Grace Kerns | |
---|---|
Born |
Norfolk, Virginia, United States | August 27, 1879
Died | September 10, 1936 near
Williamsburg, Virginia, United States | (aged 57)
Other names | Miriam Clark, Grace Nash, Katherine Clark, Catherine Clarke, Jane Clarke |
Occupation | Singer |
Grace Miriam Kerns (August 27, 1879 [1] – September 10, 1936) was an American soprano, called the "Nightingale of the Trenches" for her popularity during World War I. She made over a hundred recordings during the 1910s.
Kerns was born in Norfolk, Virginia, [2] and lived in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, a daughter in the large family of Andrew Jackson Kerns and Catharine Marinda Clark Kerns. Her father was a saw manufacturer. [1] She studied voice with Emma Cecilia Thursby. [3] She studied in Europe in the summer of 1913. [4]
Kerns began her professional singing career as a church and oratorio soloist in New York City. [5] [6] She made over a hundred recordings during the 1910s, for Victor, Columbia, Okeh, Empire, and Edison labels. [7] [8] She recorded duets with other singers including Margaret Keyes, Reed Miller, John Barnes Wells, Nevada Van der Veer, and Henry Burr. [7] [9] [10] She sometimes sang under other names, including Miriam Clark and Grace Nash. [11]
During World War I, she went to France to entertain the troops, [11] [12] earning the nickname "Nightingale of the Trenches." [13] After the war, she returned to church soloist work, and giving concerts. [14] [15] She also sang in radio broadcasts. [16] In her later years she taught voice at Randolph-Macon Women's College in Virginia. [17] [18]
Kerns, her brother, and her nephew all died in a car accident near Williamsburg, Virginia in 1936. [18]
Grace Kerns | |
---|---|
Born |
Norfolk, Virginia, United States | August 27, 1879
Died | September 10, 1936 near
Williamsburg, Virginia, United States | (aged 57)
Other names | Miriam Clark, Grace Nash, Katherine Clark, Catherine Clarke, Jane Clarke |
Occupation | Singer |
Grace Miriam Kerns (August 27, 1879 [1] – September 10, 1936) was an American soprano, called the "Nightingale of the Trenches" for her popularity during World War I. She made over a hundred recordings during the 1910s.
Kerns was born in Norfolk, Virginia, [2] and lived in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, a daughter in the large family of Andrew Jackson Kerns and Catharine Marinda Clark Kerns. Her father was a saw manufacturer. [1] She studied voice with Emma Cecilia Thursby. [3] She studied in Europe in the summer of 1913. [4]
Kerns began her professional singing career as a church and oratorio soloist in New York City. [5] [6] She made over a hundred recordings during the 1910s, for Victor, Columbia, Okeh, Empire, and Edison labels. [7] [8] She recorded duets with other singers including Margaret Keyes, Reed Miller, John Barnes Wells, Nevada Van der Veer, and Henry Burr. [7] [9] [10] She sometimes sang under other names, including Miriam Clark and Grace Nash. [11]
During World War I, she went to France to entertain the troops, [11] [12] earning the nickname "Nightingale of the Trenches." [13] After the war, she returned to church soloist work, and giving concerts. [14] [15] She also sang in radio broadcasts. [16] In her later years she taught voice at Randolph-Macon Women's College in Virginia. [17] [18]
Kerns, her brother, and her nephew all died in a car accident near Williamsburg, Virginia in 1936. [18]