Museums at Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY
516-751-0066
http://www.museumsatstonybrook.org
William Sidney Mount: Music Is Contagious!
January 15 - June 18, 2000
A selection of works by acclaimed genre artist William Sidney Mount
that testify to his lifelong love of music will be presented at The Museums
at Stony Brook from January 15 through June 18, 2000. A talented musician
as well as a respected artist, Mount played a variety of instruments, including
the fiddle, piccolo, wooden flute, recorder, and fife. His writings reveal
that he was a serious instrumentalist, composer, and collector of music
as well. He was also an inventor: in 1852 he patented a unique design for
a hollow-back violin that he called "The Cradle of Harmony." By
the time Mount died, he had collected over 500 pieces of manuscript music
and composed original compositions. (left: Dance of the Haymakers,
1845, oil on canvas, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Ward Melville, 1950, The Museums
at Stony Brook)
During Mount's lifetime (1804-1868), interest in new forms
of musical expression grew, and the advent of 
singing schools, classes in instrumental music, community
concerts, and Fourth of July celebrations drew widespread participation
in musical activities. Less formal pastimes, such as fiddling in the parlor
after dinner, neighborhood dances and impromptu gatherings in local barns,
all provided opportunities for the simple musical enjoyment that was captured
in many of Mount's works. (right: The Banjo Player, 1856, oil on
canvas, 35 3/4 x 28 3/4 inches, The Museums at Stony Brook)
"The Music Is Contagious!" exhibition includes
works of art, musical instruments, and memorabilia relating to William Sidney
Mount and his family.
Read more about the Museums
at Stony Brook in Resource Library Magazine
For further biographical information please see America's Distinguished Artists, a national
registry of historic artists.
rev. 12/23/10
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Copyright 2010 Traditional Fine Arts Organization, Inc., an Arizona nonprofit corporation. All rights
reserved.
A selection of works by acclaimed genre artist William Sidney Mount
that testify to his lifelong love of music will be presented at The Museums
at Stony Brook from January 15 through June 18, 2000. A talented musician
as well as a respected artist, Mount played a variety of instruments, including
the fiddle, piccolo, wooden flute, recorder, and fife. His writings reveal
that he was a serious instrumentalist, composer, and collector of music
as well. He was also an inventor: in 1852 he patented a unique design for
a hollow-back violin that he called "The Cradle of Harmony." By
the time Mount died, he had collected over 500 pieces of manuscript music
and composed original compositions. (left: Dance of the Haymakers,
1845, oil on canvas, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Ward Melville, 1950, The Museums
at Stony Brook)