MacDowell [née Nevins], Marian Griswold
- Robin Rausch
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(b New York, NY, Nov 22, 1857; d Los Angeles, CA, Aug 23, 1956). American arts patron and pianist. She exhibited precocious talent at the piano as a young girl and traveled to Frankfurt, Germany, in 1880 for formal musical instruction. There she became the student of a brilliant, young American, Edward MacDowell. Their relationship quickly deepened and in July 1884 they married.
Devoted to furthering her husband’s composing career, Marian MacDowell witnessed firsthand the struggle for recognition that American composers faced at the turn of the 20th century. The couple believed in the creative potential of their homeland, and discussed turning their farm in Peterborough, New Hampshire, into a gathering place for creative artists, where others could enjoy the ideal working conditions that had inspired the composer’s own best work. Edward MacDowell fell ill before the vague plan could be realized. In 1907, the year before his death, Marian MacDowell founded the ...
