George Frederick Bristow

His Fifth Symphony, titled Niagara, premiered at Carnegie Hall in January 1898, only months before his death. Through his compositions and advocacy, Bristow helped lay the foundation for a distinctly American tradition in classical music. He figured prominently in a public dispute with critic William Henry Fry and the New York Philharmonic Society, criticizing the society's decision to exclude American composers.

• Name — George Frederick Bristow • Born — 19 December 1825 • Birthplace — Brooklyn, New York, U.S. • Died — 13 December 1898 • Place of death — New York City, U.S. • Occupation — * Composer • conductor • violinist • music educator • Instrument — * Violin • piano • Years Active — 1840s–1898 • Genre — * Classical • Romantic

George Frederick Bristow was born on December 19, 1825, in Brooklyn, New York. He was named after German-British composer George Frideric Handel. His father, William Richard Bristow, a composer and music teacher, had emigrated from England to the United States around 1822 with his own father, Thomas Bristow. The Bristow family settled in Brooklyn, where George was raised in a musically enriched environment. From an early age, he received instruction from his father in piano, harmony, counterpoint, and orchestration.

George F. Bristow was an inaugural member of the New York Philharmonic Society Orchestra, where he began in 1843 in the first violin section, age 17. He remained there until 1879. The New York Philharmonic's records indicate that he was concertmaster between 1850 and 1853. In the 1850s, Bristow became conductor of two choral organizations, the New York Harmonic Society and the Mendelssohn Union (and later several church choirs); he was also the concertmaster of the touring orchestra for Swedish opera singer Jenny Lind. In 1854, he began his long career as a music educator in the public schools of New York. One of his notable students was pianist and conductor William Rogers Chapman.

Bristow's compositional output is divided in three periods: his early years, during which most of the compositions are instrumental; the middle period beginning in 1852, during which he wrote more than forty works, several of them lengthy and imposing; and the late period, beginning in 1879 with Bristow's resignation from the New York Philharmonic. Of the 135 compositions listed in Rogers’ dissertation on Bristow's music, one-third are choral or vocal. Seven of his choral works are choral/orchestral pieces, and twenty-seven compositions are smaller pieces, most of which were composed for church choirs that he led. Both the short sacred works and the large choral/orchestral compositions are evenly divided between the middle and late periods.

Bristow died suddenly on December 13, 1898, at the age of 73, while serving as assistant supervisor of music for the Second Public School district of New York City. He collapsed during the school day at Grammar School No. 42. Bristow is buried at Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx. The Public School 134 "George F. Bristow" is named and so is the street in which the school is located: 1330 Bristow Street, the Bronx.

• Rip van Winkle, opera, Op. 22 (1855) • The King of the Mountains, opera, Op. 80 (libretto by Myron A. Cooney, incomplete, 1894)

• Eleutheria, cantata (1849) • Morning Service in E-flat major: Te Deum, Jubilate, Kyrie, Op. 19 (1855) • Ode, Op. 29 (1856) • Gloria Patri, Praise to God, oratorio, Op. 31/33 (1860) • Christ our Passover: an Easter Anthem, Op. 39 (1866) • The Oratorio of Daniel, Op. 42 (1866) • The Pioneer, A Grand Cantata, Op. 49 (1872) • The Great Republic, ode on words by William Oland Bourne, Op. 47 (1879) • Mass in C major, Op. 57 (1885)

• Symphony No. 1 in E-flat major, Op. 10 (1848) • Symphony No. 2 in D minor ("Jullien"), Op. 24 (1856) • Symphony No. 3 in F-sharp minor, Op. 26 (1859) • Symphony No. 4 in E minor ("Arcadian" or "The Pioneer"), Op. 50 (1872) • Symphony No. 5 ("Niagara"), for grand orchestra and chorus, Op. 62 (1893)

• Overture in E-flat major, Op. 3 (1845) • La cracovienne, fantasy for violin and orchestra, Op. 13 (1850) • Overture to A Winter's Tale, Op. 30 (1866) • Overture to Columbus (unfinished opera), Op. 32 (1861) • Overture to Jibbenainosay, Op. 64 (1886)

• Rip Van Winkle (Original, Musical, Comedy), Opera, Music by George F. Bristow; Musical Director: George F. Bristow September 27, 1855 – October 23, 1855 • The Beggar's Opera [Revival, Musical, Drama, Opera], Musical Director: George F. Bristow September 14, 1855 – November 3, 1855 • The Daughter of St. Mark [Original, Musical, Operetta], Musical Director: George F. Bristow June 18, 1855 – June 28, 1855 • The Bohemian Girl [Revival, Musical, Comedy, Opera], Musical Director: George F. Bristow June 2, 1855 – November 3, 1855 • A Queen of a Day [Original, Musical, Comedy, Opera], Musical Director: George F. Bristow June 2, 1855 – November 3, 1855

• Life and Music in the Age of George Frederick Bristow (2026). Documentary film by Eduardo Montes-Bradley. Produced by Heritage Film Project. 60 minutes.

George Frederick Bristow is recorded as composer, concertmaster, pianist, fiddler and violinist.