Charles G. Dawes: An Accidental Music Sensation

In July 1921, Fritz Kreisler, the most famous violinist in the world, went on tour. For the encore at his concerts, he chose a short waltzlike violin and piano piece titled Melody in A Major, written by a Chicagoan composer whose name had never before appeared in a major concert program: Charles G. Dawes.

Kreisler selected the work without knowing that its composer had the previous week been appointed the country’s first ever director of the Budget Bureau by President Warren G. Harding, or that he would one day become vice president of the United States. As Kreisler later explained:

JM

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John Masko

John Masko is a writer from New Hampshire specializing in foreign policy, business, and the arts.

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In July 1921, Fritz Kreisler, the most famous violinist in the world, went on tour. For the encore at his concerts, he chose a short waltzlike violin and piano piece titled Melody in A Major, written by a Chicagoan composer whose name had never before appeared in a major concert program: Charles G. Dawes.

Kreisler selected the work without knowing that its composer had the previous week been appointed the country’s first ever director of the Budget Bureau by President Warren G. Harding, or that he would one day become vice president of the United States. As Kreisler later explained: