Prof. Ludwig Thomas: Territorial Prescott's "Music Man"
by Tom CollinsThe year 1886 marked a significant turning point in Territorial Prescott's cultural life. Hon. Levi Bashford built an addition to Howey's Hall and installed upholstered chairs to make a first-class opera house of the existing theatre on the second floor. And a talented young German immigrant, Prof. Ludwig Thomas, arrived in Prescott in time to make the remodeled theatre ring with the sound of music. Under Thomas's baton, local singers and musicians flourished as never before, making Prescott the cultural capitol of Arizona.
Luckily for Prof. Thomas, Prescott was teeming with talent. Two professional singers from Pauline Markham's 1879-1880 "H.M.S. Pinafore" company - Joseph Dauphin and Harry Carpenter - had made Prescott their new home; and a gifted amateur soprano, Jessie Stevens, whose "sweet warbling" was unrivaled in the territory, had already captivated local audiences in the 1882 productions of "Pinafore" and Offenbach's, "The Rose of Auvergne." But instrumental music of the time consisted predominantly of brass and winds, provided by the infantry bands of Fort Whipple. Ludwig Thomas deserves credit for cultivating piano and string players, creating the first genuine "orchestra" in Prescott.
While Thomas's arrival date in Prescott and his previous domiciles remain unclear, we do know that he studied music in Leipzig, Germany. Around 1879, he immigrated to America and settled in Ithaca, New York. The Syracuse Sunday Herald noted in March 1883 that Thomas was a superior pianist, highly educated in music, and, being exceedingly polished in manner, was admitted into the best society. "His convivial habits, however, were destructive to his pecuniary success" and he disappeared, leaving behind distressed creditors and a woman who claimed to be his wife. After spending some time in the Auburn Prison in NY State for theft, he joined the U.S. Army and was sent to Texas. In 1883, he was serving at Fort Grant, Arizona. Despite a "weakness for wine," he proved to be a great favorite with the officers.
Upon being discharged for disability as a Private (June 12, 1883), with a good character rating, Ludwig Thomas made his way to Eau Claire, Wisconsin, where he taught music and gave occasional recitals (1883-1884).
Eventually he moved to Prescott. The Miner first mentions him as the organ accompanist for an ill-attended revival of Sullivan's one-act operetta, "Cox and Box," on December 28, 1885. In January he was giving instruction to a number of pupils in instrumental music and, by February, he was in full swing. He composed a grand march for the Firemen's Ball (Feb. 22). He dedicated it to the Prescott Fire Department, and the Miner announced his intention to have it published: "It will be played at the new city hall ... promptly at nine o'clock and the disciples of Terpsichore who fail to hear it on that occasion will miss a rare musical treat" (24 Feb. 1886). H. J. Martin (violin), Erwin Baer (bass viol), and Mr. Elmore (cornet), and Prof. Thomas (piano) made up a lively Quartet that accompanied the dancing until 5 a.m.
Prof. Thomas was a grand success, and soon he made himself indispensable to the Prescott musical scene. He married Addah Case (origin unknown) in July 1886 and entered enthusiastically into the town's cultural and political worlds. He became naturalized in Prescott on July 27, 1888 and became a founding member of the local Republican League Club in 1892, serving on the executive committee.
Between 1887 and 1890 Thomas conducted an average of six vocal and instrumental concerts or musicales per year, featuring the best singers in town: sopranos Jessie E. Stevens and Minnie Cline, Messrs. Vanderbilt, Brown, Dauphin, and Carpenter, Miss Amelia Rush, and Mrs. J. C. Martin. Solo arias, duets, trios, and quartettes, all accompanied by Thomas on the piano or full orchestra, ravished the ears of the hearers. Most of these were "pops" concerts, with music by long-forgotten composers, while some included works by Verdi, Donizetti, and Flotow. A notice in the 11 January Miner of 1887 indicates that the professor had formed the Thomas Glee Club, which sang three choral numbers, including "America," for a lecture by Judge Wright at the court house.
In February 1887, Thomas collaborated with Joe Dauphin in mounting revivals of two one-act operettas: Gilbert & Sullivan's "Cox and Box" and Offenbach's "The Rose of Auvergne." Dauphin, J.E. Brown, and Harry Carpenter sang the leads in the former, while Jessie Stevens, Dauphin, and Brown starred in the latter. Later that month, the talented pianist Mrs. N. Ellis offered a recital, augmented by vocal solos from A. G. Hoyt, Jessie Stevens, W.W. Vanderbilt, Dauphin, and Katie Tritle, the governor's daughter. Thomas, who conducted the entire affair, played a piano duo with Mrs. Ellis.
Perhaps the most notable of Thomas's efforts in 1888-1889 were the four Grand Operatic Concerts at the Prescott Opera House. Thomas combined both Fort Whipple and Prescott musicians, "the best ever heard here," according to the Miner (Oct. 24). Thomas's orchestra opened the 24 October 1888 event with the Overture to Boieldieu's comic opera, "The Caliph of Bagdad." Next came the opening men's chorus from Verdi's "Ernani," sung by twelve well-trained singers, followed by solos from soprano Minnie Cline (Flotow's "The Last Rose of Summer") and Joe Dauphin. The latter two then rendered Nicolai's duet, "Laddie." "The gem of the evening" was the whole 4th Act from Verdi's "Il Trovatore," given in full costume, the garments rented from San Francisco "at great expense." Mrs. Cline sang Leonora, supported by A. Emanuel as Manrico, Dauphin as the Count de Luna, and M.E. Morin as Ruiz. The Miner pronounced the orchestra "the most complete ever heard in Prescott, consisting of two 1st and two 2nd Violins, Viola, Cello, Double Bass, Flute, two Clarinets, two Cornets, Trombone, and Piano."
As if this weren't sufficiently splendid, Thomas gave his second operatic concert on November 27, featuring the same orchestra and singers in the finest gems from Wallace's popular opera, "Maritana." This time the performance was enhanced by both scenery and costumes. It must have been a challenge staging such a huge production on a stage that was reportedly only ten feet deep, with a proscenium opening about twenty feet wide and only about twelve feet high.
The third concert in this series took place on 25 January 1889. It opened with William Henry Squire's comic duet, "The Singing Lesson." Orchestral music ensued: "March from Tannhauser" by Wagner, the Overture to Flotow's comic opera "Stradella," selections from Weber's "Der Freischutz," and Keler-Bela's waltz, "On the Beautiful Rhine." Joe Dauphin sang Henry Russell's dramatic ballad, "The Ship on Fire." Mrs. Cline, along with the other soloists and chorus, repeated selections from Wallace's "Maritana," again with full costumes. The Miner took care to mention that Thomas himself had especially written the instrumentation for "Maritana."
Encouraged by the response to this series, on June 8, 1889, Thomas conducted a fourth concert, including excerpts from Verdi's "Ernani" and "Il Trovatore," as well as Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor." The soloists included Minnie Cline, Mrs. W. A. Freeze, and Messrs. G.E. Brown, D.M. Martin, and Joe Dauphin.
By this time Thomas had probably exhausted the public's interest in this type of concert, so on September 27, 1889, he offered a recital of predominantly piano and violin music: Professor Neilsen (violin) and himself (piano). Mrs. Bertha Neilson also provided piano accompaniment, and Mrs. Alice Gilroy, "a great favorite in Prescott as a vocalist," sang "Sweet Spirit Hear My Prayer" from Wallace's opera "Lurline," "Annie Laurie," and "Margueritte," assisted by three members of the Whipple orchestra. Thomas himself "excelled himself in his rendering of the 'Grand Concerto' duet with Prof. Neilson" (composer not listed). M. L. Wilbanks' cornet solo "received an encore from the audience."
In 1891, Thomas and his wife Addah built a beautiful Victorian home, located on North Pleasant Street just behind the Prescott Free Academy, and moved into their "cozy residence" in May (20 May Miner). Pictured on the border of Jules Baumann's famous 1891 map of Prescott, it served as the studio where Thomas instructed his pupils and sold pianos to area patrons as well.
In the meantime, Messrs. Aitken and Goldwater, lessees, were in the process of completely renovating Levi Bashford's little opera house in Howey's Hall. They gutted the interior and moved the theatre from the second floor to the first, deepening the stage from ten feet to about twenty, and adding dressing rooms at the rear of the building. For the grand re-opening, Ludwig Thomas and Joe Dauphin prepared a magnificent revival of "H.M.S. Pinafore," featuring Minnie Cline as the lass who loved a sailor. Prescott's dashing young dentist, F. H. Waite, played the romantic lead, Ralph Rackstraw, while Dauphin repeated his performance as the Admiral and Hedrick Aitken undertook the role of Captain Corcoran. The production ran four nights (October 21-24). It was the professor's grandest effort, even though his "orchestra" consisted only of himself as pianist and two other unnamed instrumentalists (probably violin and cornet).
The culmination of Thomas's efforts was the Wyckoff Club (1892-1893), a choral and instrumental group named for the gifted baritone and organist, Reverend Edwin D. Wyckoff of the Congregational Church. This group seems to have met in private homes principally for their own edification, although they did offer a number of public concerts.
Although not officially organized, the musicians of the future Wyckoff Club began making music together as early as April 1891, when they performed a testimonial concert to Rev. Wyckoff at the Congregational Church. Thomas and Wyckoff played a duet for organ and piano, a medley of tunes from "The Marriage of Figaro," as well as the Allegro Brillante and Larghetto from Prout's "Duet Concertante Op. 6." Thomas, Wyckoff, and Hed Aitken also performed Clark's "Torchlight March," as a trio for violin, organ, and piano.
In August 1892 they performed Frederic Cowen's 1870 cantata "The Rose Maiden" - composed for soloists, chorus, and piano - at the Prescott Opera House. Mrs. G. A. Swan's soprano solos showed "the fascination a sweet and highly cultivated voice has over a Prescott audience by the merited encores she received," while Miss Jean Snyder sang in "clear and melodious strains" and Mrs. J. C. Martin in her contralto solo excelled "all previous efforts in vocal culture." Mr. Wyckoff himself was a great favorite, and Prof. Achille LaGuardia, the new bandmaster of Fort Whipple, sang the tenor parts "to the utmost satisfaction of every listener." Prof. Thomas "presided over the orchestra, and to him must be due a great share of the credit" (24 August Miner). The Club also offered a variety of musical pieces at the Congregational Church in March 1893. Thomas played Bandel's "Moonlight Ride," and, with his pupil, Miss Inez Raible, he played two Hungarian dances by Brahms. Unfortunately, for reasons unknown, the club disbanded in May 1893.
It must have come as a shock when the Thomases moved abruptly to California in November 1893. Perhaps the exodus of fine singers like Harry Carpenter, Joe Dauphin, and Jessie Stevens in previous years, not to mention the dissolution of the Wyckoff Club, prompted the professor to seek greener pastures. Perhaps the arrival of Achille LaGuardia at Fort Whipple in May 1892 posed a threat to Thomas's position as Prescott's premier music man. LaGuardia filled the void Thomas left with lively military marches and dance music, but it would be a long time before Prescott would ever hear talented amateurs perform the kind of music that Thomas conducted again.
(Tom Collins, a Professor Emeritus of Theatre, is the author of "Stage-Struck Settlers in the Sun-Kissed Land," a history of the amateur theatre in Territorial Prescott. He is a volunteer in the archives at Sharlot Hall Museum.)
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Sharlot Hall Museum Photograph Call Number:(map58 with insert) Reuse only by permission.
The complete map of Prescott by Jules Baumann in 1891 can be seen in the Sharlot Hall Museum Archives. The cropped portion shown here gives the general layout of the city and the inserts are drawings enhanced from the border of the original. The Ludwig Thomas house was located on Pleasant Street behind the Prescott Free Academy (on the site of present Washington School) on Gurley Street. Howey Hall Opera House was upstairs in the original Goldwater building on the SE corner of Cortez and Goodwin Streets.
Sharlot Hall Museum Photograph Call Number:(O137p) Reuse only by permission.
The Wyckoff Club, c.1892-93, with Ludwig Thomas reclining at left. The club, named for the gifted baritone and organist, Rev. Edwin D. Wyckoff of the Prescott Congregational Church, gave a number of concerts in Prescott from 1891-1893. Rev. Wyckoff is not in this photograph.