Introduction

Introduction

Biography

Jacob was the son of farm­er George G. Hall and Eli­za­beth Tho­mas, and hus­band of Eli­za­beth Fran­ces Bow­man.

He at­tend­ed sing­ing schools taught by Ti­mo­thy Funk when he was a boy.

As his love of mu­sic pro­gress­ed, he earned mo­ney by trap­ping quail and bought a Ger­man ac­cor­di­on. He soon learned to play one part while sing­ing an­oth­er. Af­ter he and his bro­ther joint­ly pur­chased an or­gan, he taught him­self to play hymn tunes, Gos­pel songs, and an­thems.

He went on to stu­dy mu­sic the­ory, har­mo­ny, and com­po­si­tion in Har­ris­on­burg and else­where, and in 1877 at­tend­ed a Nor­mal Mu­sic School in New Mar­ket, Vir­gin­ia, taught by Ben­ja­min Un­seld and P. J. Mer­ges.

Afterward, he par­tnered with H. T. War­tman for two years to con­duct sing­ing schools and con­ven­tions. In 1890, Hall at­tend­ed Da­na’s Mu­sic­al In­sti­tute in War­ren, Ohio, and a nor­mal school run by George & F. W. Root at Sil­ver Lake, New York.

He lat­er served as prin­ci­pal of the Na­tion­al Nor­mal School of Mu­sic.

Works

• Hall’s Songs of Home, 1885
• The Crown­ing Day, with James Rue­bush & Al­dine Kief­fer (Day­ton, Vir­gin­ia: Rue­bush-Kief­fer, 1894)
• The Sac­red Hym­nal (Day­ton, Vir­gin­ia: Rue­bush-Kief­fer, 1899)
• The Star of Beth­le­hem (Day­ton, Vir­gin­ia: Rue­bush-Kief­fer)
• Musical Mill­ion (as­sist­ant ed­it­or)
• Spirit of Praise, with Will­iam Kirk­pat­rick & Charles Case (Day­ton, Vir­gin­ia: Rue­bush-Kief­fer, 1911)
• Hall’s Quar­tettes for Men, 1912
• Biography of Gos­pel Song and Hymn Writ­ers (New York: Flem­ing H. Re­vell, 1914)