From the Feature Page of the East
Orange Record, Thursday, September 11, 1958.
The Gerrish Family of
Orange have sung and played instruments together ever since the
children were very young. As they gave a concert in Wilmington,
Delaware, from left to right, seated: Mrs. Marion Gerrish,
Catherine, Professor John O. Gerrish; and standing: James, Mary
and John. Recently they presented Music in the Home
as part of Fine Arts Week at Centenary College for Women.
Good Music is as Easy as the Bad
Everyone hears music in his surroundings
almost as soon as he is born. This music might just as well
be the best that we can get as any other, is the principle
on which Professor John O. Gerrish bases his philosophy.
Gerrish and his wife, and their four
children: John 18, Mary 16, James 15 and Catherine 8, live at
North Essex Avenue, in Orange.
Ever since the children were small, there
has been an atmosphere in their home of the best music, created
by the masters. Good musicians visit the Gerrish family
frequently.
Through his work, Gerrish comes in contact
with the top in the music world, both contemporary and ancient.
He is professor of music at Newark State College, lecturer at
Caldwell College for Women and organist at the Congregational
Church of East Orange. Previously he taught in the public schools
of Malone, New York, and of Nutley, New Jersey. Both he and his
wife are graduates of Potsdam State Teachers College in New York.
The repertoire of the family includes much
obscure music of the past, going back to the Gregorian chants.
They perform works by such artists as Machaut (1300); Binchois
(1400), Bach (1685), Hindemith (1935) and Gerrish, himself. Just
recently, his latest work was published. A Virgin Most
Pure is a modern example of a medieval text written for a
three-part chorus of treble voices with solo and piano
accompaniment.
Because so much of the music they perform
is from earlier periods, they use instruments from those times.
Very popular with them is the recorder, forerunner of the flute.
It was popular through Bach and Handel, but the flute drove it
out. Gerrish claims modern instruments are derived through the
Survival of the Loudest process. The recorder comes
in five different sizes, all of which the Gerrishes own and play.
In addition to the enjoyment gained through
the music, they learn history, mathematics and languages. History
is learned through knowledge of the times of the composers whom
they perform; mathematics, through the technical knowledge of
music techniques; languages, through singing in middle French,
French, Latin, German, and Spanish.
Although they perform little during the
fall winter and summer because of the childrens schooling,
they have presented concerts for the American Organ Guild and for
the music faculty at Wilmington, Delaware. They have also sung
for Munn Avenue Church in East Orange, St. Johns Church in
Orange and Forest Hill Presbyterian Church. Recently they took
part in Fine Arts Program at Centenary College for Women in
Hackettstown. They presented Music in the Home, which
included music written for the recorder and a series of medieval
songs. Also taking part in the Fine Arts Program were the
Julliard String Quartet and Norman Dello Joio, American composer.
The Gerrishes spend their summers in
Vermont, performing quite frequently. At Stowe, Vermont, they
have presented concerts at Cor Unum, the home of the
famous Trapp family.