Career
She was the most prolific of that group, and "Wake, Lady Mine", written in 1845, is one of her most impressive works. Augusta Browne Garrett was a female composer, publisher, author, and trailblazer during a time when men dominated each of those fields. Born in 1820 in Dublin, Ireland, she is celebrated as "the most prolific woman composer in America before 1870".
She composed over 200 works for piano and voice in addition to numerous hymns and secular pieces.
In her lifetime, she was able to create and keep a presence in the forefront of the music scene long before other women composers were able to get a foot in the door. Browne did so by her own volition, driven by the desire to write and produce music for the masses.
She often collaborated with either men or women, creating musical settings to accompany lyrics written by her musical partner. She was unabashedly dedicated to her opinions, and was willing to express even those that rebutted common beliefs and interests at the time.
One of her most famous articles criticized the popular "minstrel music" of the mid-1800s, calling it "melodic trash", an idea which at the time made more than a few people cringe.
Despite this affront, her article was reprinted in several music journals – quite a feat for a woman at that time. Augusta Browne now is buried in New York’s Green-Wood Cemetery where Leonard Bernstein, Horace Greeley, and Boss Tweed are interred.
