Percy Grainger Research Paper

George Percy Grainger was born on July 8, 1882 in Brighton, Australia. He was a composer and pianist who used the stage name Percy Aldridge Grainger. His father, John Harry Grainger, was a successful architect who emigrated from London, England in 1876. Percy’s mother, Rosa Annie Aldridge, was born on July 3, 1861 in Adelaide, Australia. Her parents were in the hotel business and were also English immigrants. During the early parts of Percy’s parents’ marriage, his mother received syphilis from his father. When Percy was born, his mother would not touch him until he was five years old to be sure that she did not pass the disease on to him. John Harry decided to take a sea voyage to improve his health in 1890. However, his marriage with his wife ended at this same time and he was never to be with his family again.

Percy Grainger

This brought him great wealth and Grainger used it to settle his mother in White Plains, New York. However, Rosa Grainger’s health took a turn for the worst and she committed suicide in 1922 by jumping from a building that Percy’s manager, Antonia Sawyer, worked. According to a letter that Rosa left her son, her state of mind was the result of all the accusations of their intimate relationship being incestuous. Grainger put this letter in a bottle and wore it as a necklace for many years. Also in 1922, Grainger made his first folk-music trip to Scandinavia, specifically Denmark. This trip gave a large contribution to his financial stability.

In November of 1926, Grainger met a Swedish artist and poet, Ella Viola Ström and they quickly fell in love. On August 9, 1928, Grainger gave a concert on the stage of the Hollywood Bowl. The concert consisted of 20,000 audience members, an orchestra of 126 musicians, and an a cappella choir, who sang his new work, To a Nordic Princess, dedicated to Ella. The two lovebirds were wed following the