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Ives’s father had been a bandleader during the Civil War. His father also directed bands, choirs, and orchestras in their hometown, in addition to teaching music theory. Ives’s and his brother learned music at a young age from their father, giving Ives an early understanding of harmony and counterpoint. His father encouraged experimentation, an attitude that would pervade his music.
Ives began working as the church organist when he was 14. As a teenager, he wrote hymns and songs for church services. He also composed Variations on “America” for a Fourth of July event. Even by today’s standards, it is considered a challenging piece, but Ives considered it “as much fun as playing baseball.”
After graduating in 1898, Ives embarked on a career in life insurance. He worked in that field for many years, composing music as a hobby. He was well regarded in his field, laying the foundation for modern estate planning. His book, Life Insurance with Relation to Inheritance Tax, was well received.
Many of Ives’s compositions were based on American folk and popular music, such as ragtime, military marches, patriotic songs, and revival hymns. He also put themes such as baseball to music – one of his 27 piano pieces is entitled Some Southpaw Pitching. Some of his music is reminiscent of the circus parades and revival meetings he heard while growing up in Danbury, Connecticut.
Ives never earned his living through
music. He composed during his leisure time, and privately published his
creations. Though his music was largely unknown during his lifetime,
he was later regarded as the leading composer of 20th-century art
music. He is considered an “American original.”