Stephen Collins Foster was America’s first official full-time songwriter. He wrote over 200 songs, including hits like “Oh! Susanna” and “My Old Kentucky Home.” The lasting influence of Foster’s popular songs is evident today.
A Self-Taught Musician
Born to parents William and Eliza Foster on July 4, 1826, the Pennsylvania native’s birthdate is appropriate for his legacy. As the date is synonymous for American independence, Foster’s name is synonymous with American music history.
Foster grew up in the tight-knit community of Lawrenceville, Pennsylvania, home to a wide array of European immigrants including Italians, Germans, and the Scotch-Irish. Early on, his parents realized they had a bright young boy on their hands with a keen interest in music. They ensured he received a classical education at private academic institutions. He studied multiple languages, including English, Latin, and Greek. He also studied literature, mathematics, and penmanship.
While studying, he also worked on music. Foster was a self-taught musician who learned how to play the guitar, flute, clarinet, and piano. William, Foster’s brother, took note of his creative pursuits and arranged a meeting between Foster and Henry Kleber, a well-known music dealer in the Pennsylvania area. The two hit it off and in 1839, barely a teen, Foster found his first mentor.
Kleber exposed the gifted artist to classical works by Beethoven, Mozart, and Schubert. Enthralled by the legendary classical composers, Foster was inspired to try his hand at his own songs.
Music Inspired by His Honeymoon
Stephen married Jane Denny McDowell in July 1850. The marriage was an inspiring and stabilizing force for him. On their honeymoon, they visited New York and Baltimore, Maryland. They also ventured into the American South, where the sights and sounds particularly stayed with Foster. After the couple returned home to Pennsylvania, Foster’s most prolific writing period began. Many popular songs from that period had folksy elements, along with colorful imagery of southern states. Though Foster spent most of his life in the north, the South had a lasting impact on his music.
Foster’s southern-themed song, “My Old Kentucky Home,” came from this period. An anthem for the bluegrass state, it became the official Kentucky state song in 1928. Each year, Kentucky Derby crowds sing the tune in unison before the gates swing open and the jockeys and horses race to the finish line.
“Oh! Susanna,” which Foster wrote during a short stint as a bookkeeper for his brother, is another popular, folk-tinged tune. The song tells the story of a man traveling the South in search of his one true love. Released in 1848, this song was Mr. Foster’s breakout hit.
His “Camptown Races” still has a place in Pennsylvania culture. He penned the tune in honor of a series of tournaments that took place each year in Camptown, Pennsylvania, located in the mountainous, northeastern region of the state. The Western Writers of America group voted it as one of their top 100 songs.
Throughout his songwriting journey, Foster experimented gracefully and expertly with multiple genres. He is often known for his minstrel music, a popular, theatrical type of performance in the early-to-mid-19th century. While the historic genre has received criticism due to white actors performing in blackface, it was nonetheless a popular and widely attended performing art in the mid-19th century. In the book “A History of The Minstrel Show,” author Frank Sweet states that despite the genre’s cultural shortcomings and inconsistencies, minstrel performances were “consistently packed with families from all walks of life and every ethnic group.”
The Stephen Foster Memorial
Foster fell ill with a fever in January 1864 and never recovered. Tragically, he passed away at age 37. His family assumed control of his compositions. In the aftermath of such a great musical loss, they honored his legacy by posthumously releasing his original ballad, “Beautiful Dreamer.” Like several of his other works, the song features a protagonist singing to his sweetheart while trying to win her affection. It remains one of his most notable songs.
