Jeannette Durno

Jeannette Durno (July 12, 1876 – September 5, 1963) was a Canadian-born American pianist.

Jeannette Durno
A white woman with her dark hair in an updo, wearing a dress with a low neckline that exposes her shoulders. She is looking downward.
Jeannette Durno, from a 1908 publication
Born
Jeannette St. John

(1876-07-12)July 12, 1876
Walkerton, Ontario
DiedSeptember 5, 1963(1963-09-05) (aged 87)
Los Angeles, California
NationalityCanadian, American
Other namesJeannette Durno-Collins (during her marriage)
OccupationPianist

Early life

Jeannette St. John was born in Walkerton, Ontario, the daughter of William Brethour St. John and Margaret Legge St. John. She was adopted by an aunt and uncle as a little girl, and raised in Rockford, Illinois with the surname Durno. She attended Rockford College.[1] She studied piano in Vienna, with Theodor Leschetizky; she also trained as a vocalist.[2][3]

Career

Jeannette Durno was a frequent guest soloist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.[2][4] She toured in the United States and Canada, mostly in the midwest, but also appearing in New York and Boston.[5] She played in Los Angeles at the Biennial Festival of the National Federation of Music Clubs in 1915.[6] She made some piano rolls of her performances of works by Liszt, Debussy, Grieg, and Chopin. She was known especially for her interpretations of Chopin.[7][8] "Among the younger pianists of the middle western states few more notable are to be found that Miss Jeannette Durno of Chicago," explained one publication in 1899.[3]

She also taught piano in Chicago.[9][10] Among her students were Canadian pianists Evelyn Eby,[11] Neil Chotem, and Lyell Gustin.[12] She also taught music pedagogy to piano teachers.[13] Frank La Forge dedicated a 1911 composition titled "Romance" to Durno.[14] She was active in the Musicians Club of Women.[15]

"To me, a pianist lacking spontaneity is uninteresting," Durno told an interviewer in 1920. "Therefore it is one of my especial aims, both in my own playing and in my teaching, to preserve freshness and avoid the obviously studied effort, which is unfortunately noticeable in so much piano playing."[16]

Personal life

Jeannette Durno married her manager, Dunstan Collins, in 1901. They divorced in 1910.[17] She was a champion amateur golfer in Chicago.[18] She died in 1963, aged 87 years, in Los Angeles, California. Her grave is with that of her pianist sister, Blanche St. John Baker, in Glendale, California.

References
  1. "Jeannette Durno to be Heard". Chicago Tribune. September 12, 1897. p. 43. Retrieved December 9, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. "Jeannette Durno: America's Brilliant Pianist". The Musical Monitor. 4: 228. March 1915.
  3. "Miss Jeannette Durno". Music: 80–81. November 1899.
  4. "Jeannette Durno Has Success Both in U.S. and European Tours". Muncie Evening Press. February 13, 1923. p. 4. Retrieved December 9, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Jeannette Durno". Musical Courier. 43: 37. October 16, 1901.
  6. "Notes on the N. F. M. C." The Music News. 7: 28. May 28, 1915.
  7. "Jeannette Durno Coming" (PDF). St. Paul Globe. January 12, 1899. p. 2. Retrieved December 8, 2019 – via Chronicling America.
  8. "Jeannette Durno's Recital". Musical America: 61. May 6, 1916.
  9. "Jeannette Durno Studio Notes". Music News. 14: 13. November 17, 1922.
  10. "Jeannette Durno-Collins' Pupils". Musical Courier. 50: 43. January 25, 1905.
  11. "Bedford and Eby". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  12. "About Lyell Gustin". Gustin House. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  13. James Millikin University (1929). Millidek. Millikin University Staley Library. Decatur, IL. pp. 64.
  14. "Romance (La Forge, Frank)". IMSLP. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  15. "Musicians Club of Women". Music News. 14: 17. December 1, 1922.
  16. "'There Is No Halting Stage in Art' Says Jeannette Durno, Chicago Pianist and Teacher". Saskatoon Daily Star. March 13, 1920. p. 8. Retrieved December 9, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. "Married to Reform Him". Brazil Daily Times. March 11, 1910. p. 5. Retrieved December 9, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. "Jeannette Durno Wins Trophies as Golfing Expert". Musical America: 33. July 29, 1916.
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