Frederick Stanislaus
Alias: Stanislaus Smith
Life
Born: 1844
Died: 1891
Biography
Frederick Stanislaus was born Stanislaus Smith in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, England, the son of carpet weaver Henry Smith. He studied violin as a child and was a member of “Dr. Mark and His Little Men,” a group of talented boys taken on tour by German born Dr. Bertram Mark in 1855. The Worcester Chronicle reported that Stanislaus Smith “was dressed as a sailor and played on the violin. He sang, ‘Cheer, boys, cheer’, ‘There’s a good time coming,’ and ‘Let us all be happy, boys,’ with very appropriate action, the band joining in the choruses; and as he hitched up his trousers and rolled in his gait, in true Jack Tar style, and took the lead in the laughing chorus, he was warmly applauded by crowds of the townspeople who knew him.” In 1860-62, he was a pianist touring with Irish comedian, J. H. Ogden. He became organist of Kidderminster Parish Church, at Bartlebury, and was conductor at a number of opera companies. In 1868, he was listed as the conductor for the Royal English Comic Opera. He adopted the name “Frederick Stanislaus” as his stage name. He spent some time in America as musical director and conductor of Opera-bouffe at New York’s Wallack’s Theatre. Returning to England, he was director at the Prince’s Theatre and then at Theatre Royal, Manchester. He then became musical director at Prince of Wales Theatre, London. He spent time in Australia, conducted touring companies of Gilbert & Sullivan, and was in demand as accompanist. He was a partner of a well-known comic performer Miss Fanny Robina. He died in Hammersmith, London. His compositions include an opera, music to several pantomimes, songs, and part-songs.
View the Wikipedia article on Frederick Stanislaus.
List of choral works
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Publications
External websites:
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