John Sullivan Dwight facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
John Sullivan Dwight
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| Born | May 13, 1813 |
| Died | September 5, 1893 (aged 80) Boston, Massachusetts
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| Known for | Dwight's Journal of Music |
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John Sullivan Dwight (born May 13, 1813 – died September 5, 1893) was an important American writer and thinker. He was a Unitarian minister and a Transcendentalist. He is best known as America's first major classical music critic.
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Early Life and Education
John Sullivan Dwight was born in Boston, Massachusetts on May 13, 1813. His father was John Dwight, a doctor.
He went to Harvard College and graduated in 1832. After that, he studied to become a Unitarian minister. He finished his studies at Harvard Divinity School in 1836. Dwight became a minister in 1840. However, he soon found that being a minister was not what he truly wanted to do. Instead, he became very interested in music. He especially loved the music of Ludwig van Beethoven.
Brook Farm and Early Writings
Dwight became involved with a special community called Brook Farm. This was a commune where people lived and worked together. At Brook Farm, Dwight was the director of the school. He also taught music to the students. He helped organize many musical and theater events for the community. Around this time, he started writing a regular column about music.
Brook Farm faced financial problems and closed down in 1847. After this, Dwight moved to Boston. He set up a cooperative house there. He then started his career as a music journalist.
Dwight's Journal of Music
On February 11, 1851, John Dwight married a singer named Mary Bullard. In 1852, he started his own magazine called Dwight's Journal of Music. This magazine became one of the most respected and important music publications in the United States during the mid-1800s.
Many talented writers contributed to his journal. One early writer was Alexander Wheelock Thayer. He later became one of the first major music historians in the country. Other people who wrote for the journal included John Knowles Paine and William F. Apthorp.
In 1855, Dwight translated the famous Christmas carol "O Holy Night" from French into English.
Shaping Musical Taste
John Dwight worked closely with his friend and colleague, Otto Dresel. Dresel was a musician who came from Leipzig, Germany, in 1848. He settled in Boston in 1852. Together, Dwight and Dresel helped Americans learn to appreciate European classical music. They played a big part in shaping what people liked to listen to.
John Dwight's wife, Mary, died on September 6, 1860. They did not have any children. John Sullivan Dwight passed away in Boston on September 5, 1893. He is buried at Forest Hills Cemetery.
