William Henry Fry (1813-1864) was born in Philadelphia to William and Anne (nee Fleeson) Fry. William Fry was the publisher of the city’s National Gazette in Philadelphia. Fry grew up in a household that appreciated the arts. His musical talents became apparent at an early age when he taught himself to play piano. When he was fourteen years old, he wrote his first overture. He composed three more by the time he turned twenty. While Fry graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1830, he studied with local musicians, as well as Leopold Meignen, a graduate of the Paris Conservatory. In 1836, Fry was named secretary of the Philadelphia Philharmonic Society. During his lifetime, Fry composed music in several genres from symphonies to sacred choral works to that which brought him local fame: grand opera.

 

As a teenager Fry had attended local performances of the French Opera Company (of New Orleans). This left a lasting impression on him, and he went on to compose four opera during his short lifetime. The first was Christians and Pagans (circa 1838), which he never completed. The second, Aurelia the Vestal (1841), which was set to a libretto by his brother, Joseph, was never staged. The third time was the charm for Fry with his next work, Leonora (1845), which premiered at Philadelphia’s own Chestnut Street Theatre in June of 1845. It enjoyed a twelve-performance run. This made Fry the nation’s first composer of grand opera.

 

Fry’s final opera, Notre Dame de Paris, or Esmeralda (1863), was also a success. It enjoyed several performances at the Academy of Music in the spring of 1864.

 

In addition to working as a successful composer, Fry also served as the New York Times’s music critic and political editor from 1852 to 1864. Fry died in December 1864 after a bout with tuberculosis.