Western Kentucky UniversityTopSCHOLAR®

Student/Alumni Personal Papers WKU Archives Records

4-26-1982

UA94/6/1 Professor Franz Joseph StrahmArthur White Jr.

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Recommended CitationWhite, Arthur Jr., "UA94/6/1 Professor Franz Joseph Strahm" (1982). Student/Alumni Personal Papers. Paper 42.http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/stu_alum_papers/42

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WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY

PROFESSOR FRANZ JOSEPH STRAHM

• AMERICAN MUSIC

DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC

BY

ARTHUR CARLTON WHITE, JR.

APRIL 26, 19 82

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CONTENTS

PART ONE PROFESSOR FRANZ JOSEPH STRAHM

1. INTRODUCTION: BOWLING GREEN'S EARLY MUSICAL HISTORY 1

n. PROFESSOR FRANZ JOSEPH ST RAffi.L . . . Life i n the Old World Life and Work in Nashville, Tennessee Li te and work in Bowling Gr een, Kentucky

Western Kent ucky State Normal School The May Festivals Reci~als and Conce r ts

The Aura of the Musician

PART TWO 1\ LIST ING OF FRANZ JOSEPII STRAHM' S

COMPOSITI ONS

. . . . 2

1. WORKS HOUSED IN TilE WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERS ITY ARCHIVES , aoWLING GREEN . • • • • • . • • • • • • • • • • • •• 11

II. WORKS HOUSED I N THE KENTUCKY L IBRARY, BOWLING GREEN •• 19

III. MISSING COMPOS ITIONS • • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . VICTOR HERBERT STRAHM. • 22

FOOTNOTES. • • 26

BIBLIQCRAPIIY • • • • • • • • • • • .32

• PART ONE

I. INTRODUCTION: BOWLING GREEN ' S EARLY MUSICAL HISTORY

At the end of the Civil War, Bowling Green boasted a popu­

lation of a mere four thousand. However. music was he l d in

high Bateem in this smal l city. The fi r st person to kindle

the muaicol spark was Professor Kowenberg . Bsqinninq in 1867,

Kowenberg was tho orga nist at the Catholic Church and held

large classes of both voice and p i ano . Following Professor

Kowenberg was Miss Skinner who was i n turn f ollowed by Mr . A.

J . Gantvoort. He organized the firs t community choil' in

Bowling Green , the Philharmonic Club, consisting of s8venty ­

five voicss. Mr. Gantvoort ia noted as having brought this

organization to high performance standards. Subsequently. Mr.

Cantvoort became president of the College of Music in Cin­

cinnati (presently the University of Cincinnati, School of

Music). The year of 189 4 was an impor tant one in the musical

life of Bowling Green. It was this year that two important

organizations had their genesis---the Cho r al society and the

Women's Music Club. The Choral Society was organized by a

musician by the nama of N. B. Bettison . The Women's Mus i c

Club was orga nized by Mr s . John Cooke , who saw that this

organization ' . goal was to b r ing a higher appr eciation of

music to the ci t y of Bowli ng Green .

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Tho School of Music was established in 1909 as part of

the Normal School . The following ye ar, 1910, is II most im-

portant year in the musical growth of Bowling Green. I t was

at this time that Franz Joseph Strahm was appointed Dean of

this School of Nusic. The following year, Professor Strahm

or9~nized the Oratorio Society . l However, for the present

time, the reader should be concerned with Professor Strahm ' s

childhOod and musical maturation.

II: PROFESSOR FRANZ JOSEPH STRAHM

Life In The Old World

Franz Joseph Strahm was born the nineteenth child of a

family of twenty-four children 2 on May 14, 1867 . 3 He was born

4 to II musical family in Friedburg, Baden, Germany . Though a

shoemaker by trade. Franz Joseph Strahm's father was a noted

tenor in Friedburg and held the role of lead tenor in all

Friedburg and South German festivals fo r more than sixty

years. 5 His mother, LOl,lise Sadetsky Strahm,6 was of Russian

extraction , her father having been the di r ector of the Royal

Guard Band 109 and stationed at Karsrl,lhe, Baden. Franz Joseph ' s

eldest sister, a pl,lpil of Moskowski, and his father were his

first teachers. Although wishing their son to become a shoe-

maker or a baker, Franz Joseph Strahm's pa rents recogni ~ed his

musical ability and did not allow it to go I,lncl,lltivated. A

legend states that Strahm ' s father, while at work on the street

floor, lent an attentive ear to his son's practicing in the

room above. "If there was a pause of appreciable duration,

the father knocked on the ceil i ng with a sti ck or moun ted the

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stairs to investigat.e. fl 7

f . 8

ticn at the age 0 SLX.

3

Franz so began his' musical educa-

It was at this stage of his life

that he fortunately attr,,"cted the attention of Reisenauer, a

celebrated pupil of Liszt . 9

Educated in the public sChools of Germany, Franz Joseph

Strahm graduated in 1879, a mere twelve years 01d. 10 TWo

years earlier, at the age of ten ll , he had attracted the atten­

tion of the Reverend Joseph Schweitzer, then a well-known

composer of Catholic church music. This same year, Franz

Joseph entered the Catholic School of Husic for the Training

of Choir Directors and Organists in Friedburg. 12 Not only

studying piano. Strahm studied the violin. His musical pro­

gress was rapid and in recognition of his ability, Stranm was

awarded a scholarship to the Royal Conservatory of Sonderhausen.

Here his teachers were Dr. Adolph Ritter for composition, Max

Gruenberg for violin and Alfred Reisenauer for piano.

His study with Reisenauer was to be very fortunate for

Strahm ~n that Reisenauer frequently took some of his advanced

pupils to Weimar to play for his famous teacher, Franz Liszt.

Needless to say, Franz Joseph Strahm was one to make this trip . 1J

Strahm recalled later in his life that he was extremely priv­

ileged to study with' Liszt. He also told how several students,

inCluding himself, would meet Liszt at the train and carry

him on their shoulders to his carriage. There the students

unhitched the horses and physically pulled the composer to the

conservatory. Strahm also recalled that there were four pupils

in an.one-hour lesson period in which Liszt would listen to

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their assignments and then cri tici~e the playing , often very

severely . Sometimes Li sz t would play for the students a t

night, taking a theme and i mprovi sing on it for twent y to

thirty minutes. Then there were o ther times when the stu-

dents were a sked to play. I t was one s uch time that Franz

Joseph Strahm was asked to play Li sz t ' s o wn Second Hungari an

Rhapsodic . After Strahm finished, "Liszt commented ' Ve ry good;

a little more temperament and less manneri sm. You will become

a pianist ! , .14 After two years of instruction at the Royal

Conservator y of Sonderhausen, Stra hm rece i ved the degree o f

Major-minors , IS

Like all Germans o f his 6ge , St r ahm served three years

i n the German Imperial Ar my. This could have been a se t back

for most musicians, but not for Franz Joseph Strahm . During

these years, he played first trumpe t in his Regimen t a l Band

and s t udied all the brass , woodwind and percuss i on i nstruments)

leaving the army a broader , more expe rienced musician t han

when he had ente r ed it . 16

Af t er his t e n ure in the German Imperial Army, Franz

Joseph Strahm roamed the Continent as both SOl o ist and orches­

t ral member with the Roy al Cour t Orches t ra . 17 He was to a l so

perform with orchestras in Switzerland and Holland besides his

na t i vo Ge r many . Evide ntly enjoying foreign travel , St rahm

was qui c k to answer an a dvertisement in his hometown paper

which asked for t wo orches tral players to come to America.

The advertisement appeared in 189118 and was to cause Strahm

to leave family, fri e nds and a promis ing position a t Sonder ­

hausen for America ; Nashville, Tennessee , i n particular . l9

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Life and Work in Nashville. Tennessoe

Gustave Fischer was the person responsible for Professor

Strahm coming to America. Then tho director of the orchestra

at the Vendomc Theatre of Nashville, Fischer sent tickets to

Professor Strahm and a friend for the journey to the New

World. It was in Nashville that Franz Joseph Strahm met and

married Miss Alice Jones. For the next ten years, he was a

member of 20 the Vendome Orchestra. The Vendome Orchestra was

evidently verY , notable in its day. The theatre opened on

October 3, 1883, with a performance of II Trovatore as a

very fashionable theatre located on Church Street between

Sixth and Seventh Avenues. 21 The Vendome hosted performances

by such entertainers as Edwin Booth, Ma urice Barrymore, Sarah

Bernhardt, Nora Bayes and Tyrone Power Sr. It was at the

Vendome that Victor Herbert gave a concert during the Tennessee

Centennial Celebration in 1996. 22 The Strahms entertained

Victor Herbert and his orchestra at a midnight supper a fter

their concert . This came about three weeks before the Strahms

were expecting their first child. Victor Herbert asked that

if the child was a boy, to name it for him . It was a boy- - ­

so the name was Victor Herbert Stra hm. The Strahms were to

have another child later, Louise Strahm, named for Franz

Joseph Strahm's mother and older sister, a concert pianist . 23

Besides playing cello in the Vendome OrChestra, Professor

Strahm was active in other areas of the musical growth of

Nashville . For a time in 1993, he was in Chicago playing vi­

ola in the famous Theodore Thomas Orchestra. Back in Nashville,

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, . St rahm taugh t piano at the Nashville Conse r vatory and when it

closed, he taught pr iva t ely.2 4 In 1896, Fran~ Joseph Strahm

founded t he Tenn essee Ac ademy of Music in Nashville 25 on 1226

Se vent h Avenue North. 26 This was the same year that he be-

came a naturalized American c itizen . oranz Joseph Strahm was

a 180 busy with other endeavors during this time. including

Oirec tor of Music at Soulc College at Murfreesboro , t eaching

at B060cobel Co l loge and at saint Ceci l ia Academy. He a180

dir ected the music at the Monteag le Assembly for •• veral

years . 27

The Tennessee Academy was t o become noted in Nashvi lle

for its instructi on in ins trumental mus i c , voice and dance .

lIowever, it was perhaps not as notable a s its founder. Net

only was he a pr ofessor o f mus ic, Fran~ Joseph St r ahm was a

gentleman of the Old World trad ition . TO St r ahm, gal l antry

had not vanished with the nineteenth century; therefore a l l

of his young man students were instructed to ask all the gi rls

t o danc e . Under his inf l uence, bits o f Ol d Wo r ld finesse held

on jus t a little longer in Nashville . Every Monday night,

Pr ofessor Strahm left hi s q uarters abo ve the Tennes see Aca-

demy fo r the Ge rman-Ameri ca n Hal l on Ce d ar Street (Charolette

Avenue) . Thi s state ly gen t l eman must have been .quite a mag­

netic fo r ce, for Monday nights became ma jor occasions f o r

North Nashvil~e youths of Ge r man blood and romantic aqe .

lie r e they came in lar ge numbers t o dance t he polka and the

waltz to the music of Franz Jose ph Strahm . 28 lie al so served

as 0~9anist and choir director o f the Wood land Street

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Presbyterian Church in Nashville,29 In 1908, Professor

Strahm organized the Nashville Choral Society, g iving three

spring festivals (1906. 1909 and 1910) . Nof only were these

concerts important to the musical growth of Nashville, they

attracted the attention of a man from a town ever so slightly

north of Nashville. The man was Dr. Henry IJ"rdin Cherry of

Bowling Green, Kentucky . 30

Coming from Nashville in September, 1910, Franz Joseph

Strahm was not leng in establishing himself in Bowling Green.31

Engaged as the Director of Music at Western Kentucky Normal

School,J2 Professor Strahm had an almost impossible task be­

fore him. Western Kentucky Normal School only really began

to f unction as a state institution in 1907. All the depart­

ments had a lowly beSinninSI however, the music department

had added problems. Dr . A. M. Stickles wrote of the situa-

tion:

For the first two years of the collese's existence, the music department h~d a director who had little comprehension of what was So ins on or how he should fit into the purpose of the younS institu tion. The other one, who was Mr. Strahm's immediate prede­cessor for a year, was scholarly and hi Shly trained, but he could not comprehend the low status of music on the campus or that it was his duty to change the order. Our students, and this included the faculty we had then, were after all human beinss, and we cr&ved s~methins better. 3

After the arrival, Strahm was quick ly at work. His

first task was to arouse an interest for Sood music in both

the c.olleg6 and the cOlMlunity. For many years he did practically

the total work with but the assistance of an instructor in

voice, popUlarizing mus ic and p l acing it on a solid founda­

tion. 34 While at Western Kentucky State Normal School ,

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Strahm was involved in a great number of activities. In

January of 1926, the reader may find in the college newspaper.

an announcement of an upcoming concert tour for Febr uary in

which Strahm, Lenore Wilson (instructor in voicel and Mrs. T .

C. Cherry were to concertize in Murfreesboro, Tennessee:

Owensboro , Kentucky; and Marion, Kcntucky . 35 The following

year, Strahm ;rganized and directed the Western Band . 36

early as 19 24, he established the Strahm Music Club for all

students interested in music. 3? Two remaining programs tell

of the work of Strahm ' s Music Club. On May 31, 1926, a

~grand" concert was presented entitled In A Japanese Garden,

featuring various soloists, the college orchestra and the

college choir.38

The following year, Strahm's Music Club

presented Iolanthe by Gilbert and Sullivan complete with

orchestra on March 29, 1927. 39

Though very active in teaching and conducting, Franz

~oseph Strahm did f i nd time to compose . Though most of his

compositions date before the thirties, as late as 1937, he

won first place in the Kentucky Composers Guild for the com­

position of five hymns . 40 Having labored long and hard for

Western Kentu,cky, Strahm resigned as he ad of the music depart-

ment in 1935, but continued as head of the piano department

for six years . 41 A former president recalls talking with

Professor Strahm in the fall of 1941. Strahm had decided

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, that at the (lnd of the year, he must retire. His reason was

that he was no longer able to play the more difficult pas­

sages (on the piano) to suit himself. 42 "Many people demand

perfection for others---indeed too many---be he demanded per­

fection for himselfl· 43 80 it was agreed that he should re­

tire at the end of the school year. 44 However. bronchial

pneumonia brought his death on June 26, 1941.45

Just ill. year

before, the Talisman (1940), the annual of Western Kentucky

State Teacher ' s, College, was dedicated to Professor Strahm

with the inscription:

TO Western's pioneer mus~c~an, whose influence has been the guiding light in the musical life of the college since its early days, we respectfully

4gedi­

cate this seventeenth volume of the Talisman.

He was indeed the moving force of music in Bowling Green,

well thought of and appreciated for his tireless efforts.

Two of his greatest achievements were the establishment of

the Oratorio society and tha May Festival. It was the merg­

ing of these two activities in Which Fran~ Joseph Strahm

greatly influenced the musical growth of the Whole Bowling

Green community and southwestern Kentucky.

The May Festivals

One of Professor Strahm's greatest ach~evements at Wes-

tern Kentucky was the establiShment of the May Music Festi­

vals, which gained a national reputation. The festival helped

to make the people of western Kentucky not only reali~e the

existence, but also the value of, the school on the lIill.47

An examination of the programs of these festivals from 1911

to 1935 attests to the high quality of both music and soloists

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engaged for these events. The first festival took place in

1911 with the performance of Spohr ' s The Last Judgment by the

Oratorio Society of one hundred and seventy-five voices as

the climax. The soloists included Marie Zimmerman, a soprano

of New York City; Walter Earnest, a tenor of Pittsburg;

Charles C. Washburn, a bass of Nashville; and Mrs . Fred

Mutchler, an alto of Bowling Green. 48 The performance met

with great success and even surprized the Bowling Green com-

munity that sucp a wonderful event could happen in their own . ' 49

Cl.ty. The second festival en May 10, 1912, climaxed with

the performance of Haydn ' s Creation under Professor Strahm's

direction. 49 The local orchestra was augmented this sesson

with the Orpheum Orchestra from Memphis, Tennessee. 50 The

following year, Professor Strahm chose Eli by Sir Michael Costa

to end the May Music Festival. This festival also included

a return performance of the tenor Walter Earnest. 5l The

fourth annual May Music Festival took place on May 7-B, 1914,

also under Professor Strahm ' s direction. This festival is

notable in that it featured "Grand Festival March"---a new

composition by Strahm and Sir Arthur Sullivan's The Light of

the world 52 for which Professor Strahm wrote an orchestration. 53

The fifth annual festival on May 6-7, 1915, featured a

concert version of the comic opera, Chimes of Normandy and

Professor Strahm playing Liszt's Hungarian Fantasie. The

following year on May 11-12, 1916, Pro fessor Strahm secured

the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra; Karl Schmidt, cellist:

and Frances Morton-Crume, who was now soloist at the Central

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Pre~byte ri~n Ch~rch of New York City, after having taught

voice between 1913 and 1914 at the Normal School. The fellti-

val also featured another orchestration of Profeeeor Strahm ' s

own hand , this tima for the oratorio Abraham by MOlique. S4

The seventh annual May Music Festival on May 10-11, 1917,

is also of special note. It was at this festival that Pro­

fessor Fran~ Joseph Strahm engaged the coloratura soprano of

the Metropolitan Opera Company, Frieda Hempel. The proqrams

featured Spohr : s The Last Judgement and ~Our lIero" ---an ode

for choir, quartet and orchestra, written by Strahm . 55 The

next May Music Festival was held on May 8-9. 1919. It fea ­

tured performances by Sophia Sraslau, then II. leadinq contralto

at the Metropolitan Opera Company and Virginia Seck-Helm, a

pianist still active in Bowling Green. This feltival allo

featured a performance of Haydn's creation. 56 For the ninth

festival on Hay 6- 7, 1920; Strlhm secured the RUllian Symphony

Orchestra of New York conducted by ~~dest Altschuler. The

programs included several pieces by Russian composers; "A

Dream," a piece by Strahm: and excerpts from the American

opera, Cleopatra's Niqht by Henry 57 Hadley.

It was not until four years later on May 8-9, 1924, that

the next May Music Festival was held . The high point of this

festival was tho performance of Professor Strahm's Vespers in

~ by soloists , choir and orchestra. 58 A review in a local

paper noted that in this work "Fr an: Strahm has taken his

place with the foremost composers of the day."59 The arti c le

went·on t o say that the forty-five minute work was espocial ly

• beautiful because of its excellent ' . 60 orchestra tl.on. Tho

following year saw a record number in the chorus of the May

Festival---twQ hundred and tWenty-five voices. The festival

on May 7 - 8. 1925, featured a performance of Eli by Costa in

which the majority of the solo parts were taken by people of

the community . 61 The next and last festival was to take

place ton years later on May 9 - 10, 1935. Though still direc -

tor of the festival , Professor Strahm was not conducting the

majority of the festival as he had in previous years . How­

ever, he did appear on t he program conducting the Men ' s Glee

Club .62

It was Franz Joseph Strahm who had brought the May

Music Festival to importance in this once musically barren

land.

Recitals and Concerts

Besides being active in his teaching, administrative

tasks, and composition; Professor Strahm found time to be

active in the recital and concert life of Bowling Green . A

program dated November 29, 1910 wa s probably his first reci­

tal in Bowling Green . It was at th i s recital that he accom­

panied Mrs. Marshall Settle, vocalist and ~!iss Pauline Drake,

violinist. On this early recital, it is easy to discern his

musical taste; Mende l sohn, Chopin and Lis~t are the predomi­

nate composers .63

A program dated only "1939" shows a wider

repertoire with selections by Bach , Tompkins, Chopin, Cadman,

Beach and Lis~t.6 4 Correspondence with Mrs . Virgina Beck-

Helm shows that Professor Strahm was able to take time out

of h i s busy schedule to give a conoert for the Smi ths Grove

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• Women '5 Mus ic Club on 6,

February 22, 193 4 .

13

Two undated pro-

grams tell of Pr ofessor Strahm 's appearances at tho Woman ' s

Music Club of Bowling Gr een. The first shows a prog ram o f

Schuman . Chopin and Strahm (predomina tely ) ,66 while the se­

cond shOws a wider spectrum with Chopin, McDowell, Straus s

and Liszt (predominately). 61 As early as 1923, Professor

Strahm was spe nding his s ummers in Monteag le, Tennessee. It

i s this year that the Nashville Banner printe d an arti c le tell­

ing o f Strahm's success in a piano recital in Monteagle,6S

Besides working so actively with the May Fest ival. Strahm

was busy preparing and conducting o t her concerts. Several

programs from h i s tenure in Bowl ing Gr een me rit con.ideeation.

Among these are a per fo rmance o f lIaydn' s Creation on March 10,

1929, utilizing o ne hundred and twenty-five cho ir membe r .

t r om the Women ' . Club . various Church c hoi rs and t he choi rs

ot State Teacher' s college . 69 The following year on Januar y

19, 19 30 , the Col l ege Choral Soc iety o f one hundre d and twenty-

five voices p r esented a program f e atur ing Professor Strahm ' s

V . 0 70 •• ~ • • • n • With a choir of one hundr ed and sixty-eight

voices , Profeslor Strahm presented The Las t J udgment by Spohr

(evidently quite popular in Bowling Green ) o n March 26, 1933 . 71

A progr am dated three yearl later, April 5 , 1936 , is e s pe ­

cially inte resting . The second half of t his concert was

g i ven en tirely t o the performance of Strahm ' s Fes ti va l Mass ,2

in 0 under the composer ' s di rection.

However . it was the las t two year s of Strahm's leader-

shi~ al head o f t he mus i c department at Western KentUcKy State

14

Teachers College that he directed the Men ' s Glee Club. Es­

t abl i shed to further the name of the college, the glee club

appeared throughout Kentucky giving concerts of ensemble num­

bers, quartet selections , solos and novelty selections.73

The selections presented by the glee club ranged "all the way

from the best male choral music to some fro l icsome s ketches

.• f f ." . . . Jus .. or un.

The Aura of The Musician

Although it is effective to study the different stages

of Professor Franz Joseph Strahm ' s life as a musician , scme-

thing else i~ needed. Professor Strahm was a unique person­

. slity and a very complex person . Mrs. Sam M. Woolsey wrote

of her teacher ,

He tad an intangible quality that caused pupils to respect h i m, admire him , and love him i!md it stirred within them ideals and mus i c"l "mbi t ion . Because he was a keen judge of character he was able to give his students the type of music that suited them and to develop the best of the pupils own style of playing. His teaching and the type of work he expected from his students were t horough, neat, me t hodical, and punctual. I do not mean that he was a 5eVere stereotype. !Ie was always his own humorous self. When we handed him some pretty poor musical composi t ion he'd tell us in English that always betrayed him and smacked of his home­land, ~Ach. 9~t sounds chust like stepping on a eat' s tail. ~

Mrs. Woolsey also states that Professor Strahm was a master

story teller, capitalizing on h i s broken Eng l ish and adding

just the correct amount of pantomi rte . He was a man devoted

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, to the beauti ful and dispensed joy and good humor t o all that l

· 76 knew him . Vi r gini a Beck-Helm tells also of h is humor,

stating that he was fond of mispronouncing her maiden name

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and calling her ~HiBB ~eck. ~7 7 Perhaps t he most obvi ous

example of Profe •• or Strahm ' s sense of humor was a concert at

which the uni va c,lty Qrchestra presented a costumed burlesque

number entitled "A Rehearsal o f the Villago orchestra.· 78

Professor Strahm was B natural musician, as he both

loved and lived his music, h~ had the ability of imparting

e nthusiasm for mUlle in the minds an d hearts of t hOle who

knew him. 79 Profeslor Strahm was a religious man, not t he

loud puritani~al type, but rather one of qui te sincerity. eo

While in Bowling Green, he wa s a membe r of St. Joseph Catholic

Church . 8l The maje sty of his music is adequate testimony of

his genius , but his friends reca ll the devotion that he had

for the people around him .hawing his even g r eate r genius fo r

friendship.82

Perhaps the most dramatic trait of Profe.sor Strahm ' s

personality was his patriotism. It was well known that from

the beginning of the first World War , Professor Strahm ' ,

sympathies were with his native homeland prio r to the Uni ted

Statu's entr y against Germany in Apr il, 1917. At this t ime,

members of his immediate family and many relatives were still

in Germany . Evidently he suffered intensely from well-inten­

tioned people trying to prove themselves aa super-pat r iots.

The following morning after America declar ed war against

Germany, he arose from his seat near the piano during the

chapel exercises and asked the president '. permission to

speak. 83 Or. A. M. Stick les r ecounts the stor y:

·ne (Pr ofe s sor St rahm) explaine d his former posi­t ion to the chapel, which was crowded to its f ullest

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capacity . But now his homeland was at war with his adopted country. He said he had been a solider for some years and was sorry his age prohibited his going now in defense of our common country . Then in broken English and with tears in his eyes came this dra mat ic exclamation to that hushed audience: ~I got a boy . He go." Then he sat down. Every one in that tense, hushed audience, knowing t he sincerity of the man, was choked with emotion. an d women and strong men shed teftis with h im while they loudly applauded his action .

16

Franz Joseph Strahm was a strongly patri otic American. It is

said that he was so overcome after America is victory i n World

War I, that upon hearing that the war had ended, he opened

all the windows of his house end played victory marches and

patriotic songs on the piano for everyone to hear.a5

Vi rginia

Beck-Helm recalls having traveled from Smiths Grove t o have

her weekly piano lesson soon after World War I had ended onl y

to find that Professor Strahm so overcome with joy that he was

no< " able to teach.

Perhaps the most f itting tribute to Franz Joseph Strahm

is part of a speech given at h i s memorial service on May 29,

1942 by Hugh Johnson,

I wonder what a composer woul d write in memory of Mr . Strahm? No solo of any kind would be suitable. A single instrument could not produce the proper effect . A choral numbe r might suffice, but un­doubtedly a symphony would be best . It would a symphony with its infinite possibilities in and color to sound a picture of his life . A sym­phony with one movement not solemn but rather maj e s­tic, hinting here and there o f Wagner and of Liszt. But the remaining movemen ts, it would seem to me, should be in a r o l l i cking, fast-moving sty l e---a style typifying a gay spirit, and happiness, and the joy of living. And from time to time, rather faintly in the background, we should hear the strains of a Vienna waltz. No discor ds, no modern rhythms , but a composi t ion abounding in ~ovely melo­dies-- -for that was the music he loved. S

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PART TWO

A LISTINC Of FRANZ JOSEPH STRAIIM ' g COMPOSITIONS

I . WORKS HOUSED IN TilE WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES , BOWLING GREEN

Needless to say, thore are duplications between Fran~

Joseph Str ahm's works housed in the Western Kentucky Unive r­

s ity Archives ~nd those works housed in the Kentucky Library.

lIowever, these listings shoul d be II help to the roader rather

than a source of confusion. The following i, 8 l isting of

t hose works found in the Wastern Kentucky University Archives:

"A Dream" - piano solo

published by Standard Music Co .• Nashville, Tennessee under the pen name of f rant Sade t ky.

-A Toast- - vocal Bolo

Words by Geor ge H. Mayo Jr. Published by Standard Music Co., Nashville,

Tennessee. 1918. Dedicated -To the Boys in the A.E.~.w

wBehold Our God, The Lor d w - sacred song with violin obligato

Published by A. w. Perry ' s Sons, Sedalia, Mo., 1937 . Dedicated wTO Margaret DeVore Posey.w

wThe Bowling Green Business university March" - piano solo

Published by St.nd. rd Music Co., Nashvil l e, Tennessee, 1914.

Dedicated "To the students of Business University, Bowling Green, Ky,·

·Columbia Schottische" - piano solo

Published by Otto Zimmerman and Son , Inc., Cincinnati , Ohi o.

17

• ftOew Drops - Six Pieces for Children" - piano Bolo

Published by Standard ~!usic Co., Nashville , Tennessee (1915 - 1918).

NO . 1 No . 2 No . 3 NO. 4 No . 5 No . 6

"Valsette" 1915 "Children's ~Iarch" 1918 "Swing Song" 1918 "Recess" 1918 "Playing Bal l" 1918 "April Showers" 1918

Festival Mass in G - mixed choir

18

Published by J. Fischer and Brothers, New York City , 1923.

Dedicated "To Miss Lenore Wilson, a Pupi.l . "

"Funeral March Heroica" - piano solo

Published A. W. Perry ' s Sons, Seda lia . Mo. In Memoriam: "The Fallen Heroes of the A.E.F."

"In June Days" - piano solo

Published by Hatch Music Co., Phi lade lphia, Pa. Dedicated "To Miss Sara Antoinette Bell. Souele

College. "

"Kentucky State Normal March" - piano solo

Published by Strahm, printed by Otto Zimmerman, Cincinnati, Ohio .

Copyrighted 1911. Oedicated "Respectfully dedicate d to Dr . II. II. Cherr y,

President ' Western Kentucky State Teachers College ."

"March Impromptu" - piano solo

Published by Standard Music Co., Nashville,

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Tennessee, 1915, under the pen name Fran z J . Sade zky . •

"Prayer For Strength" - sacred song with violin obl igato ~

Published by A. W. Perry's Sons, Sedalia, Mo. Dedicated "To Margaret DeVore Posey ."

"Sleep, Baby Sleep (Lullaby)" vocal solo

"Sweet Recollections" - piano solo

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Subtitled "Siisse Errinerungen" and "Valse de Concert" Published by lIatch Music Company , Philadelphia, Pa. Dedicated ~To the Standard Club, Nashvi lle, Tennessee." I

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Vespe rs i n D - mi xed choir

Published by A. W. Perry ' s Sons, Sedalia , Mo., 1924. Dedica ted ~To Rev . Thomas J. Hays , Bowling Green, Ky ."

"Vivien Ha zurka" - p iano solo

Published by A. W. Perry ' s Sons, Sedalia, Mo ., 1 92 4.

II . Ii'ORKS HOUS ED IN THE KENTUCKY LIBRARY, BOWLING GREEN

- ... Dream- - o r chestrat i on of p i ano solo

Manuscript .

"A Dream" '- p iano solo version - all ready listed .

"A la Hungary" and "A Short Prelude" - p iano 5010--­stil l in sketch stage.

Manuscript .

"A Toas t" - vocal sQlo---all ready listed.

" An Unseen Hand Is Leading Me" - sacred song

Manuscr l pt.

"Ave Maria " - vocal solo for soprano with piano accompaniment .

Manuscript.

"Behold Our God, The Lord " - sacred song with viol in obligato---all ready listed.

"Bowling Green Business University March" - orchestr a­tion of piano solo

"Columbia Schottische" - orchest ration of piano sol o

"Crimson a nd Gold" - piano solo

Subtit led "Grand Valse Brillante." Published by Hatch Music Co. , Philade lphia, Pa .,

1902. Oedicated "To the Students of Soule College ,

Mur f reesboro , Tennessee. "

"Dew Drops - Six p i ece s for Chi l dren" - piano 8010---. All ready listed. .

"Fantasie " - orchestra piece

Manuscript .

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"Festival March" - orchestration of a piano piece

Dedicated "To the Scottish Rite 320 Masons . "

Festival Mass in G - mixed choir---all ready listed.

20

"Funeral March Heroica" - piano solo- --all ready listed.

"Gentle Reproach" accompaniment

"Nocturne" for violin with piano

Published by George B. Jennings Co . , Cincinnat i, Ohio., 1902 .

Dedicated "To Dr. Charles S. Briggs, Nashville , Tennessee . "

"Good Night Song" - medium voice solo with cello obligaeo

Manuscript.

"He Caroe~ - sacred song for soprano

Words by W. E. Henry . Oedicated "To Rev . IL C . Golden." Copyrighted 1999.

"Hungarian Dance" tion

Nanuscript. .

orchestration of a piano composi -

"In J une Days" - orchestration of piano solo version

Manuscript.

"In June Days" piano 5010---all ready listed.

" Immer Fidel (In Good Humor)" - piano solo

Published by Hatch Music Co . , Philadelphia, Pa. Copyrighted 1901. Oedicated "To The German-American Societ.y, Nashville,

Tennessee." I

"Kyrie E1eison" f rom voice parts---all

orchestration wi th

"March Impromptu" piano solo---all ready listed.

"Meteor March and Two Step" - piano solo

Published by ,Frank G. Fite, Nashville, Tennesllee, 1902 . "

Dedicated "To the Cit.y of Murfreesboro, Tennessee."

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f l "' .~: 1 ,; ,

" } r" 0 r

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·Our Hero· - an ode f o r soloists, chorus and orchestra

Published by Willis Music Co .• Cincinnati, Ohio, 1914 •

Dedicated "To the Presid en t o f the Western Kentucky State Normal School , Dr . 11 . H. Cha r ry."

Text by Miss Lo ttie McLure .

"Prelude f or Pipe Organ" - organ Bolo

Manuscrip t.

"RoCK City March" piano solo

Published by F ran~ J. S trahm, Nllshville, Tenne ssee, 1899.

Dedicated "To the Chamber of Commerce . Nashville. Tennessee . •

·Solitude" - song for soprano

Text by Ella Whee l e r Wilcox. Manus cript .

"Summer Bonum" 90ng for soprano

Text by Robert Dr owning . Manuscript .

·Sweet Forget Me-Not" - piano solo

Pu blished by A. W. Perry ' s Sons, Sedalia , Mo ., 1921 . De d icated to Mary Evelyn Kerr.

· Sweet Recollections" - piano soleM- Ma ll ready listed.

~Trinklied· - orchest ra piece

Manuscript .

Vespers i n 0 - mixed choir---all ready listed.

"Virtue" - s ong for sopr ano

Te xt b y Geor 'le Her be rt. Manusc ript.

There may al so be f ound in the Kentucky Lib rary a whole box

o f lessons. compl ete with e xamples. for a course i n both har­

mony and compositi on.

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III. MI SSING COMPOSITI ONS '

According to ill. list of Fran z Joseph Strahm' s works found

in h is biographical file in the Western Kentucky Unive r s ity

Archives , there are several composi tion s t ha t are missing or

have be en lost since his death. Re ported l y , they we re in the

Music Building as late as April of 1944. The fo llowing is ill.

listing of such compositions'

~ College Heights" - mal e chorus

Written by Mary F. Bradley, arranged by Strahm .

~ Fune ri!l. l March Herocia" - o r chestration of p iano 5010

~Grave ~ Movement - probably for a piano sonata

" Ken t ucky State Normal March" - orchestration of piano solo

Manuscript Notebook - containing harmony exercises and sketches with words.

"Sonata In E Flat" (Andante. Allegro ; Andante, Allegro) - no composer i nd i c ated but undoubtedly Strahm .

"Soule College Ma rch " - p iano solo

Copyrighted 1899, by Franz J . Strahm . Dedicated "To Miss V. O. Wardlow, A.M., President, Soule Co l lege, Murfreesboro, Tennessee ."

"SOul e , Col l ege March " - piano due t version

Manuscript.

"Soule College March" - o r chestration of p iano 5010 88

VI CTOR JlERBERT STRAHM

To complete ly understand Franz Joseph Strahm , the reader

mus t also have a p i ctur e of hi s son, Victor Her bert Strahm .

Named for the great Irish-American composer , Vict or Herbert

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(0 family friend); Victor Strahm was born in 1996 while his

father was working in Nashville . A good student in school,

Professor Strahm was a n xious for his son to become a musi-

cian o However, Victor had other ideali-- - automobiles and

electr ici ty interested him . final l y, Professor Strahm re­

lented and allowed Victor to stop his study of music . Victor

was also II splendid athlete, playing football and basketball

in the high school department of the Normal School. After

graduation, V~ctor went to Kentucky State University, study-

ing electrical engineering_ With the outbreak of war in 1917,

Victor entered the army after some debate with his father.

He was accepted and sent to Fort Benjamin Harrison. Indiana,

for his training. Passing both the strenuous physical and

academic examinations with honors, he was ordered to Ohio

State UniVersity, Columbus, Ohio, to receive his aeronautic

trai ning. Finishing a six months course in six weeks, Victor

lIerbert Strahm was commissioned First Lieutenant in the United

States Aviation Department and was ordered east to embark for

France. 89

In France, Victor was trained to photograph enemy for­

tifications, trenches and the like . On a maneuver to obtain

information concerning the trenches in Alsace Lorraine,

Victor was unsuccessful at first. lie was attacked by German

planes and anti-air - craft guns, taking twenty-seven shots .

Returning to his station, he received another plane and in

half an hour had obtained thirty-six excellent photographs of

the ·large German fortress, Metz . On this second ende avor ,

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Victor Strahm was attacked by seven German planes, but by

skillful maneuvers, he managed to escape and bring horne two

of his attackers. After this heroic episode, he was promoted

to Captain and >:'eceived special mention by the French \',Tar

Department for his heroism.

After the Armistice, he became Major and was ordered

with nis squadron to Coblenz, Germany. After nine months in

Coblenz, he was ordered to return to the United States of

America and received his honorable discharge in the fall of

H20. 90

He entered the World War (I) as a private. He came out a captain and one of a limited number of Ameri­can air aces such of whom had brought down at least five enemy planes behind the German lines. In addition he was awarded the highest decoration bestowed upon any American solider, the Distinguishsd Service Cross, and also the French Croix de Guerre with palm. 91

A few residents of the Bowling Green Community can still

remember that Victor inherited his father's sense of humor.

After World War I, Bowling Green residents were treated to

his tricks of swooping over buildings and writing things in

the sky with his plane.

One of his favorite tricks, and one which he in­variably pulled on arrival here, was a swoop at the spire atop the First Presbyterian Church . After missing the spire "by inches" he ' d head for the Hill. Seconds later he'd be coming down State (Street), his plane jumping the taller building~ and church spires like a grasshopper. That trick did its wo§~. "That ' s that Dutchman," his watchers would say.

Victor Strahm was also active during World War II, hav-

ing risen to the rank of Brigadier General. It was August 5,

1943, in Cairo, Egypt; t~at Victor Strahm was awarded the

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L~qion of Merit for performing • 'outstanding" se r vice ' during

the North Afri can c ampaign. from t he battle of El Alamein to

the expulsi on of the enemy fr om Afr i ca . ~ 9 3 After World I~ar

II. he was made commander of Barksdale Field in Shreveport,

Louisiana on January 11, 19 46 . !lavi ng served at this a r my

pos t in 19 32 . he met and then marri ed in 1934, the former

Nonie Sr usch of Shrevaport. 94 To have lived auch an adven­

turesome a nd "model" life, Victor Strahm's life ended ver y

sadly . Having been diagnosed as having cancer,95 he inf l ic ted •

a gun- shot wound on himself on April 7 , 1957 Which r e s ulted

in his dea th on May 11, 195 7 . 96

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NOTES

IMrs. Macon A. Leiper, "Br i ef History of Music In Bowling Green Since the Close of the Civil Hal'," Park City Daily News (Special Edition), April 1917, p . S .

2Mrs . Sam M. Woolsey, "Franz J. Strahm," Speech, Strahl'l Memorial. 29 May 1942 .

3"Franz J. Strahm 1867-1941," College Heights Herald, 3 October 1941, p. 2 .

4 "Franz Strahm Succumbs To Operation '," Bowli ng Gl'cen Times Journal, 27 June 1941. p . l.

S"Franz J. Strahm 1867-1941," College Heights Her...!!li. 3 October 1941, p. 2 .

6 Ibid .

7;... M. Stickles, "A Tribute To Franz J. Strahm," "peech, Strahm Memorial, 29 May 1942 .

ewoolsey, p. 1 .

9Stickles, p. 2.

lO " Franz Stra hm Succumbs Times Journal, 27 June 1941,

TO Operation, " Bowling Gl'~en p. 1.

ll·prof. Strahm Has Record As student Mi",,, Ollie Miles Writes About His Career . Pupil of Lisz t ," College Heights Herald, 14 January 1926, p. 7.

12woolsey, p. 1 .

13Stickles, p. 2.

14"prof. Strahm Has Record As Student, Miss Ollie Miles Writes About His Career. Pupil of Liszt," College Heights Herald, 14 January 1926, p. 7 .

15 "Franz J. Strahm 1867-1941, " College Heights Herald, ) October 1941. p. 2 •

l6stickles, p . 2 •

l7"Franz J . Strahr:t 1867-1941. " College Heights Herald, ) October 1941, p . 2 •

26

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18Stickles . p. 3 .

19HFranz J . Strahm 1867-1941," College Heioh t 9 Herald, 3 October 19 41, p. 2.

20StickIes , p . 3 .

"

21Nashville ' s Theatres - Vendol'!'.e , Nashville Room, Clipp­ing File , Nashville Publ i c Library , Nashvi lle , Tennessee .

22"Leowe's Vandome," Nashville, June 1968, p . 4,

23HFranz J . Strahm 1 867-1941 ," College He i ghts Herald, 3 October IH1, p . 2.

24stickles. p. 3 .

25William WiHler, cd ., Nashville in t he 1990's (Nashvi lle: Vanderbil t. University Press, 1970) , p. 35.

University

27St i ckles , p . 3 .

28Ed Huddleston, ed . , {Nashvil l e : Nashville

(Nashville : Vanderb ilt

29HFranz Strahm Succumbs To Opera t ion, " Bowl i ng Green Ti mes Journal, 27 June 1941. p. 1.

JOStickles. p . 3 .

311'. . M. St.ickles, "In Memory of Fran z Joseph Strahm,~ Speech , Strahm Memorial , 29 May 1942, p . 2.

32 Idem , ~A Tr ibute '1'0 Franz J . St r ahm ," Speech, Strahm Memorial, 29 May 1942 .

33 Idem , "In Memory of Franz Joseph Strahm ," Speech , Strahm Memorial, 29 May 1942, p . 2.

3 4 I b i d .

35"Concert Tour," Coll ege Heights Herald, 28 January 1926 , p . 1.

36"college Band Plays At Chapel,'· College Hoight s Harald, April 1927, p . 2 .

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39WStrahm ' s Music Club Presents Grand Concert, 'In'" Japanese Garden,'" Western Kentucky State Teachers College Program,. 31 May 1926.

"

39~Iolanthe or The Peer and the Peri, An Operetta In Two Acts By Gilbert and Sullivan , Sponsored by Strahm Music Club," Western State Teacher's College Program, 29 March 1921.

40HFitting Tribute," Park City Daily News, 24 May 1937.

41"HOld Memorial Chapel services for Prof. Strahm," College Heights Herald,S June 19 4 2, p. l.

42Paul L . Garrett, "Strahm MelOOr i a l , " Speech, Strahm Memorial. 29 May 1942 .

4 3Ibid .

4 4Ibid .

45"Franz J. Strahm Dies At Hospital In Louisville," College Heights Herald, 27 June 1941, p . 1.

46Mary Francis Ford, ed. Kentucky: Western Kentucky pp. 8-9.

47Cornette, p . 149 .

The

49"Second Annual Music Festival,· Normal School Hay Festival Program,

(Bo\~ling Green, College, 1940),

" ,

50"IS Bowling Green Mus i cal?," undated, Clipping File : Music, Kentucky Library, Bowling Green, Kentucky .

51 "Third Annual Mus i c Festival," Western Kentucky St ... te Normal School May Festival Program, 8 May 1913, p . 1 .

52"Fourth Annu ... l Music Festiva l ," Norma l SchooL May Festival Program, 7

53Stickles, "In Memory of Franz Joseph Strahm," p. 3 .

54 "Sixth Annual Music Festival," Normal School May Festival Program,

55 "Seventh Annual Music Festival," Normal School May Festival Program, 10

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56"Eiqhth Annu~l Music Fe.tiva l, ~ Normal School May Festi val Program. 8

57 "Ninth Annual Music Festival," Nor mal Sc hool May Festival Pr ogram.

29

58"Musi c Festival 1924," Wes t ern Ken tucKY State Teache r ' s College May Festival Program, 9 ~jay 1924.

59-Artists Score Fi r lt Nigh t Of May Fes t ival , Park Ci ty Daily News, 9 May 1924, p. l.

60 lbid •

61'Music Fe stival 1925." western Ken tucky Stat e Nor~l School and Teacher ' . College May Festival Pr ogr am. 7 May 192 5 .

• 62 Ibid .

6J·Program." Weste rn Ken t ucky St ate Normal School, 29 November 19 10 .

64 · Plano Recital, Franz J . Strahm , Pi!milt," 1939, Clipp­ing File: RecitaLs, Western Ken tuc ky Uni versity Archives , Bow ling Green . Kentucky.

6SLetter t o Mrs . J . Bryant He lm, 17 January 1934, f'ran~ J. Strahm Papers, Manuecript e Di v ision, Kentucky Library , Bowling Green, Kentucky .

66· Fran z J. Strahm,· Bowlinq Gr een Music Club Proqram , undated .

6a · Prof • F . J. Str a hm Oelights Assembly,· Nashville Banner, 30 August 1923 .

69 flThe C reation,~ Western Kentucky State Te ache rs Co lleqe Program , 10 March 1929 .

70 ~Ve sper Service, · Western Kentucky State Teachers Col­

leqe Program , 19 January 1930 .

71_The Last Judgment, An Orato rio By Spohr,· We.te r n Kentucky St ate Teachen Col lege PrOQ ram, 26 March 1933 .

7 2 flTh e College Chor us and College Or ches tra In A Sacred Program , " Western Kentucky State Te a chers College Prog ram, S April 1936.

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7)"Walltern Glee Cl ub,H We5tern KentucKy State Teachers Co ll ege Program, 1934 .

74 Ibid .

7SWoolsey, p . 2 .

. 76 Ibid .

77Interview with Virginia Beck-Helm , l1usician, Bowling Green, Kentucky. 16 April 19 92 .

30

7S"College lIeight9 Orchestra, Glee Club To Give Concert." Lou i sville Times Journal, 2 April 1932, p. 1 .

79HFranz J. Strahm," Bowling Green Ti mes Journal, 27 June 1941. p. 1-

80Stickles, "In Memor y of Franz Joseph Strahm," p . J .

St"Franz Strahm Succumbs To Operation," Bowling Green Times Journal, 27 June 1941, p. 1.

82Carrett, p. l.

83Stickles, "In Memor y of Franz Joseph Strahm," p. S .

84 Ibid .

85Interview with Julia Neal, Hi storian, Bowling Green , Kentucky, 9 April 1982.

86Interview with Virginia Beck-Helm, Musici~n, Bowling G.reen , Kentucky, 16 Ap.r i l 1982 .

8711ugh Johnson, "P.rofesso.r St.rahm ~s ~ F.riend , " Spee ch , St.r~hm Memo.rial, 29 Hay 1942, p. 2 .

88"F.ranz J . St.rahm Original Composi t ions ," undated, Bio­g.raphy File: F.ran z J. St .rahm , Wes t ern Ken tucky Uni ve.rsity A.rchives, Bowling G.reen, Kentucky.

89"Victo.r He.rbe.rt St.rahm," Teache.rll Collage He i ghts , January 1934, p. 28.

90 Ibid .

91Pol l ye Braswell, "Tablecloth Salute, Thus A Bowling Gr een Mother Greet!! Her Aviator Son , Capt. Victor H. Str ahm," Nashville Banner , 22 October 1933, p . 1.

92"Homefolks News and Views," Pa rk City Daily tlews, 9 December 1938 , p. 1.

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9) wGene ral St rahm Cited," New York Tirnes~ 6 Auqu.t 1943.

94·Kunish Will Succeed Strahm at Barksda l e , " Shreveport Times . 16 July 1947.

9SInterview wi th Virginia Beck-Helm, Musician. Bowl ing Green. Kentucky. 16 Apri l 198 2 .

" "Vi c t or H. Strahm Dies Of Wounds Suffered In Apr il," Co llege Heights Herald , 24 May 1957 .

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

~ J\ Christmas Oratorio, The N;!;';::'i~;c.M1~"'v. Teachers College Pr09r!m,

~Annual Music Fes tival

"Annual Music Festival." The Elevator. M",y 191 4 , pp. 347 -348.

"Artists Score First Night Of ~Iay Festival. " Park City Daily News. 9 May 1924 , p. l-

Beck- Helm. Vi r ginia . Musician. Bowling Gr een, Kentucky. Interview, 16 April 1982.

Bowling Green, Kentucky Library. Cl i ppings File: Biogra­phies . Alice E. St r ahm, -Biog raphic al Article About Victor Strahm. ·

Bowling Green , Kentucky Library. Cl ipping Fi l e: Bioqraphies . ·Captain Victor II . Strahm Now An Ace Among Birdmen."

Bowling Green, Kentucky Library. Cl i pping File: Biogra­phies . "Lieut. Strahm Tells of Hi s Experience.·

8",011n9 Green, Kentucky Library. Clipping File: Biographies. ~This Teacher Bagged Five German Planes, Captain Victor Strahm."

Bowling Green, Kentucky Library. Clipping File: Biographies . ~Victor Strahm Off For France . "

Bowl ing Green, Kentueky Library. Clippings File: Biographies. "Vict or Strahm To Go To France Or Egypt . "

Bow lin g Green, Kentueky Librar y. Cl i pping File: Franz J. Strahm . ~Work of Profe850r Franz J. S trahm TO Be Pre­sented In Honor . "

Bowling Green, Kentucky Library. " IS Bowling Gr een Musica11,~

Bowling Gr een, Arthur W. b rary," 6

Bowl inq Green, Arthur w. brary," 5

Kentueky Library. Henderson, "Letter September 1943.

Kentucky Library. Henderson, "Letter April 194 4.

J2

Clipping undated.

File: Music .

Franz J . Strahm Collection. to Mr s. Hoore. Kentucky Li-

F r anz J. Strahm Co llection . to Mrs. Moore, Kentucky Li -

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33

Bowling Green, Kentucky Libr~ry . franz J. Strahm Collection. "Manuscripts (of Franz J . Strahm)." undated .

Bowling Green, Kentucky Li brary . Franz J . Strahm Collect i on . Voge l Scrapbook , "Prof, Strahm Defends Germany In The Lusitania Crisis , " 1915 .

Bowling Green, Kentucky by Libr,u'Y . Franz J. Strahm Collec­tion. Vogel Scrapbook , "Recital TO Honor Western In­structor Pro f . Franz J . Strahm," 1935 .

Bowling Green, Ken t ucky Li brary . Manuscripts Division. Franz J . Stl:'ahm Papers, "Letter to Mrs . J . Bryant Helm," 17 January 1934 .

Bowling Green, Kentucky Library. J. Strahm Papers, "Letter to February 1934.

Manuscripts Division. Mrs. J . Br yant Helm,"

Franz 23

Bowling J . 29

Green , Kentucky Li brary. Strahm Papers , "Letter to September 1936.

Manuscripts Division . Franz Mrs. Helm f rom Roxie Gibbs,"

Bowling Gr een, Kentucky Library . J. Strahm Papers, "Letter to Strahm," 12 April 1950.

Bowl ing Green, Kentucky Library . J. Strahm Papers, "Letter to 1935 .

Bowl ing Green, Kentucky Library . J . Strahm Papers, "Postcard 1 July 193 5 .

Hanuscripts Division. Franz Virginia Helm f r om Alice E .

Manuscripts Division . Franz Walter Pearce," 21 August

Manuscr i pts Oivision. Franz to Mr . Walther (sic) Pearce,"

Bowling Green, Western Kentucky unive r sity Archives. Bio­graphy File . "Franz J. Strahm Original Composi t ions , " undated .

Bowling Green, Western Kentucky Univers ity Archives . Clipp­ing File: May Festival. Hugh Hardin Cherry "Publicity Letter," May 1935.

Bowling Green, Western Kentucky University Archives. Clipp­ing File : Oratorio Society . "Criticism By An Expert On ' The Last Judgment' (unidentified newspaper article ) ," 1914 .

Bowl ing Green, Western Kentucky Archives . clipping Fi le: Oratorio Society. "Spohr's Great Orator io 'The Last Judgment ' TO Be Presented a t New vanme ter I!all, ~!ay 12th by Oratorio Socie ty," undated.

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Bowli ng Green, Western Kentucky Un iversity Archives. Clipp ­iog File: Oratorio Soci ety . "Packed House Showed (unidenti fied newspaper article) ,n 1913 .

Bowling Green , ing File' Pianist,"

Western Kentucky Un i versi t y Archives. Clipp­Recitals . "Piano Reci t al , Franz J . Strllhm,

1939 .

Bowling Green , Western Kentucky Un i versity Archives . Fran z J. Strahm Collection . Champion cup of Lieut . Victor H. Strahm, 25-28 March 1921 .

Bowling Green , Western Kentucky univers ity Archives . Franz J. Strahm Collection . "File Of Music Composed by Franz J . Strahm," undated.

Bowli ng Green, ~estern Kentucky Univers ity Archives. Franz J. Strahm COllection . Loving Cup . 1913.

Bowl i ng Gr een , Western Kentucky University Archives. Franz J . Strahm Col lection, Plaque Given Upon Retirement , 1935 .

Bowling Green, Western Kentucky Univers i ty Archives . Franz J. Strahm Collection. "Sheet Mus i c By franz J . Str ahm, Gi ven by Mrs . Carl Barber , " 30 June 1975.

"Boy Gets Honors." Col lege Heights Herald , March 19)9, p. 3 .

Braswell, Pollye . "Table cloth Salute , Thus A Bowling Green Mother Greets Her Aviator Son , Capt . Victor H. St rahrl." Nashville Banner, 22 October 1933 .

. "Captain Victor H. Strahm." Aerial Age Weekly, 2" January 1919, p. 995.

"Choral Number of Prof. Strahm's A Feature of Music Festival ." Park City Daily News, 5 May 1924, p. 1.

"College Band Plays At Chapel ." Co l lege Hei ghts He ral d, April 1927, p. 2 .

"College Heights Orchestra, Glee Club To Give Concert ." Louisville Times Journal, 2 April, 1 932 .

"Composition", By Western Teacher Best In Contest . " Park City Dai ly News, 23 May 1937 .

"Concert At Teachers TO Be Real Treat ." Bowling Green Times Journal, 7 April 1932 , p . 1.

"Concert planned By School Group Over Radio , \~ord." Park City Daily News, 6 April 1932, p. 1.

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"Concert Tour . " Colleqe Heights Herald , 28 January 19 26 , p . 1.

l5

"Ei ghth Annual Music Festival ." I,estern KentuckY S t ate Normal School Ma y Fest i va l Program , 8 May 191 9 .

"Ended I n Blaze Of Gl ory . " Bowling Green Messenger , 11 M~Y 1913 . p . 1.

"Fifth Annua l ~!us i c Fest i val. n school May Fe stiva l Progr am ,

"Fitt i ng Trib utfl '" Par k Ci ty Daily News, 24 ~lay 1937 .

Fo r d , Mary Fra nc is , ed . Tal i sman 19 40 . Bowl in g Green : Weste r n Kentuck y Stat e Teacher 's Colle ge , 1 94 0 .

Fran:;:: J . Strahm (p rinted biog r aphical l e a flet) .

"Franz J . Strahm. " Bowl ing Green Mus i c Club Pr ogram, und a ted .

"Fr anz J . S trahm . " Bowling Gr een Times Journa l, 27 J une 19 41 .

"Franz J . Str ahm 18 6 7 - 19 41 . " Col lege Heights I!erald , 3 Octo­ber 19 41, p . 2 .

" Fr anz J. Strahm Die s At. Hospi t. a l In Loui svi lle . " Col lege Heigh t. s Herald , 2 7 .June 1941 .

"Fran z St.rahm Succumbs To Operat. i on . " Bowling Gr een Ti nes .Journa l, 27 .June 1941, p . 1.

HFourt.h Annua l Musi c "

Gar rett. Paul L . "S t. rahm Me mor ial . " Speech, Strahm Memoria l, 29 May 1 942 .

"Gene ral Str ahm Cited ." New York Ti mes. 6 Augus t 19 43.

"General St r ahm Spe ak s I n Chapel . " Coll ege He ights He rald, 25 Hay 1945 .

"Great Credi t Due Strahm For Festi val---Success of 1925 Even t Is Largely Due To Effor t of Dea n Of Music---Al1 Ar t ists Make Hi t - - - t.;onderfu1 Vo i ce Of Phra die t're l ls Re velati on To Audi ence At Con certs ." Pa r k City Da i l y News . 9 May 1925 , p . 1.

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"History Of Hill Is Told In \'/ord And Song Dec . 7.~ College Heights He r ald. 1 4 December 1934 , p . 1 .

~Hold Memorial Chape l Services for Prof . Strahm . " College Heights Herald,S June 1942, p . 1.

~Homefolks News and Views . " Park City Daily News, 9 Decenber 1938.

Huddleston, Ed . Nashvi l le ; Nashville Banner,

- Iolanthe or The Peer and The Peri, An Operetta In TWo Acts By Gilbert and Sul l ivan Spom;or ed By Strahm Music Club." Western State Teacher ' s College, 29 Harch 1927 .

Johnson, Hugh, "Professor Strahm as a Friend." Speech, Strahm Memor ial . 29 May 1942 .

"Kentucky ' s Gr eatest Ace, Hajor Victor Herbert Strahm, Of Bowling Green, Still In Reqular Army, Decorated By U.S. And France." Kentucky Veteran. ~!arch 1928 .

"Kunish will Succeed Strahm at Barksdale." Shreveport Times, 16 July 19 47 .

Leiper , Mrs . Macon A. "Brief History of Music ·In Bowling Green Since the Cl ose of The Civil War . " Park City Daily News (Special Edition), April 1917, p . 5.

~ Leowe ' s Vendome . ~ Nashville, June 1968, p . 4 .

~Louisvi11e Boy Wi th Noted Flyers . " Louisville Eveni ng Post , undated.

HMajor Strahm Again Ti es Knots In The Pennsylvania Ozone . " Pa rk City Daily News , 26 July 1923 . p. 6.

"Major Strahm Is Wearer Of Medal Seldom Bestowed . " Park City Daily News, 10 March 1928 .

"Maj . Victor Strahm Re t urns To Tho City TO Visit His Father." College Heights Herald, June 1928, pp. 1, a-9 .

"May Festival To Be May 7-8- - -Annual Event To De Held In Teachers ' College Auditorium Under Direction of Prof . Strahm; Speci al Orchestra Engaged . " Park City Daily News, 2S April 1925, p . 1 .

McGee, Mrs. Curti s M. , comp o Kentuckv Composers And Composers Of Folk Husic. Frankfort, Kentucky : State Journal (Kentucky ) , 1950 .

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"Memorial Chapel For The Late Franz J. Strah.'1'l, Next Friday . " College Heights Heral". 22 May 1942, p . 1.

"Men ' s Glee Club . " Western Kentucky Teachers College Pro­gram. 23 March 1934.

"Men's Glee Cl':";.·;·b<Hl~:'­Progra/f!.

"Men's Glee Club Season of 1934 - 1935 . " Western Kentuck y State Teachers College Program, 1934.

"Mrs. Alice E . Strahm . " Park City Daily News, 26 Febru ... ry 1963 .

"Mrs . Guest Dies; Was Well-Known Teacher . " The Nashville Banner, 9 ;1uly 1963, p . 4.

"Music Festival 1924." Hester" I:entucky St ate Teacher's College May Festiva.l Program, 8 May 1924.

"Music Festival 1925 . " \'Iestern Kentucky State Norma l School and Tea cher ' s College Hay Festival Program, 7 May 1925.

"Nashville ill. ' Good Town, ' Say Musicians, Long Given Enthu­siastic "udiences . ~ Nashville . Banner, 1 2 April 19 36.

Nashville ·, Tennessee, Nashville Public Library. Nashville Room : Clipping File . "Nashville ' s Theat res-Vendome . "

Neal, Julia . 9 April

Historian, Bowling Green, Kentucky . 1982 .

Interview,

"Ninth Annual Music Festival. ~ Western Kentucky State Normal School May Festival Program, 6 May 1920 .

"Old Order Passing . " Park City Daily News, 29 June 19 41.

"Oratorio : The Last Judgment By Louis Spohr . " tucky State Normal School Oratorio Society May 1911.

J . St rahm ." lB

Western Ken­Program, 12

"Prof. And Mrs. Strahm Celebrate Anniversity . " Park City Daily News, 11 May 1933, p. 3.

"Prof. F. J . Strahm Delights Assem.b1y . " Na shville Banner , 30 August 1923 .

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~Prof. Strahm Has Record AI Student. Mi ss About His Career. Pupil of Liszt . R

Herald, 1 4 January 1926 , p. 1 .

Ollie Mile s Writes College Heichts

·P rof. Str ahm Visits £urope,R College Heigh t s He r ald, 11 Oct ober 1935, p. 1.

"Pr o fe ssor Strahm To Direct All-State Orches t ra At K.E.A." College He i ghts Herald. April 1928, p . l.

"P rog ram." western Kentucky S t ate Normal School. 29 November 191 0 .

" Second Annual Husia Festival . " School May Fe.tival Pr ogram,

·Seventh Annual Festival,"

·Sixth Music

Stickles , A. M., "/\ Tribute To f r an z J. St rahm," Speech, Strahm Memo rial, 29 May 1942.

Stickles , A. M., "In ~'emory of Franz Joseph Str ahm . " Speech , Strahm Memorial, 29 May 1942.

·Str ahm Honored by Music Cl ub . " College Height. Herald. 3 October 1941, p. 1 .

·Strahm Honored by Music Cl~b.- Pa rk City Oai l y News, 2 October 1941.

"Strilhm Recipient of Leqion of Merit. " Louisv ille Times, 6 A~quEit 1943.

"Str ahm Remains In Criti cal Condi tion. " Park City Dai l y News, 1 0 April 1957 .

"Strahm Talks On MUllic Trend ." College Hei ghts Uerl1ld, Janu ­ary 1927, p . S .

"Strahm To Be In Charqe Of Concert Here . " College Heights He r ald, December 1929, p. 1.

"S tr ahm ' s Mu S ic Cl

ub P' "~'J'~'~"~'~',,!~~~~:;;;~i..~' ~'"'J;~i;~;:~~ Gar den . ' " ~ gram, 31

"The Co llege Chorus and College Orchestra In A Sacred Prog ra~ ." Western Kentucky St~te Teachers College Program, 5 Apr il 19)6 .

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"The Croation . H

gram, 10

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"The Last Judgment , An Oratorio By Spohr . ~ Western Kentucky State Teachers Colleoo Program, 26 March 1933 .

"Three Kentuckians Have Big Jobs In War ' s Biggest Air F i ght­ing Uni t." Louisville Courier-Journa l, 26 May 1944 .

"Two Thous and Hear Opera ' Eli I Sung by 2S0---May Mu sic Fes­tiva l Opened Before Record Crowd At Teachers' Col lege . " Park Ci ty Daily News, 8 May 1925 , p . 1 .

"Vespe r Service . " Proqram, 19

"Vesper Servi ce Gi ven In Honor Of Pr of . Strahm ." College Hei ghts Herald, n May 19 35 , p . 1.

"Vesper Service In Song . " Western Kentucky State Teachers College Program, 17 March 19 35 .

"Vic St. r ahm Repor t ed In Cri tical Condition . " Park City Daily News, 9 Apr i l 1957 .

"Victor Herbert. Strahm." Teachers Col lege Heights, January 1 934 , p . 28.

"Vi ctor H. Strahm Di es Of Wounds Suffered In Apri l." College Heights Herald , 24 May 1 957.

"Victor H. St rahm Die s of Wounds Suffered In April." Pa rk City Daily News , 14 Hay 1957 .

"Victor H. Strahm Named For No t ed, Composer, Report . " ParK Cit y Daily News , 1 3 December 19211, p . 1.

Nashville ,

Waller, William, ed . Nashville 1 900 to 1910. Nashvil le : Va nderbil t Uni versity Press , 1972 .

"Hestern Glee Club ." Western Kentucky State Teachers Co llege , 1934.

"We .. tern Orchestra Concert. " Bo .... 1 i ng Green Times Jour nll1, 15 May 1 937 .

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Who Is Who In Music. New York, Lee Stern Press, (l941) .

"Hill Help Uncle Sam Win complete Ascendancy Over Garman Airmen. ~ Unidentified LOuisville newspaper, September 1917.

Woolsey. Mrs. S . 11 .• "Franz oJ . Strahm ." Speech. Strahm Memorial, 29 May 19 42.