Charles Wenham Smith (1851–1920) was born on Christmas Day in London, England. As a boy choirster at St George’s
Chapel at Windsor Castle for five years, he sang and studied music with Sir George Elvey and later with Edward J Hopkins of the Temple
Church and Charles Steggall. He emigrated to America where he held several organist positions including St Patrick’s Cathedral
in Newark, New Jersey, St James Catholic Church in New York City, and the famous Plymouth Church in Brooklyn (1888-1890), when this
piece was published. He was a founder of the American Guild of Organists. This piece was dedicated
to the popular New York City organist,
George Morgan, who had had
several of his
own pieces published.
Old Folks at Home was composed by Stephen Collins Foster (1826–1864) after he returned to Pittsburgh
and had signed a contract with Christy’s Minstrels. It was published in October 1851 by Firth, Pond & Co, a New York City
publisher with whom Foster began his professional career in December 1849. The original publication is titled “Old Folks
at Home. Ethiopian Melody as sung by Christy’s Minstrels. Written and composed by E[dwin] P Christy.” The attribution
of authorship did not change until the copyright of the song was renewed in 1879 by Oliver Ditson. This song, one of Foster’s
most popular, garnered the largest income for Foster and for his wife and daughter after his death. Its popularity inspired three
organists to write organ variations within a span of two years: Flagler
in 1887, Dudley Buck, and this one by Wenham Smith in 1888. Moderately difficult.
