Where Can I Find Christian Music Composed by Art Jones

Francis Arthur Jones (b. 1871)
Interviewing Thomas Alva Edison (1847–1931) for his biography of the American inventor ^[1]

English writer and journalist (b. iii/15 May 1871 in Chester), born Francis Arthur Launcelot Jones ; also known as Francis Arthur Jameson ^[2].

A native of the English city of Chester, he lost his begetter, William Jones, at an early age. Francis and his mother, Anne, who was of Irish stock, moved to Devon during the 1880s where Mrs. Jones became a lodging firm proprietor. After completing his school pedagogy Francis worked as a tutor for a few years, but somewhen embarked upon a career equally a music writer and journalist for The Strand Magazine. He was also involved in the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) at Torquay in Devon.

On xvi Jan 1893 [Due north.South.] Jones wrote to Tchaikovsky (in English) explaining that he was working on an article entitled "How Composers Compose" and asked him to send a small fragment of one of his manuscripts, equally well equally to answer a series of questions for his article. Jones pointed out that he had already contacted a number of composers — including Grieg, Saint-Saëns, Massenet, and Gounod — regarding the aforementioned query, and they had all kindly obliged. At the terminate of his letter Jones promised to frontwards Tchaikovsky a copy of his article. After receiving Tchaikovsky's detailed and helpful reply ^[3], Jones wrote to him again on 27 February [N.Southward.], apologizing for having to use English language again as he was not expert in French. He thanked the composer for the musical autograph he had sent and asked him to clarify which work it was from ^[4]. Tchaikovsky replied on 28 February/12 March 1893: "You ask me about where the fragment I sent you is taken from. Unfortunately I've completely forgotten what musical phrase I communicated to you lot. Please let me know" ^[5]. Information technology seems that Jones, non wishing to problem the composer further, did non return the autograph to him for description, and no more than correspondence betwixt the 2 men has come to light. He had very probable realised that, since Tchaikovsky in his first letter had named The Queen of Spades equally his finest work, the fragment must have been taken from that opera.

Jones'south article "How Composers Compose" containing the replies of diverse British and European composers to his questions on the artistic process, and illustrated with facsimile reproductions of portions of their manuscripts, finally appeared in two instalments in the February and April 1894 issues of The Strand Magazine. The department on Tchaikovsky appeared at the very end of the 2d instalment. It began with a warm tribute — "Klin, nigh Moscow, was the domicile of one of the busiest of men. Information technology is here that the late Russian composer Tschaïkowsky, lived and worked, devoting the greater part of the 24-hour interval to his art" — and afterward the concluding paragraph — "Of his own compositions, Tschaïkowsky considered his opera La Dame de Pique the all-time work he had ever done, an stance which is shared by many of his admirers" — there appeared a facsimile of the beautifully written quotation from the finale of The Queen of Spades which Tchaikovsky had sent him a year before ^[6].

Later on moving to London, Jones emigrated to New York in 1902, where he worked every bit a journalist for The Strand Mag and Wide World Magazine — a career which saw him eventually rise to the position of editor and American representative of these two British monthly illustrated publications. While still a inferior journalist, Jones establish the fourth dimension to write his first volume — one which reflected his abiding interest in music and his Christian organized religion: Famous Hymns and their Authors (London, 1902). For this ambitious project he had followed a similar process to that of his article "How Composers Compose": he interviewed (oftentimes by correspondence) both contemporary British and American hymnists, and also the descendants of the authors of famous hymns from the eighteenth and early-nineteenth century. Moreover, the volume independent facsimile reproductions of the opening verses of many of these hymns. Jones defended the book to his female parent, who had taught him as a child many of the hymns it discusses.

Jones'southward conclusion to move to America, even though he nevertheless returned to United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland occasionally for short visits, allowed him to realise another dream of his: to meet the inventor Thomas Alva Edison (1847–1931), an idol of his boyhood, about whom he would go on to write a biography: Thomas Alva Edison: Sixty Years of an Inventor'south Life (New York / London, 1907). Jones was probably unaware that Tchaikovsky had been among the showtime to pay tribute to one of Edison'due south almost important inventions: the phonograph (meet the Endorsement of Thomas Edison's "Phonograph", written in 1889), but he would certainly accept appreciated the connection! In the foreword to the second and revised edition (New York and London, 1924), Jones explained his motivation for writing this book:

This Foreword is in the nature of a confession. Thomas Alva Edison has always possessed a great fascination for me. Fifty-fifty when a male child in an English school I read everything concerning him that I could observe. On the wall of my bedroom was placed that striking picture show of him past Outcault (I recollect) which showed the "Wizard" listening to his first phonograph. I saw that portrait long before I ever had an opportunity of listening to a "talking machine," and visualised the inventor as a mortal who lived somewhere on earth, possibly, but who was seen merely by the elect. I thought of him as her Indian subjects are said to have idea of Queen Victoria!

When as a very immature man I got my first engagement on a London mag, and was given an assignment to write an commodity on Edison, the editor went to some little problem to tell me who he was. He brash me to wait him upwardly in the Metropolitan Library or, better still, to consult the "morgue" of the London Times. I had no demand to practice either. The article was written without consulting any reference whatever, and the editor was kind enough to say that I "might have been personally acquainted with the inventor".

A couple of years after the publishing business firm with which I was associated decided to send a man to America to write articles on this land for the delectation of English readers. I was offered the position. For many reasons I was not very enthusiastic about it, but the thought flashed through my mind: mayhap I shall see Edison! This factor helped me to decide. I hesitated no longer but packed my trunk and took transport for New York.

About a month after my inflow I wrote to Mr. Edison request for an interview in behalf of my mag. I did non get an immediate reply and had virtually made up my mind that the inventor really was some supernatural being, when a pleasant note came proverb that Mr. Edison would exist pleased to see me at such and such a time. I retrieve information technology was a cute bound morning time when I arrived in Orange and the apple tree and pear trees were total of blossom. Everything was so sunny and brilliant that I felt satisfied that the cracking event of my life was to take place. I reached the Laboratory most 11 o'clock and knocked at the little office simply outside the gates. A workman allow me in, and presently Mr. Randolph, the nifty man's Secretary, appeared and ushered me into the library where he said Mr. Edison would meet me in a few moments.

Left alone I felt what the French call "a great emotion". I know that when the inventor fabricated his appearance at the door my knees knocked together. Merely he hurried forward with such a genial grinning on his confront, such a kindly look in his optics, such a welcome in his outstretched mitt, that all my nervousness vanished. I felt as though I were greeting an old friend. Nosotros sat and talked for an 60 minutes. When the interview was over, he told me that I might come whenever I wished, and that any data he or his associates could give me would be at my service.

That was the first of many visits and each visit increased my admiration for this wonderful homo. One cannot speak to Edison for v minutes without realising that he is in the presence of a very unusual personality — a homo who is already among the immortals. And yet he laughs and tells amusing stories in a style that is very homo and wholly delightful. Born of these intimate talks came a great want to depict Edison as I knew him for others; and ane day I asked him if he would have any objection to my publishing the results of my many interviews in book form. He had none. In fact he gave me total permission to consult everything there was concerning him in the Library and put at my disposal a mass of valuable material. I ready to work at once and for many weeks occupied a desk in the Edison library where I was left undisturbed and free to use annihilation that might prove useful.

I have fabricated this frank personal confession in the offset person, to explain why it was that I wrote a Life of Edison. Information technology has been penned considering of my intense admiration for him and equally a small-scale tribute to the man who must be regarded as the greatest inventive genius of all times" ^[seven].

At that place are indications that Francis Arthur Jones may withal have been active equally a literary agent in New York in the early 1930s ^[viii], but these are not conclusive and nothing is known to us about his later years.

Correspondence with Tchaikovsky

Two messages from Tchaikovsky to Francis Arthur Jones have survived, dating from 1893, both of which accept been translated into English on this website:

• Letter of the alphabet 4856a – v/17 February 1893, from Klin
• Letter 4878a – 28 February/12 March 1893, from Klin.

Bibliography

• How Composers Work. Part Ii (1894)
• Голоса из Клинского дома. Письма, документы (1990)
• Ein bisher unbekannter Brief Čajkovskijs, Klin, 28. Februar/12 März 1893 (2010)

Notes and References

1. ↑ Photograph by Joseph Byron (1847–1923) for the first edition of this biography (New York and London, 1907).
2. ↑ Jones's first letter to Tchaikovsky is clearly signed "Francis Arthur Jameson". However, contempo research for this website has ascertained his right identity.
3. ↑ Encounter the data provided past Polina Vaidman and Lyudmila Korabelnikova in Голоса из Клинского дома. Письма, документы (1990), No. 6. p. 92–93. A Russian translation of Jones's questions to Tchaikovsky is given there. The diction of these questions in the original English was probably identical to that in Jones's letter to Dvořák of 3 September 1892 [N.S.]: "What method do you lot adopt when composing? Do you consider the art of composition i which may exist acquired and cultivated? Which practise you consider your finest work? Practise you lot compose at the piano? Do y'all consider the English language a musical nation, if non what in your stance is the reason? Practise you believe in composers writing 'to order'?" (see: Antonín Dvořák: Korrespondence a dokumenty, 8 vols (Prague, 1987–2000), vol. vi (1997), p. 364). Information technology seems that Jones had already written to Dvořák before that year, on five July [North.S.], but received no reply to that letter of the alphabet. The editors of Dvořák'southward correspondence propose that this is because the Czech composer was then as well busy preparing for his forthcoming visit to the United States. Jones's second letter of the alphabet of iii September 1892 [N.S.] may not fifty-fifty take reached him, since by mid-September Dvořák and his family had already set up canvass for America where they would stay until 1895. When it finally appeared, early on in 1894, Jones's commodity did non include a section on the Czech composer, nor, curiously, did it include i on Massenet, even though the latter had reportedly answered his questionnaire.
4. ↑ Letter of the alphabet from Francis Arthur Jones to Tchaikovsky, 15/27 February 1893, written in French.
5. ↑ Letter 4878a to Francis Arthur Jones, 28 February/12 March 1893.
6. ↑ Encounter Tchaikovsky Research Bulletin No. 1 (2011) for a reprint of the department in Jones's article devoted to Tchaikovsky How Composers Work. Part II (1894).
7. ↑ F. A. Jones, Thomas Alva Edison: Sixty Years of an Inventor'south Life, 2d edition. (New York ; London, 1924), vii–x. The start edition of this biography is bachelor online at the Net Annal.
8. ↑ For example, the writer Anaïs Nin (1903–1977) mentions in her diary in 1930 a literary agent in New York called Francis Arthur Jones to whom she had sent some of her early stories.

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Source: http://en.tchaikovsky-research.net/pages/Francis_Arthur_Jones

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