One cannot read a biography of Abraham Lincoln or a history of the Civil War without encountering the White House ball of February 5, 1862. Many in Washington considered the Lincolns to be socially inferior, coming, as they did, from “The West.” Mary Todd Lincoln invested a great deal of effort and money in renovating the White House, and the gala ball she planned was intended to show the world that she was a woman of taste and social standing.
But, Washington being Washington, politicians were soon debating whether it was appropriate to have music and dancing in time of war. (One might better ask if it was appropriate to debate music and dancing in time of war.) On February 4, 1862, Lincoln wrote to the man who some might say was the greatest politician in Washington. He had been close to Presidents Taylor, Pierce, Filmore, and Buchanan. He had greeted Lincoln when he stepped of the train on his arrival in Washington. He was to lead the procession at the dedication at Gettysburg. He was to serve in his post well into the Grant administration. He built a Washington institution that continues to this very day.
That man was Francis M. Scala, leader of the Marine Band. At Lincoln’s direction, Scala and the Marine Band performed at the fated White House ball.
At the Lincoln Museum in Springfield there is a poignant display dedicated to this event. The night that was to be Mary’s triumph instead portended tragedy. The Lincoln’s son, Willie, had taken ill from typhoid fever, from which he was to die in two weeks. The display shows Mary at Willie’s bedside caring for him. Lincoln stands in the doorway, checking on them. Through the door one hears talking and laughter and music. A sign explains the display and states the music that night included the “Mary Todd Lincoln Polka.” But that is not the music you hear. The Mary Todd Lincoln Polka has been something of a phantom.
But Jane Gastineau of the Lincoln Collection of the Allen County (Indiana) Public Library found the manuscript. From the archives of the Marine Band in Washington, via Col. Albert C. Jeman in Vermont, she provided several pages of almost illegible manuscript containing an arrangement of a piece by Donizetti. But at the bottom of each page were 32 measures of music by Francis M. Scala titled simply, “Mary Polka.” Evanston attorney Michael Poulos transcribed and arranged this music for a small ensemble consisting of members of the Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra, and he lead its performance in a concert in Representative Hall of the Old State Capitol in Springfield, Illinois on President’s Day weekend, 2013. The concert, Lincoln and His America, featured the Chicago Bar Association Chorus under the direction of Rebecca Patterson.
The Mary Polka, or Mary Todd Lincoln Polka as it is usually called, has finally emerged from history and legend. It is an intriguing piece, moving from major to minor to major, from happy to sad, to fanciful, an eerily accurate musical portrait of Mary’s mercurial moods.
The recording here is from a concert on April 14, 2013 (the 148th anniversary of Lincoln’s assassination) at St. James Cathedral in Chicago where Lincoln once attended a service. It is performed by The Capitol Orchestra comprised mostly of members of the Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra, David Katz, Music Director.
Joanne W. Burne, piccolo and flute
John Vishneski III, clarinet
Michael D. Poulos, trumpet
Arthur G. Carvajal, trumpet
Stephan Metzger, percussion
Jennifer Zlotow, piano
Emily A. Chen, violin
Tony Krempa, violin
Kate Swisher, viola
Douglas Wilber, cello
Dirk VanKoughnett, bass
Jack Vishneski, recording engineer
Arrangement and article © 2013, Michael D. Poulos, Esq., ASCAP
(One of the founders of ASCAP was the son of a member of Scala’s band. The son’s name was John Philip Sousa.)