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Harold Frederick Davis was born in Neiafu, Vava'u,
Tonga, on January 15, 1909 to Harold Edgeworth Davis, and American
doctor and dentist from San Francisco, and Minna Mathilde Sanft of
Tonga whose father had emigrated from Germany as a young man to marry
the daughter of a Tongan chief. The Davises lived not only in
Tonga but also in Apia, Samoa and in Fiji. In Samoa they were
blessed with their second child, Ida Eloise, and their third child,
Frank Taylor, who died before his first birthday. In 1914 Harold
Edgeworth died suddenly in Fiji when Fred was only five years
old. Minna and the children then went back to Tonga where she
later married Alfred Schultz and there Fred's half-sister, Ruby
Martha, was born. Fred grew up surrounded by family and there
are many stories of their good times together.
At fourteen, Fred was sent to school in New Zealand and continued
in school there through pharmaceutical college and
apprenticeship. But while studying violin and voice and taking
music classes at the University of Auckland, Fred's love of music
became so strong that he knew music was what he wanted for his life's
work. His first conducting experience was as Sunday School
chorister in the Auckland branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day-Saints where he had been baptized at age 20 in 1929.
Later he was asked to take over the church choir. A friend
presented him with his first baton which he had fashioned out of the
mast of the first "Southern Cross", a missionary ship owned
by the Church of England that was being dismantled, and spoke these
prophetic words, "May you and this baton take the light of music
to countless thousands, just as the "Southern Cross" took
the light of Christ to the Solomon Islands and New Hebrides."
In 1934, Fred decided to go to the U.S. He was already a
citizen because his American father had registered Fred and Ida in the
U.S. Embassy. On September 3rd, he left New Zealand by ship and
after stops in Rarotonga and Tahiti arrived in San Francisco feeling
lonely and homesick. He visited there with his grandmother Davis
and then went on to Los Angeles. The U.S., unfortunately, was
deeply involved in the Great Depression and the going was tough for
Fred. He talked of having to pawn his violin several times and
actually getting down to his last 50 cents, which he used to buy
himself and a friend a "blue plate special" dinner.
But his faith was in the Lord. That very night a knock at the
door by a man looking for someone else resulted in a job singing and
conducting in a musical play in the old opera house on North
Broadway. He also sang with the Russian-Latvian Singers and
conducted some of their concerts as they toured around the
country. For this job Fred took on the name "Dimitri
Ivanoff" and grew a goatee.
In 1936, while on tour in New York, a friend encouraged him to move
to Salt Lake City where Fred's sister Ida lived. One of the
first things he did there was to organize the Salt Lake Symphonic
Choir which led to his appointment as musical director the city's
summer light opera performances, his first experience with conducting
an orchestra. He was also offered the directorship of the Swanee
Singers, Utah's largest male chorus. On December 19, 1938, the
Salt Lake City Opera Company was organized with Fred as
director. In 1939, the Greek Orthodox Church in Salt Lake City
asked Fred to organize and conduct a Greek choir. After one
service, Athenagoras, head of the worldwide Greek Orthodox church,
complimented Fred on his wonderful choir.
Also in 1939, Fred was asked by the First Presidency of the Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to organize the Temple Square
Mission Choir, which would provide music for the Sunday afternoon
services in the Mormon Tabernacle with Alexander Schreiner as his
organist. It was the Temple Square Mission Choir that began the
first association of Fred and Marianne Ethel Madsen who was to become
Mrs. Frederick Davis. Marianne's wonderful soprano voice led
Fred to use her in all his groups as soloist. On January 17,
1941, Marianne and Fred were married by President Stephen L. Richards
in the Salt Lake Temple. Throughout World War II, Fred did a
great deal of USO work to entertain the troops and was given a
commendation for this efforts.
In October of 1941, Fred organized the Salt Lake Philharmonic
Choir, which concertized around the city and on radio with soloists
that included soprano Dorothy Maynor and Metropolitan Opera basso,
Ezio Pinza. The Philharmonic Choir under Fred's direction won
critical acclaim for Utah's first complete performance of Verdi's
"Requiem," the first performance of Beethoven's very
difficult "Missa Solemnis" and the first performance of
Bach's immortal "Mass in B Minor". But in 1950, at the
urging of Marianne's brother, Paul, Fred, Marianne and their two
girls, Pat and Becky, decided to move to Southern California. On
his leaving Salt Lake, the Salt Lake Tribune wrote "Utah Loses
Notable Musical Pioneer. . .Truly, Director Frederick Davis and his
idealistic-minded choir are modern-day pioneers in the realm of really
great music. . .The "Missa Solemnis" was considered by many
as a great achievement in the musical history of the west. . .Mr.
Davis has contributed enormously to the musical welfare and
development of Utah residents."
Once in Southern California, Fred organized the Southern California
Oratorio Society, which presented Handel's "Messiah" in the
Philharmonic Auditorium in downtown Los Angeles that year. In
1951, Fred was asked to be the director of the Wilshire Ward Choir in
Los Angeles, the director of the Ellis-Orpheus Club, oldest musical
organization in Southern California, and the director of the Los
Angeles Women's Lyric Club. Then in the summer of 1951, Fred was
asked to organize and conduct a 300-voice Mormon choir for the annual
"Our America" program at the Hollywood Bowl. The
response was gratifying as the Mormon Choir of Southern California
made its debut before 8,000 people at the Hollywood Bowl. In
April of the next year, the choir was invited to sing again at the
Hollywood Bowl at the Easter Sunrise Services before some 20,000
people. The success of the Hollywood Bowl appearance, followed
by other concerts and the NBC broadcasts led to suggestions of
organizing the choir on a permanent basis. The Mormon Choir,
later known as the Southern California Mormon Choir, appeared
with President Dwight D. Eisenhower at the Hollywood Bowl in
1954.
In 1956, the choir gave their first performance of Handel's
"Messiah" in the Philharmonic Auditorium and appeared with
Wagnerian tenor Lauritz Melchior of the Metropolitan Opera, again in
the Philharmonic. In 1960, the choir was invited to sing at the
Mormon Church's General Conference in Salt Lake City. At the
conclusion, Church President David O. Mckay greeted Fred with tears in
his eyes in appreciation. On December 6, 1964, the choir gave
the "Messiah" for the first time at the newly completed
Music Center in Los Angeles. The choir had become a Founder
Member, donating $25,000 to the Music Center building fund. The
choir presented "Messiah" at the LA Music Center around
Christmas for many years. This tradition continues today.
In 1967, the choir gave 6 concerts in Hawaii and in 1980 went to
Israel. Fred notes, "Perhaps 1980 will always remain the
climax and spiritual peak of all our experiences, for this year saw
the realization of another cherished dream - to visit and make music
in Israel, the land of our Savior." They found a great
outpouring of enthusiasm and love of music from the Jewish people.
When the choir was first organized Fred told them, "Of all the
means of musical expression, singing is the most vital and
thrilling. The performance of any work must be in terms of
inward singing. The playing of the piano, or organ, or the
production of voice, are merely the outer manifestations of an inner
experience." For Fred, song, and all music began in the
heart. Choir members will always remember his cue to remind them
of this as they began their programs - his hand placed over his heart.
After retiring from the directorship of the Southern California
Mormon Choir in 1982, Fred continued to conduct the Los Angeles
Women's Lyric Club and the Ellis-Orpheus Club. He also continued
to direct the North Hollywood Ward Choir, arrange and compose music,
and teach voice well into his eighties.
Marianne, his wife of 53 years, died in 1994. Fred continued
to live in his home in North Hollywood, California. He leaves
two daughters, Rebecca Davis and Patricia Delgado, four grandchildren,
and three great grandchildren. He was a faithful and loving
husband, father and grandfather. He will be greatly missed by
all that knew and loved him.
O loving Father, just and kind,
In all I see Thy hand I find;
How great Thy wisdom, pow'r and might,
How deep Thy love, how beautiful Thy light
Take Thou my life into Thy care,
And let it blossom pure and fair;
Fill Thou my heart with love divine,
That from my soul Thy light may ever shine.
--H. Frederick Davis
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