Asahel Benham

Life

Born: 15 December 1754, New Hartford, Connecticut

Died: October 1803, Wallingford, Connecticut

Biography Asahel Benham was a teacher in common schools, singing school teacher, and composer of music. His first compositions were published in Oliver Brownson's Select Harmony in 1783. Benham published two tunebooks himself: Federal Harmony in 1790 and Social Harmony in 1798. Uncredited works in these two books are now considered to have been written by Benham (Kroeger 1995).

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List of choral works

A. LISTED BY TITLE

1. Psalm-tunes

• Babylon
• Brandford
• Complaint
• Crucifixion
• Silver Spring
• Trumbull
• Wallingsford
• Yarmouth

2. Anthems

• Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty
• Redemption

B. LISTED BY FIRST LINE

• Hark! Hark! Glad tidings charm our ears
• Were I in heaven without my God

 
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Publications

• Benham, Asahel. 1790. Federal Harmony: Containing in a Familiar Manner, the Rudiments of Psalmody, Together with a Collection of Church Music (Most of Which are Entirely New). New Haven, Connecticut: Abel Morse. 58 pp.
• Benham, Asahel. 1798. Social Harmony: Containing First, The Rudiments of Psalmody Made Easy, Second, A Collection of Modern Music, Calcaulated for the Use of Singing Schools and Worshipping Assemblies. Wallingford, Connecticut: Author. 56 pp.

References

• Kroeger, Karl. 1995. Two Connecticut Composers: The Collected Works of Asahel Benham and Merit Woodruff. New York: Garland. 166 pp.

External links

Works by Asahel Benham in the Petrucci Music Library (IMSLP)