John Joseph Braham, Sr.

John Joseph Braham, Sr. (1847 – October 28, 1919) was an Anglo-American musical theater conductor and composer who introduced the works of Gilbert and Sullivan to the United States and composed some of the earliest original orchestral scores for silent film.

Braham emigrated from England to America as a child. As a teenager, he toured as a violinist. After this he became a conductor and music director at New York and Boston theatres. In 1879, he conducted the first American production of a Savoy opera, H.M.S. Pinafore and became associated with Gilbert and Sullivan works for the next decade. He also conducted a number of other musical theatre works and at music halls. In 1913 and 1914, he composed musical scores for silent films, including In the Land of the Head Hunters.

Braham was born in 1847 in England to musician Joseph Braham (1827–1877). The Brahams emigrated from England in the 1850s. His brothers were William, Albert and Harry, and his uncle (not his brother) was David Braham, composer for Harrigan & Hart.

In 1862, at the age of 14, Braham began earning his living as a violinist in New York vaudeville and music hall houses and theaters. His father served as the music director for Tony Pastor's Opera House on the Bowery, where Braham may have played in the orchestra. After touring for a few years as a violin virtuoso, Braham accepted the post of musical director of Pike's Opera House and subsequently at other New York theatres. During the 1870s he worked as a musical director and conductor in Boston, Massachusetts (Adelphi Theatre, Howard Athenaeum, Boston Museum Orchestra), as well as at surrounding summer resorts. He composed popular songs in many genres, the earliest known copyright in 1871. In the 1870s, he also began to compose scores for the musical stage. For example, in 1876, The Era reported that his comic opera Evangeline pleased Boston audiences with its catchy melodies.

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