User:Haruo/"Charles D. Blake"

Charles Dupee Blake (Sep. 13, 1847 — Nov. 23, 1903 ) was an American(?) composer. One of his best-known pieces is Clayton's Grand March. There seems to be some consensus around its having been published in 1877 or 1878. Given the popularity of his music, the dearth of information on him as a person seems odd. If you know any properly documented stuff about him (or the actual date of first publication of Clayton's Grand March), please edit this or leave it on the talk page. If I can come up with such data, I'll move it to the main Wikipedia.

Here's a paragraph or two about him from a biographical dictionary dated 1884 or shortly thereafter, I think, but I don't have the exact citation info:
 * Blake, Charles D., a popular American composer, was born at Walpole, Mass., in 1847. At the age of seven years he commenced the study of music, and at ten produced his first composition, after which his progress was very rapid. He has been a pupil of J. K. Paine, J. C. D. Parker, Ryder, and Pond. Mr. Blake aims only at producing music for the masses, in which he has been successful to an unusual degree. His compositions number about three thousand, a large part of which are for the piano, but including many songs. He has also written some larger works, one of which is the " Light-Keeper's Daughter" (libretto by Geo. M. Vickers), produced for the first time at the American Casino, Boston, June 12, 1882. He is at present (1884) a resident of Boston, where he is connected with the music publishing house of White, Smith & Co.