Ethelbert Nevin
Edgeworth, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
Composer of "Narcissus," "The Rosary, " and other well-known musical works, was born Nov. 25, 1862, at Vineacre, a property adjoining the far end of this street. Died Feb. 17, 1901, at New Haven, Conn.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
Ethelbert Nevin, born nearby at the family estate of Vineacre in 1862, became one of America's most beloved composers of parlor music during the Gilded Age. His piano piece 'Narcissus' and the song 'The Rosary' were performed and sold across the country, staples of home music-making in an era before radio and recordings. He died young in 1901, having given late-nineteenth-century America some of its most cherished melodies.
Why it matters
Nevin's popularity captures a moment when the sheet-music parlor was the center of American cultural life, and a composer from small-town Pennsylvania could become a household name.
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