Begems the Lea (1889)
  • Now For a Stranger Don't Cast Me Aside (1898)
  • Echoes From the Snowball Club (1898)
  • Belle of the Creoles (1899)
  • Cleanin 'Up in Georgia (1899)
  • Pearl of the Harem (1901)
  • Pepper Pot Rag (1901)
  • Daughters of Dahomey (1902)
  • Song of the Western Hunter (1902)
  • Down in Mobile (1904)
  • Walkin 'and Talkin' (1906)
  • Sixty-Six (Intermezzo) (1907)
  • As Long As There Is Love (I Will Love You) (1914)
  • Love's Eternity (1915)
  • We'll Stand By Our Flag and the USA (1917)
  • Yankee Doodle's In the Fight To Stay (1918)
  • You and I (1921)
  • That Home In Paradise (Love and Home Forever) (1921)
  • Big Hearted Baby (1928)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Guy, Harry P.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American composer and pianist
DATE OF BIRTH July 17, 1870
PLACE OF BIRTH Zanesville (Ohio) , Ohio
DATE OF DEATH September 19, 1950
Place of death Detroit , Michigan