Considered to be “America’s First Composer”, Foster was a self-taught musician whose poems and melodies were often simply written and without much complexity. Born in Lawrence, Pennsylvania as the youngest of eleven kids and raised in a well-known family, Foster’s father was a member of the State Legislature and mayor of a Pittsburg suburb called Allegheny City. He attended Allegheny Academy in 1840, then Athens Academy and Towanda Academy after that. All of them were failed academic pursuits. During that time, he composed first song he ever wrote, “The Tioga Waltz”. This wasn’t published until after his death. From the ages of 15 to 20, Foster studied at home and in 1843, his first published work was produced, “Open Thy Lattice Love”. Two years later, he held a concert in his home, where three more works were premiered.…show more content… Through this deal, he would get a large audience of people who would hear his music, and the music was to be printed with the message “As sang by the Christy Minstrels”. After 1860, Foster began composing music
Stephen Foster died in New York City on January 13, 1864 as a lonely and poor alcoholic. He has been said to have a purse on him that contained less than forty cents and a piece of paper that said “Dear friends and gentle
