"The Other Swedes"
~ Honoring Them and Remembering Them ~ The Smoky Valley Writers ~
Dr. Emory K. Lindquist's
1984 "Hagbard Brase, Beloved Music Master"
~ Contents and Illustration
~ Honoring Them and Remembering Them ~ The Smoky Valley Writers ~
Dr. Emory K. Lindquist's
1984 "Hagbard Brase, Beloved Music Master"
~ Contents and Illustration
Page ii HAGBARD BRASE, 1877-1953, Portrait by Dale Hoag.
Page vi Lindquist's dedication: "Dedicated to the members of the Bethany College Oratorio Society who shared with Hagbard Brase the great Lindsborg Oratorio tradition.
Page vii PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Page xi Table of Contents
Page xii 2 Illustrations
- The Bethany College Oratorio Society is pictured in 1915 in the old Ling Auditorium on the campus of Bethany College, during the first year under direction of Dr. Hagbard Brase. The soloists for that year's festival were soprano Ethyl Coover, alto Ida Gardner, tenor Arvid Wallin, and bass Thure Jaderborg. All
but Gardner were members of the Bethany College faculty. At various times Ling Auditorium was also called Bethany College Auditorium and the "Messiah Auditorium. The building was constructed in 1895 and was destroyed by fire in 1946. During that time, it was the home of "Messiah" and other oratorios, as well as the famous "Messiah" Festival, until Presser Hall auditorium became available in the fall of 1928.
- Dr. Brase (center) poses in 1942 in Presser Hall auditorium with the chorus and orchestra of the Bethany College Oratorio Society. Soloists that year were soprano Hilda Ohlin, alto Ellen Repp, tenor Hubert Norville, and base Foster Miller. In the history of the society, Dr. Brase's tenure as conductor is unsurpassed in length of service--as he served from 1915 until his retirement following the 1946 season. He had joined the College faculty in 1900; he became the organ accompanist in 1901; and he assumed the position of conductor in 1915. His fine general musicianship and his understanding of the oratoria tradition at Bethany were of great importance in his long record of achievement--which included service as teacher, composer, and conductor.
Page vi Lindquist's dedication: "Dedicated to the members of the Bethany College Oratorio Society who shared with Hagbard Brase the great Lindsborg Oratorio tradition.
Page vii PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Page xi Table of Contents
Page xii 2 Illustrations
- The Bethany College Oratorio Society is pictured in 1915 in the old Ling Auditorium on the campus of Bethany College, during the first year under direction of Dr. Hagbard Brase. The soloists for that year's festival were soprano Ethyl Coover, alto Ida Gardner, tenor Arvid Wallin, and bass Thure Jaderborg. All
but Gardner were members of the Bethany College faculty. At various times Ling Auditorium was also called Bethany College Auditorium and the "Messiah Auditorium. The building was constructed in 1895 and was destroyed by fire in 1946. During that time, it was the home of "Messiah" and other oratorios, as well as the famous "Messiah" Festival, until Presser Hall auditorium became available in the fall of 1928.
- Dr. Brase (center) poses in 1942 in Presser Hall auditorium with the chorus and orchestra of the Bethany College Oratorio Society. Soloists that year were soprano Hilda Ohlin, alto Ellen Repp, tenor Hubert Norville, and base Foster Miller. In the history of the society, Dr. Brase's tenure as conductor is unsurpassed in length of service--as he served from 1915 until his retirement following the 1946 season. He had joined the College faculty in 1900; he became the organ accompanist in 1901; and he assumed the position of conductor in 1915. His fine general musicianship and his understanding of the oratoria tradition at Bethany were of great importance in his long record of achievement--which included service as teacher, composer, and conductor.
I. The Early Years in Sweden, pages 1-12
Page 2 An artist's sketch of the Lutheran church at Råda. Here Hagbard Brase's father, Johannes Brase, was the pastor when Hagbard was born in 1877 and when his sister, Ingegerd, was born the previous year.
Page 4 2 Illustrations
The birthplace of Hagbard Brase at Råda was in the beautiful Swedish province of Västergötland. Here Johannes and Lydia Brase lived with their two children, Hagbard Brase and Ingegerd, until Johannes died from pneumonia when Hagbard was two years old.
A modern-day view of the Råda Church.
Page 5 The home where Hagbard lived in Levene with his widow mother and his sister, Ingegerd.
Page 6 3 Illustrations
Rev. Johannes Brase, Hagbard's father.
Lydia Carolina Brase, Hagbard's mother.
Hagbard and Ingegerd Brase.
Page 8 Skara läroverk pictured in 1900, where Hagbard Brase was a student until 1895.
Page 10 2 Illustrations
Morbror Ernst Jungner.
Moster Sofia Jungner Linde.
Page 11 2 Illustrations
Interior of the Skara school auditorium.
Interior of the Skara cathedral.
Page 4 2 Illustrations
The birthplace of Hagbard Brase at Råda was in the beautiful Swedish province of Västergötland. Here Johannes and Lydia Brase lived with their two children, Hagbard Brase and Ingegerd, until Johannes died from pneumonia when Hagbard was two years old.
A modern-day view of the Råda Church.
Page 5 The home where Hagbard lived in Levene with his widow mother and his sister, Ingegerd.
Page 6 3 Illustrations
Rev. Johannes Brase, Hagbard's father.
Lydia Carolina Brase, Hagbard's mother.
Hagbard and Ingegerd Brase.
Page 8 Skara läroverk pictured in 1900, where Hagbard Brase was a student until 1895.
Page 10 2 Illustrations
Morbror Ernst Jungner.
Moster Sofia Jungner Linde.
Page 11 2 Illustrations
Interior of the Skara school auditorium.
Interior of the Skara cathedral.
II. Music Studies in Stockholm, pages 13-20
Page 17 The Royal Conservatory of Music, Nybrokojvägen 11, Stockholm, Sweden.
Page 18 2 Illustrations
Hagbard Brase
Ingegerd Brase, Hagbard's sister.
Page 19 Hagbard's first home on Bommagatan, Skara.
Page 20 A postcard shows views from Dresden--one of the German cities visited by Hagbard Brase in the summer of 1899.
Page 18 2 Illustrations
Hagbard Brase
Ingegerd Brase, Hagbard's sister.
Page 19 Hagbard's first home on Bommagatan, Skara.
Page 20 A postcard shows views from Dresden--one of the German cities visited by Hagbard Brase in the summer of 1899.
III. Interlude, pages 21-24
IV. Emigration and Early Years in Lindsborg, 1900-1906, pages 25-40
Page 26 2 Illustrations
- Dr. Carl Aaron Swensson (1857-1904) was president of Bethany College at the time the invitation was made across the Atlantic to Dr. Brase, asking him to join the faculty of the College of Music and Fine Art at Bethany College. Swensson had been ordained in 1879 at age 22 as a Lutheran minister of the Augustana Lutheran Synod, and almost immediately he became pastor of the Bethany Lutheran Church in Lindsborg, Kansas. In the sacristy of that church in 1881 he founded the Academy that was to become Bethany College, and from the beginning he served as one of the instructors. Swensson was president of the college from 1889 until his death on February 16, 1904.
- Sven Birger Sandzén, well known artist, was on the Bethany College faculty full-time for 52 years,
1894-1946, plus eight more years as Artists in Residents and Professor Emeritus of Art until his death on
June 14, 1954. He had known Hagbard Brase from boyhood years. Dr. Sandzén began the inquiries which led to Brase joining the Bethany faculty.
Page 28 The Bethany College building which later became known as Old Main was built in the year 1886-87. It loomed large on the landscape of the Smoky Valley in central Kansas and in the minds of Bethany faculty, students and friends. An imposing structure of five stories, it contained a chapel which could seat 850 persons, dormitory housing for 103 students, the library, recitation rooms, a museum and science areas, a large dining hall, and offices. The building was razed in 1968 when it no longer could be renovated for campus needs.
Page 30 The eight-sided Ling or "Messiah" auditorium had been built by the time Brase arrived in Lindsborg, and the excursion trains were becoming popular for travel to the Easter-week Messiah festival oratorios and other musical events.
Page 31 Excursion trains for the Messiah Festival, on the tracks east of Ling or "Messiah" auditorium.
Page 32 The Chapel in Old Main was a beautiful, functional facility when it was built in 1886-fourteen years before Brase arrived in October of 1900.
Page 34 A wedding photograph of Hagbard and Minna Brase. The couple had first met in the summer of 1898 in Sweden, and trans-Atlantic correspondence continued after Brase emigrated to America. Minna Hernwall agreed to join Hagbard Brase in Lindsborg, and they were married in the home of Birger and Frida Sandzén on September 21, 1901--the same day Minna first stepped foot in Lindsborg.
Page 39 The faculty of the College of Music and Fine Art at Bethany College is pictured in Forget-Me-Not, Annual 1902, published by Bethany College. Dr. Carl A. Swensson is in the center. Among those in the third row are Dr. Brase (fourth from left), his close friend Dr. Birger Sandzén (fifth from left), and Prof. Thure Jaderborg (sixth from the left).
Page 40 Hagbard Brase, circa 1901.
- Dr. Carl Aaron Swensson (1857-1904) was president of Bethany College at the time the invitation was made across the Atlantic to Dr. Brase, asking him to join the faculty of the College of Music and Fine Art at Bethany College. Swensson had been ordained in 1879 at age 22 as a Lutheran minister of the Augustana Lutheran Synod, and almost immediately he became pastor of the Bethany Lutheran Church in Lindsborg, Kansas. In the sacristy of that church in 1881 he founded the Academy that was to become Bethany College, and from the beginning he served as one of the instructors. Swensson was president of the college from 1889 until his death on February 16, 1904.
- Sven Birger Sandzén, well known artist, was on the Bethany College faculty full-time for 52 years,
1894-1946, plus eight more years as Artists in Residents and Professor Emeritus of Art until his death on
June 14, 1954. He had known Hagbard Brase from boyhood years. Dr. Sandzén began the inquiries which led to Brase joining the Bethany faculty.
Page 28 The Bethany College building which later became known as Old Main was built in the year 1886-87. It loomed large on the landscape of the Smoky Valley in central Kansas and in the minds of Bethany faculty, students and friends. An imposing structure of five stories, it contained a chapel which could seat 850 persons, dormitory housing for 103 students, the library, recitation rooms, a museum and science areas, a large dining hall, and offices. The building was razed in 1968 when it no longer could be renovated for campus needs.
Page 30 The eight-sided Ling or "Messiah" auditorium had been built by the time Brase arrived in Lindsborg, and the excursion trains were becoming popular for travel to the Easter-week Messiah festival oratorios and other musical events.
Page 31 Excursion trains for the Messiah Festival, on the tracks east of Ling or "Messiah" auditorium.
Page 32 The Chapel in Old Main was a beautiful, functional facility when it was built in 1886-fourteen years before Brase arrived in October of 1900.
Page 34 A wedding photograph of Hagbard and Minna Brase. The couple had first met in the summer of 1898 in Sweden, and trans-Atlantic correspondence continued after Brase emigrated to America. Minna Hernwall agreed to join Hagbard Brase in Lindsborg, and they were married in the home of Birger and Frida Sandzén on September 21, 1901--the same day Minna first stepped foot in Lindsborg.
Page 39 The faculty of the College of Music and Fine Art at Bethany College is pictured in Forget-Me-Not, Annual 1902, published by Bethany College. Dr. Carl A. Swensson is in the center. Among those in the third row are Dr. Brase (fourth from left), his close friend Dr. Birger Sandzén (fifth from left), and Prof. Thure Jaderborg (sixth from the left).
Page 40 Hagbard Brase, circa 1901.
V. To Sweden and Lindsborg Again, pages 41-50
Page 44 Minna Brase and daughters Thorborg and Karin.
Page 45 2 Illustrations
Prof. Oscar Thorsen.
Prof. Oscar Lofgren (standing), Prof. Sigfried Laurin.
Page 48 The Brase children: Thorborg, Yngve, and Karin.
Page 50 2 Illustrations
Hagbard and Minna Brase were among those who greeted Bishop and Mrs. von Scheele of Visby, Sweden, upon their arrival in Lindsborg in November 1901, at the Union Pacific Railroad station. The Scheeles had come to participate in the twentieth anniversary celebration of the founding of Bethany College. The Brases at the time were newlyweds of only six weeks.
Daisies abound on the Bethany College Campus in the early days.
Page 45 2 Illustrations
Prof. Oscar Thorsen.
Prof. Oscar Lofgren (standing), Prof. Sigfried Laurin.
Page 48 The Brase children: Thorborg, Yngve, and Karin.
Page 50 2 Illustrations
Hagbard and Minna Brase were among those who greeted Bishop and Mrs. von Scheele of Visby, Sweden, upon their arrival in Lindsborg in November 1901, at the Union Pacific Railroad station. The Scheeles had come to participate in the twentieth anniversary celebration of the founding of Bethany College. The Brases at the time were newlyweds of only six weeks.
Daisies abound on the Bethany College Campus in the early days.
VI. Hagbard Brase and the Lindsborg "Messiah" Tradition, pages 51-72
Pages 54-55 On November 18 and 19, 1922, in the new American Royal building, the oratorio society appeared for the first time in Kansas City. It was the seventh time that renditions were given outside Lindsborg, including the four travel performances in central Kansas during the first year of 1882. Except for the first year, Dr. Brase was the conductor of the oratorio society when it traveled--including the twelfth time in 1945. In 1922 the Kansas City rave reviews were outstanding, and the society was invited back to the city in three subsequent years. After 1945 it was not until April 1984 that the organization traveled for a twelfth time, when a "Messiah" rendition was presented for the first time in Topeka by the Bethany College Oratorio Society.
Page 56 The Ling or "Messiah" auditorium was the third home for the oratorio society, and it was replaced in 1929 by Presser Hall auditorium.
Page 59 Presser Hall includes the large auditorium still in use, facilities for the Bethany College music department, and numerous other academic and administrative offices.
Page 63 The Bethany College Oratorio Society is under the baton of Dr. Hagbard Brase in Presser Hall auditorium.
Page 64 Two Illustrations
Dr. Pihlblad often spoke about Bethany College, including its musical traditions on regional radio stations.
Dr. Emory Lindquist, president of Bethany College is at the WDAF radio microphone on Palm Sunday of 1945, while Kansas Governor Andrew F. Schoeppel awaits his turn in the background.
Page 66 In November 1945 as part of the Salvation Army's 80th anniversary held in Kansas City, the Bethany College Oratorio Society sang excerpts of "Messiah" in the Municipal Auditorium of Kansas City.
Page 70 More than one national magazine printed this photograph of Dr. Brase as the Bethany Oratorio Society conductor.
Page 56 The Ling or "Messiah" auditorium was the third home for the oratorio society, and it was replaced in 1929 by Presser Hall auditorium.
Page 59 Presser Hall includes the large auditorium still in use, facilities for the Bethany College music department, and numerous other academic and administrative offices.
Page 63 The Bethany College Oratorio Society is under the baton of Dr. Hagbard Brase in Presser Hall auditorium.
Page 64 Two Illustrations
Dr. Pihlblad often spoke about Bethany College, including its musical traditions on regional radio stations.
Dr. Emory Lindquist, president of Bethany College is at the WDAF radio microphone on Palm Sunday of 1945, while Kansas Governor Andrew F. Schoeppel awaits his turn in the background.
Page 66 In November 1945 as part of the Salvation Army's 80th anniversary held in Kansas City, the Bethany College Oratorio Society sang excerpts of "Messiah" in the Municipal Auditorium of Kansas City.
Page 70 More than one national magazine printed this photograph of Dr. Brase as the Bethany Oratorio Society conductor.
VII. Singing the "St. Matthew Passion" and Other Sacred Song, pages 73--84
VII. Singing the "St. Matthew Passion" and Other Sacred Song, pages 73--84
Page 79 The Bethany College A Capella Choir was organized by Hagbard Brase in 1935, and the first concert tour was taken by the choir shown above in the spring of 1937.
Page 81 The interior of Bethany Lutheran Church, shortly after 1904.
Page 81 The interior of Bethany Lutheran Church, shortly after 1904.
VIII. Conducting, Teaching and Composing, pages 85-100
IX. Christian Thought, Faith and Music, pages 101-108
Page 106 Dr. and Mrs. Hagbard Brase in later years.
X. Family and Friends, pages 109-124
Page 111 Dr. and Mrs. Brase celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary with the following family members. Left to right, front row: Katrina Bengtson Hock, (the dog is named "Toy,") and Barbara Lofgren Humphrey. Second row, seated: Edward Freeburg, Thorborg Russell, Hagbard Brase, Minna Brase, Olga Hernwall (sister-in-law), John Russell. Back row, standing: Ralph Russell, Sonia Bengtson Willey, Ralph Bengtson, Karin Freeburg, Arnold Freeburg, Ingrid Lofgren, Richard Lofgren, Gretchen Freeburg Hoyt, John Hoyt.
Page 112 Yngve Brase, who was not pictured at the 40th anniversary (previous page), is shown with his family in about 1952, in Denver. Left to right are: Patricia, Sonja, Stephen, Mattie, Paul, Yngve, Kristen.
Page 120 Among the colleagues of Hagbard Brase are these Bethany College faculty members pictured in 1925, including the front row from the left : Dean Oscar Lofgren, Dr. Brase, Dean Emil O. Deere, President Ernst Pihlblad, (Oscar Thorsen is immediately behind Dr. Pihlblad), Birger Sandzén, Rev. O. L. Larson, and Prof. Linus Bohander. [They are posed in front of the Bethany College Library.]
Page 121 A view of the Brase garden in Lindsborg.
Page 124 4 Illustrations
Photo views of Hagbard Brase through the years in America. [1 portrait, 2 outside in a Lindsborg, 1 of him curled up in a small rock formation away from Lindsborg]
Page 112 Yngve Brase, who was not pictured at the 40th anniversary (previous page), is shown with his family in about 1952, in Denver. Left to right are: Patricia, Sonja, Stephen, Mattie, Paul, Yngve, Kristen.
Page 120 Among the colleagues of Hagbard Brase are these Bethany College faculty members pictured in 1925, including the front row from the left : Dean Oscar Lofgren, Dr. Brase, Dean Emil O. Deere, President Ernst Pihlblad, (Oscar Thorsen is immediately behind Dr. Pihlblad), Birger Sandzén, Rev. O. L. Larson, and Prof. Linus Bohander. [They are posed in front of the Bethany College Library.]
Page 121 A view of the Brase garden in Lindsborg.
Page 124 4 Illustrations
Photo views of Hagbard Brase through the years in America. [1 portrait, 2 outside in a Lindsborg, 1 of him curled up in a small rock formation away from Lindsborg]
XI. The Years In Retrospect, pages 125-131
Page 128 Less than a year before retiring as director, Hagbard with his wife Minna traveled to Kansas City by train in 1945 with the Bethany College Oratorio Society--to present "Messiah" excerpts in Municipal Auditorium as part of the Salvation Army 80th Anniversary observance.
* * *
THE DUSTJACKET
THE DUSTJACKET
* * *
"Let Us Remember Them"
* * *
Swedes: TheWayTheyWere
~ restoring lost local histories ~
reconnecting past to present
* * *
All color photography throughout Swedes: The Way They Were is by Fran Cochran unless otherwise indicated, or obviously concluded it is not.
Copyright © 2022 www.swedesthewaytheywere.org. All rights reserved.
* * *
"Let Us Remember Them"
* * *
Swedes: TheWayTheyWere
~ restoring lost local histories ~
reconnecting past to present
* * *
All color photography throughout Swedes: The Way They Were is by Fran Cochran unless otherwise indicated, or obviously concluded it is not.
Copyright © 2022 www.swedesthewaytheywere.org. All rights reserved.
