Helen Steele

Helen Steele was an American performer, composer, and pianist born on June 21, 1894, in Enfield, Connecticut, to Agnes McCane and George Steele. Her Broadway career spanned from 1913 to 1928, during which she appeared in productions including the musical Veils and The Beggar Student.

Steele pursued formal musical training at Wellesley College and Mount Holyoke, where she completed a Bachelor of Arts degree. On September 12, 1921, she married Wager Swayne Kelly, a voice teacher who also went by the name Wager Harris. Kelly died in 1944.

Beyond her stage work, Steele built a career as a composer and collaborative musician. She served as pianist for tenor Enrique Ruiz, accompanying him in recitals, and the two worked together on several compositions. Her vocal works include "Duerme," "Legend of Befana," "Let's Planet," and "El Afilador" (The Scissors Grinder), the last of which was composed with Ruiz and Guido Vandt. She also arranged "Lagrimas" (Blue Tears), a piece with Spanish text and music by Ruiz and English text by Vandt, and co-composed "May Our Love Today Live Tomorrow" with Ruiz, using a text by Vandt.

Steele is particularly remembered for America, Our Heritage, a composition for band and chorus arranged by Hawley Ades. The work was performed live on the Ed Sullivan Show on August 17, 1969, and was recorded by the Washington D.C. Festival Chorus. Her music was published by Shawnee Press, Inc., and she held membership in the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP).