Events Gallery 12/06/2023

Mozart and Marteney  A Musical Program

On December 6th 2023, the Harvard Historical Society held its Annual Meeting at 7:00 p.m. at the Still River Baptist Church Meetinghouse, followed at 7:30 by a Mozart and Marteney Program. The program started with a brief slide show displaying the methods and processes used to make Mozart-era reproduction oboes by Eugene Marteney, a longtime resident of Harvard until his passing in 2008.  Mr. Marteney went to painstaking measures to create historically accurate late 18th century oboes.

One of his reproductions was purchased by The Smithsonian for use in playing period music with authentic sound!  After the slide show, we will have a woodwind trio and a choral quartet performing music from Mozart and Bach. There will be delicious refreshments afterward, also honoring the love of chocolate and German wine, enjoyed by Mozart and Eugene Marteney.  Some of the tools and pieces Mr. Marteney used and some of the musical instruments will be on display as well.

Eugene Marteney in his workshop.

Eugene played oboe, the English horn and oboe d’amore with the Concord Symphony, the Merrimack Symphony (Nashua, NH), Thayer Symphony Orchestra (Lancaster) and Symphony Pro Musica (Hudson).  Gene was also known in Harvard for being one of the original founders of our 4th of July Festival activities.  He and his wife Arline, were issued a summons by then police officer Charlie Waite, to form a committee to plan the 4th of July festivities as we know them today.

Eugene insisted that the pie-eating contest must be blueberry to make the biggest mess possible!  He was also an active member of the Harvard Congregational Church for decades.  In addition, Eugene was an avid photographer who took many photos around town, including the Colonial Day parade, the 4th of July activities and the December 1964 fire of the Unitarian Church.  These photos are now part of the Historical Society archives.