Cassius Clement Stearns 1838-1910

[Northcote Lea]

Cassius Clement Stearns (1838-1910) was an organist and composer from Worcester, Massachusetts.  His output included mass settings and other church music, piano studies and songs.  The choir of St Magnus the Martyr, London has just issued a CD ('Inexplicable Splendour') that includes two movements from his Vespers in G (Laudate Dominus and Beatus Vir).  Any further information about C.C. Stearns and his music would be much appreciated.

[eschiss1]

Sibley Library digitized his Mass in A major, and that together with a small amount of genealogical information can be found at IMSLP, though more is useful of course... see IMSLP link.

[Northcote Lea]

The list of C.C. Stearns' compositions covers three pages in 'The universal handbook of musical literature. Practical and complete guide to all musical publications' (Volume 28), Franz Pazdírek (ed.), Vienna, 1900.  Stearns continued to publish works until his death in 1910.  However, I cannot find any recordings of his music other than the two short items on the new CD I mentioned.

[Northcote Lea]

C.C. Stearns' Mass in D has also been digitized and can be found here: http://bit.ly/1xYYzVy

Stearns appears to have been brought up in the Methodist Church, was married in the Episcopal Church and composed church music mainly for the Roman Catholic Church.  A biographical entry says that he was organist and director in several church choirs, presumably in Worcester, Massachusetts or Boston.  Does anyone know where he served as organist?

[Northcote Lea]

Here is some further information about C.C. Stearns from ''History of the Oread Collegiate Institute, Worcester, Mass. (1849-1881): With Biographical Sketches', Martha Burt Wright and Anne M. Bancroft,  Tuttle, Morehouse & Taylor Company, 1905

"Prof. C.C. Stearns was born in Ashburnham, Mass., August 23, 1838, and was the son of Charles and Rebecca Greene (Robbins) Stearns.  He went to Worcester to live in 1859, and made that city his home until 1893.  During that time he taught music in Worcester and was organist and director of music in a number of Protestant churches.  He taught instrumental music at the Oread [Collegiate Institute, Worcester, Mass] from 1864 to 1868. He was for many years one of the members of the Board of Government of the Worcester Festival.  In 1877 he was one of the Conductors of the Festival, at which time a Mass composed by him was sung.  He has also been Conductor of the Westboro Musical Society and of the North Brookfield Musical Society.

He has written many musical criticisms and reviews of musical work, and has also lectured on music.  His musical compositions number many hundreds, his speciality being church music, written for both the Protestant and the Catholic church.  Of special excellence among his choir pieces are the following: 'Praise the Lord Jehovah', 'Blessed is the Man (Psalm I)', 'Great is the Lord', 'How Beautiful Upon the Mountains', 'Sing and Rejoice', 'Benedictus', 'God is our Hope and Strength' and 'Glad Tidings of Great Joy' all published by the White-Smith Music Publishing Co.  Of his compositions of secular music his 'Scenes from Nature: Six Musical Sketches' is worthy of special mention.

On October 23, 1872, he was married to Miss Gertrude Bottomly of Leicester, Mass.  They have no children. Since Professor Stearns left Worcester in 1893, he has resided in Santa Barbara, Cal. and Asheville, N.C., and is living at present in Sharon, Mass."