Evening star., 1925-07-05

lltn III w dSHluElOu NI6ll
the town was small. He was
Il Il a musician. Leaving the Ma
rine Band, in which he
played u years, he founded Donch's S
Band and Donchs Orchestra. News
accounts OF hundreds of receptions
ruld: Music was furnished by Donch' S
Orchestra" You saw DonCh's Band on
parade. When you went on picnics
IL White House Landing and Gly-
mont and in long-gone days at Mar
shall Hall Donch'S Band, or orches-
ira, played for you. Henry Donch
was of the orchestra of Ford's The
ater and played there the night Booth
shot Lincoln. He played in orches-
Iras of other old theaters. Donch's S
String Quartet was notable.
lie taught music at Georgetown
College for 90 years, had much to do
with the progress of st. Matthew'S
choir at Christmas and Easter, and
~'as respected among musicians for
mis- ability in arranging music for
orchestra, band and choir
The audiences of Henry Donch
have dwindled, but some of you re
member him when he was middle-aged
and active, and thousands of chill
dren and grandchildren of his friends
have heard their elders tell of him.
The Rambler believes that stories
est many citizens. He is conscious
that they have a flavor or sound of
other times, that they are Old-fash-
toned, but until somebody stops him
he is going to write about persons and
things of old Washington, even
though the subjects cannot be classed
n vital questions. The country IS
full of questions of vital impor-
1ance." No man speaks of anything
~, &c. n
portanCe." Every club, society, asso-
citation, hears addresses on vital
questions" Perhaps at this moment
the General Uplift Association of the
World, incorporated under laws of the
State of Bunk to change human ma
rure, and whose charter says: 1T is
the object of this association TO make
the American people a respectable
race" is having a luncheon and Mrs.
Smith is reading a paper on the vital
question. How Can a Man With
False Teeth Eat Pigs in Comfort"
man is bounded by SO many queS-
lions of vital importance"-each
more vital than the other-that he has
no time to hoe his potatoes.
Henry Donch has not been dead
long. He was So when the last call
came. Among death notices in The
Star, March 10, 1919, was this:
"Donch-Monday March 10, 1919, at
$50 am. at his residence, SOS H
street northwest, Henry, beloved hus-
band of the late Elise Donch, in his
S5th year. Funeral from his late resi-
dence on Wednesday, March u, at
2:30. Friends and relatives invited to
attend. Interment at Rock Creek
Cemetery. Limousine funeral. Balti-
more, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh pa
pers please copy.)"
X
HENRY DONCH was born in Hesse-
Cassel in 1884 and came to the
United States in 1853 He adopted
Philadelphia as his home and made
application for American citizenship.
He did not stay long in Philadelphia,
for he was a musician in the Naval
Academy Band at Annapolis when he
was 21, and perhaps he Joined that
band when younger. Il was soon after
going to Annapolis that he was mar
ried TO Elise Brand, born in Gutenberg,
Germany, and who was with her par
ents in Annapolis.
Henry Donch was organlst in the
chapel of the Naval Academy. To
illustrate his facility with musical in
struments the Rambler has this:
Henry Donch played various wind and
string instruments, but had not play
ed the saxophone. The leader of the
Naval Academy Band-the leaders
name was Pfeiffer-had need for a
saXophone player. Musician Donch
was given saxophone in the morn
ing and that evening he played it in
the band concert. The inference is
that he played it to the satisfaction of
Leader Pfeiffer
Before the Civil War Henry Donch
enlisted in the Marine Band. l can
not give, you the date, and l ought to
phone Will Santelmann for the rec
ord, but feel that you will not perish
for lack of that information. At any
rate, it was before the war" Scala
Francis Scala, l believe-was the
leader. His instrument in the band
was the clarinet, sometimes-often-
called "clarionet." the name of which
descends from "clarus" through the
French "clarinette," a diminutive for
"clarine," very old-fashioned cattle
bell.
After the Civil War Mr.. Donch-
Prof. Donch-formed his band and or
chestra, and for 40 years it was a mu-
sic company which was respected |
The Rambler almost wrote that it
was an institution. but he is tired
of hearing everything that has re-
manned popular for a few years called !
an institution. f." The word is nearly |
as OVerwOrked as national" When |
a man starts something which likely |
will not be heard of two squares from |
it's base, he calls it the national" this !
or that. Those of you who know of !
Donch's Orchestra and DonCh's Band !
know that they had local fame.