Peggy Stuart Coolidge facts for kids

Peggy Stuart Coolidge (born July 19, 1913 – died May 7, 1981) was an American composer and conductor. She wrote music and led orchestras. Peggy was one of the first American women composers to have an entire music album just for her orchestral pieces. She was also the very first American composer, male or female, to have a whole concert of her music played in the Soviet Union. Her music sounds very American, like the music of famous composers such as Charles Ives, Aaron Copland, and George Gershwin.

Peggy's Early Life and Music

Peggy Stuart was born in Swampscott, Massachusetts. She started playing the piano when she was five years old. By the time she was nine, she had already written her first song! She studied music with several teachers, including Heinrich Gebhard and Raymond Robinson. She also went to the New England Conservatory, where she learned from Quincy Porter. Peggy first wanted to be a concert pianist, so her early music was mostly for the piano.

Music for Ice Skating and Orchestras

In 1937, Peggy wrote a ballet called Cracked Ice. This ballet was special because it was the first one ever written just for ice skating! Ferde Grofé helped her arrange the music for an orchestra and conducted it at Madison Square Garden. The famous Boston Pops Orchestra also played it, led by Arthur Fiedler. After this, Peggy learned how to write music for full orchestras. The Boston Pops Orchestra played many of her early orchestral pieces, like Night Froth and The Island.

Helping During World War II

During World War II, Peggy helped soldiers in Boston find places to live. She often played music for soldiers who were in the hospital. She also led an orchestra made up of only women. She was a pianist and assistant conductor for the Women's Symphony of Boston. Peggy also started the Junior League Orchestra in Boston and led it for seven years. After the war, she moved to New York City.

New Adventures in Music

In 1952, Peggy married Joseph R. Coolidge, who was a writer. They worked together to create children's stories with Peggy's music in the background. She wrote the music for only one movie, The Silken Affair, which starred David Niven in 1956. She also wrote music for a play called Red Roses for Me. This music was later turned into an orchestral suite called Dublin Town.

Global Recognition

In the 1960s, Peggy's music became known around the world. In 1963 and 1965, she was invited to cities like Vienna, Budapest, Warsaw, and Moscow to have her music performed. Sometimes, she even played the piano herself! She and Joseph became good friends with the famous composer Aram Khachaturian. After returning to the United States, she wrote a ballet called An Evening in New York.

More Famous Works

In 1965, Peggy wrote Rhapsody for Harp and Orchestra. In 1967, her music was played in Tokyo at a concert of American music. She was even greeted by Prince Mikasa, the brother of Emperor Hirohito of Japan. In 1969, Peggy Stuart Coolidge wrote Spirituals in Sunshine and Shadow. This orchestral piece was inspired by African-American blues and spirituals music.

In 1970, she wrote Pioneer Dances, which was inspired by the settlers who moved west in America during the 1800s. This was the only American piece played at a concert in Carnegie Hall in 1975. That concert celebrated 150 years of people from Norway moving to the United States.

First American in the Soviet Union

Also in 1970, thanks to her friend Khachaturian, Peggy became the first American composer to have a concert in the Soviet Union dedicated entirely to her music. She received a special medal from the Soviet Union for this achievement. Her name became more famous, and her music was played in concerts across Western Europe and East Berlin.

Music for Nature

In 1971, the World Wildlife Fund asked Peggy to compose a short three-minute song. This music was meant to go with their symbol, which is a giant panda on a green field. This short song grew into a ten-minute orchestral piece called Blue Planet. Her husband wrote the story that went along with the music. That same year, she also wrote New England Autumn, a two-part piece for a small orchestra.

In 1975, the Westphalian Symphony Orchestra recorded an album of Peggy's music. This was one of the first albums ever made that featured only the works of a single American woman composer. The album included Rhapsody for Harp and Orchestra, New England Autumn, Pioneer Dances, and Spirituals in Sunshine and Shadow.

Later, she wrote a group of songs using poems by American writers. This was to honor Isabella Stewart Gardner, a famous art supporter who was her husband's great-aunt. In 1978, she wrote American Mosaic after being asked by the American Wind Symphony.

Peggy Stuart Coolidge passed away from cancer in Cushing, Maine. Her original music scores are kept at the Harvard University Library. Many of her music premieres happened in Europe, so she is often more well-known overseas than in her home country.

Other Works by Peggy

Besides the pieces mentioned above, Peggy Stuart Coolidge also wrote:

• American Mood, a symphonic poem
• American Sketch, for piano and orchestra
• Boston Concerto, for piano and orchestra
• Come with Us, incidental music (music for a play or show)
• The Conversation Waltz, for orchestra
• Dark Water, for violin and piano
• La Enmascarada, for a small group of musicians
• Étude, for piano
• Evening in New Orleans, a ballet
• French Drinks, for piano and orchestra
• Improvisation for Vera, for harp
• In the Shadow of Spain, for piano, strings, flute, and timpani
• Isabella, for orchestra
• Lament, for orchestra
• Look over the Bay, for piano
• Look to the Wind, for a small group of musicians
• Lullaby in Blue, for piano
• Mister Rip, incidental music
• The Moon Passing Behind the Clouds, for piano
• Oriental Scarf Dance, for orchestra
• Out of the Night, for piano and orchestra
• Passing Shadow, for violin, piano, and flute
• Petit Prelude, for harp
• P.M. Preludes, for piano
• Song of the Night-Bird, for piano
• Spanish Dance, for a small group of musicians
• Sunday Afternoon in the Public Garden, for piano and orchestra
• The Voice, for orchestra
• Voices, incidental music (a song)
• Many other songs and vocal pieces.