Alfred A. Farland

Alfred Farland was the youngest of nine children, 5 boys and 4 girls, his parents natives of Canada. His family moved to the United States about 1865, They were involved in the clothing-making industry. His father was a tailor, and Alfred and his brothers (and sometimes his sisters) worked in the woolen mills that turned sheep's wool into cloth. Although he lived and died in the United States, he remained Canadian through at least 1920, becoming a citizen by 1940. In 1880 when he was 14 years old, Alfred Farland worked as a weaver in a woolen mill in Westerly, Rhode Island. His brother, Joseph, lived nearby and also worked in the woolen mill. About 14 years later, Alfred would receive acclaim in his music-playing profession, playing the banjo, accompanied on piano by his niece Annie, Joseph's daughter. He began to take lessons from music teachers in about 1877, when he was 13 years old. He was good enough that five years later in 1882 he was able to work professionally, working within "concert companies." In 1888 he moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to teach, and by 1891 had taught more than 500 students. ==Professional life==

Farland entered show business in 1884, the "minstrel days", as a "blackface comedian and song and dance man." However, the music was seen as vulgar by men such as S. S. Stewart, What had really impressed Stewart was Farland's adaptation of a Mendelssohn concerto, which Stewart knew to be a difficult piece on the violin, and even more difficult on the banjo. After a career in blackface, Huntley broke ground by performing in "whiteface" on the stage in 1884, eliciting the newspaper comment, "Mr. Wm. A. Huntley is the only banjo artist in the country that has ever made a success in white face." Early in his career, Stewart had included lessons for performing in blackface, but it was a small part of his larger business and magazine, both centered around a refined banjo image. and his repertoire focused on arrangements of European classical music (then contemporary music coming out of Europe) and a high level of technical skill. His performances would inspire newspapers to label him "virtuoso." Playing until he was about 70 years old, he would "average more than 100 banjo recitals per season for more than 40 years," playing across the United States and in England. ==Classical-music artist==

Farland adapted works by European composers to the banjo and played them across the United States. Examples cited at concerts during the summer of 1894 include the "Miserere" from Verdi's Il trovatore, Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto, Op. 64, Rossini's Overture to William Tell, Beethoven's sonatas and concertos including Sonata No. 30. Other works played in 1894 included: Beethoven 8th Sonata; Handel "Largo"; Chopin Polonaise, Op. 40, No. 1, Nocturne, Op. 9, No. 2, Valse, Op. 64, No. 2; Moszkowski Spanish Dances, Nos.1, 2 and 3, Sonata; Schubert, Serenade; Bach, Sixth Sonata, Preludio, Minuet, Gigue; Wieniawski Second Polonaise Brilliant; Paderewski Minuet a l'Antique; Haydn Gypsy Rondo; and Mendelssohn, ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' incidental music, Op. 61: Allegro Molto Vivace. He also played some contemporary or folk music, including Home, Sweet Home. ==Marketing with his name==

Farland had a business relationship with S. S. Stewart, endorsing Stewart's banjos and appearing in photographs in Stewart's Guitar and Banjo Journal holding Stewart's banjos. For about 10 years, Farland toured the United States, traveling as much as 1000 miles in a day and playing classical music on one of Stewart's banjos. Some of Farland's audience was aware of the elite instrument, commenting on it in a letter to Stewart, which was published in his journal. Stewart in turn endorsed Farland in his journal, printing excerpts and whole pages about him, as well as Farland's concert schedule and upcoming concerts. He had his instruments made by such companies as Rettburg & Lange. In creating his own banjo, he said that he was looking for a particular tone, one that was "mellow." In his 1902 catalog, he pointed out that the majority of metal banjo rims did not fit perfectly against the wood that lined them, and that the fit would change over time. ==American Banjo Fraternity==

Farland was a member of the American Banjo Fraternity and its first vice president. ==Works==

, variations on the folk song composed by Julius Benedict, arranged for banjo and played on banjo by Alfred A. Farland. This song is an example of Farland using tremolo to get long notes from the instrument (much as the cornet or violin can naturally play.) . Educational • National School for the Banjo Sheet music • 1891 National Parade March • 1895 Haydn, Gypsy Rondo Arranged by Alfred A.Farland. • 1895 ''Menuet A L'antique'' • 1895 Serenade • 1897 My Old Kentucky Home Varied With Piano • 1902 5th Air Varied Op. 89 No. 5 • 1902 La Castenara (Mexican Love Song, Castenet Dance) • La Matinee Rondo • 1902 La Paloma • 1902 Overture To William Tell (Last Movement) • 1902 Traumerei Op. 15 No. 7 ==Gallery==

File:Gregory & Farland, S S Stewart ad in NY Clipper 2 Dec 1893.jpg|Alfred A Farland and George W Gregory in a full-page advertisement in the New York Clipper by S. S. Stewart, 2 Dec 1893 File:A. A. Farland portrait darkened.jpg|Alfred A. Farland, banjoist, 1894, from S. S. Stewarts's Banjo and Guitar Journal, June and July 1894. File:A. A. Farland portrait 2.jpg|Portrait of A. A. Farland from Menuet A L'antique sheet music, 1895. According to contemporary source, Farland played an S.S. Stewart Thoroughbred. File:A. A. Farland portrait.jpg|Portrait of A. A. Farland from Menuet A L'antique sheet Banjo, 1895. S.S. Stewart banjo. File:A. A. Farland advertisment August 1900.jpg|Alfred A. Farland advertisement August 1900, from S. S. Stewarts Banjo, Guitar and Mandolin Journal, August 1900. File:Compositions in A. A. Farland National School for the Banjo a.jpg|Compositions in A. A. Farland National School for the Banjo File:Compositions in A. A. Farland National School for the Banjo b.jpg|Compositions in A. A. Farland National School for the Banjo File:Alfred A Farland endorsement April 1893.jpg|Alfred A Farland endorses SS Stewart banjos, April 1893. File:A A Farland Artists Grand.jpg|A A Farland Artists Grand from A. A. Farland 1902 catalog File:A. A. Farland banjo 1.jpg|An A. A. Farland ''Artist's Grand'' banjo, in the collection of Rives McDow. File:FarlandSide.jpg|Side view of A. A. Farland ''Artist's Grand'' banjo. The rim of the body is wood; the mechanisms to stretch the soundboard are metal. The neck on this model was decorated with carving. File:Peghead on A. A. Farland banjo.jpg|Peghead on A. A. Farland ''Artist's Grand'' banjo. File:A. A. Farland banjo 2.jpg|An A. A. Farland banjo, in the collection of Rives McDow File:Mute mechanism on A. A. Farland banjo.jpg|Mute mechanism of A. A. Farland banjo. File:Farland string.jpg|A. A. Farland Banjo strings. These were synthetic, made to simulate the gut-string sound without being as sensitive to humidity and temperature. ==Examples in S.S. Stewart's Banjo and Guitar Journal==

The following are examples from S. S. Stewart's Banjo and Guitar Journal in which Stewart promoted Farland by publishing advertisements, concert schedules, letters from the banjo world about performances, and in which Farland promoted Stewart's banjos with photographs, publicity on the road, and written statements about his use of Stewart's instruments exclusively. This sampling of articles represents a one-year period, about 4 years before Stewart's death in 1898. • 1894, Feb-March, inside cover, Grand Musical Triumph • 1894, Feb-March, page 6, Farland and his banjo. • 1894, April–May, page 8, untitled. • 1894 June–July, pages 10–12, The Banjo World. • 1894, August–September, page 8, Take the elevator. • 1894 October–November, page 13, The Banjo World. • 1894 December-1895 January, page 11, The Banjo World. • 1895 February–March, page 4, A violinist on Farland. • 1895 February–March, page 4, Farland concerts. ==References==