Ann S. Bryan Born:  August 3, 1905 Died:  September 16, 1999 WSM Grand Ole Opry WSM Nashville, TN

About The Artist Anne Smith Bryan was a native of Nashville, Tennessee. Her parents were Worcester Allen (a surgeon) and Emma Horatia Berry Bryan. Her obitary in 1999 indicated she graduated from Bryun Mawr College and Texas Christian University and the Jacquest Dalcroze Institute of Eurythmics in Geneva, Switzerland. She was a prize winning piano student of Dr. Alexander Raab from Austria. She was said to have been an extensive world traveler, having visited over a hundred countries. She appeared on the WSM Grand Ole Opry on January 2, 1926. She was on from 9:00pm to 9:30pm and was a pianist. She appears to have took to the piano at a very early age. In 1921, when she was 16 years old, she had been able to see French piano player Alfred Cortot give a piano recital. She was so impressed, she wrote a poem dedicated to him. Word got back to him and he wrote her a long note in return and sent along an autographed picture as well. In his note, he told her "...whose charming poetry will be a pleasant souvenir of my first appearance in Nashville." Her poem: To Alfred Cortot By Anne S. Bryan The Tennessean, March 6, 1921 With fingers swift and strong and true He played the list of numbers through. And then some encores — two or three He gave the audience graciously. They marveled at his subtle power, His mighty octaves made them cower. But his sweet, piercing, crystal tone Gained him the world — all for his own. They thrilled as by some unseen force Of strange, sublime, mysterious source. In all he played a charming way And held the audience in his sway. Our research did reveal that Alfred Cortot gave a performance at the Ryman Auditorium on February 26, 1921. He was promoting the new "Duo-Art Reproducing Piano"; tickets to the concert were free at the O. K. Houck Piano Company in Nashville. On April 8, 1936, she married Lt. Robert Opie Lindsay of the U. S. Army in Chattanooga, TN. He was a flier in World War I. At the time of his marriage, he was a member of the One Hundred and Fifth Observation Squadron of the National Guard. She wore her grandmother's wedding gown. Her picture in the gown was published in the Nashville Banner on April 10, 1936 Her husaband a founding member of the Civil Aeronatuics Administration, the forerunner of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and was part of the development of Berry Field in Nashville, Tennessee. The couple had one daughter, Anne Bryan Lindsay, who died two years prior to her mother's passing. He passed away in August 1952 in Fort Worth, Texas. Credits & Sources To Alfred Cortot; Anne S. Bryan; March 6, 1921; The Tennessean; Nashville, TN Wears Grandmother's Wedding Gown; April 10, 1936; Nashville Banner; Nashville, TN Obituary: Anne Bryan Lindsay; September 22, 1999; The Tennessean; Nashville, TN

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